Plates & Places: Holey Toledough

The wait is over! Fans of Holey Toledough, Handcrafted Doughnuts can now purchase their favorite varieties at the company’s new storefront, located at 3812 W. Alexis Rd. The grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony, held on Feb. 20, was met with a huge crowd of dedicated fans as well as first timers who came to scope out the new digs and pick up a dozen or so of owner Chris Ritter’s gourmet creations.

   

Since 2015, Holey Toledough has been operating from a food truck, a popular spot at area festivals and farmers markets. As the company’s home base, the new storefront boasts colorful graphics that coordinate with the food truck and lots of stainless steel. At 500 square feet, the cozy bakery serves as a take-out location only.

Cynthia Rae purchases an assortment of the bakery’s doughnuts from Michael McGeorge.

Holey Toledough offers a set menu of 10-12 flavors throughout the year.  In addition, specialty varieties will be created for each season and holidays. The current menu includes unique flavors such as Chocolate ‘N’ Sprinkles, Maple Bacon, PB&J (vegan), Pecan Toffee, Raspberry Lemonade, French Toast and Cannoli Paczki. 

Owner Chris Ritter is pleased with the customer turnout for the opening of his shop. 

Ritter also makes to-die-for cinnamon rolls and cronuts, a buttery, glazed pastry which is a cross between a croissant and doughnut. Check their Facebook page to find out when they are available.

Holey Toledough offers creative and unique gourmet doughnuts. 

Holey Toledough is open Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday from 
7 a.m. to 2 p.m. My advice is to get there as early in the day as possible to avoid the “Sold Out” sign. They’re that good.

Emily field assists doughnut aficionados with doughnut orders during the grand opening celebration. 

For Your Sweetheart: Strawberry Cupcakes

Love is in the air! How will you and your sweetheart spend Valentine’s Day? Whether you’ll be enjoying a night on the town or a cozy evening at home, you’ll need a batch of these Strawberry Cupcakes for the finale.

When I first encountered this recipe, it was for a strawberry cake topped with strawberry frosting. I converted it to cupcakes, so I could share them more easily. I also used cream cheese frosting instead of the strawberry because well, everything is better with cream cheese frosting.

On another note, my cupcakes took a bit longer to bake, about 22 minutes, because I filled the liners almost to the top. I like big cupcakes and I cannot lie. This resulted in 15 generously sized cupcakes.

Here’s to a deliciously sweet Valentine’s Day!

Strawberry Cupcakes

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sugar

3-ounce package strawberry gelatin

½ cup buttermilk

10-ounce package frozen strawberries, thawed

Strawberry frosting

¼ cup butter, softened

1 pound of confectioners sugar

⅓ to ½ cup juice drained from strawberries

Heat oven to 350 F. Add cupcake liners to a cupcake pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs. Add oil, sugar, gelatin and buttermilk. Stir vigorously until well blended. Add the flour mixture and blend.

Drain ⅓ to ½ cup of juice from strawberries and reserve for frosting.

Fold strawberries into batter. Pour batter into cupcake liners almost to the top.

Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean.

Allow cupcakes to rest in pan for 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting, combine butter and confectioners sugar and strawberry juice. Beat until creamy.

(Recipe adapted from cooks.com)

Creating Cozy in Your Home

Today’s forecast… frigid!  And, spring seems a million years from now. But don’t despair. Just because it’s cold outside doesn’t mean your home has to be on the inside. Here are some ideas to cozy up your home and bridge that gap between holiday and spring decorating.

Add some green. I used to dread when it was time to pack away my Christmas tree and garlands. Oftentimes I’d leave them up just to avoid the winter decorating blues. 


One day I realized it wasn’t Christmas I missed, it was simply the green throughout my home. Bring back the green with a few new houseplants, a terrarium garden, forced bulbs or a moss-covered wreath in your kitchen window. Plants not only fill up cold spaces, they help purify your home.

Create a wintery centerpiece. Save the tulips and daffodils for Easter. Incorporate winter elements such as branches, pine cones or even some small birch logs into an arrangement of faux greenery. Let your decorating be inspired by the beauty of the season.

        

Light some candles. The soft glow of candlelight warms up any room. If you have kids, pets or are just leery about using real candles, flameless candles are a great substitute, and they have the same effect.


Try wrapping a strand of mini, battery-operated white lights around a topiary or plant or add some to a centerpiece. Most have timers and remotes, and some even have a few light patterns to choose from.

 

Change your accent pillows. Warm up your couch with snuggle-inducing pillows in fabrics such as faux fur, wool or velvet. Instead of buying more pillows, buy just the pillow covers and liven up what you have.

     

Fill a basket with throw blankets. Keep comfy throws handy by storing them in a large wire or woven basket near your couch. They’ll be close by for movie nights or just relaxing by the fire.

Clean up the clutter. It is said that extra “stuff” lying around can cause anxiety. So, get rid of it! Recycle catalogs, junk mail and magazines; file important papers; donate clothes you haven’t worn in awhile and pitch any expired foods.

It may still be frozen out there, but a few simple tweaks in your home will lift your spirits and send old man winter packing. 

Score Big with Italian-Style Super Bowl Snacks

We’ve barely recovered from the eating frenzy of the holiday season and we’re staring straight in the face of the 2^nd largest food consumption day of the year, Super Bowl Sunday. According to Nielsen, in recent years Americans have spent $278 million on potato chips, $198 million on frozen pizzas and $62 million on avocados in the two weeks leading up to the event. That’s a lot of guacamole!

Super Bowl Snacks

Your friendly neighborhood foodie is here to help sack those statistics with game-day goodies that will score with your home team and get you the extra point. And I’m doing it all Italian style. Kick off the party with Pepperoni Pizza Puff Pastry Bites. Gain yardage with Italian Pasta Salad and make the touchdown with Toasted Ravioli.

Pepperoni Pizza Puff Pastry Bites
Pepperoni pizza is morphed into crispy, buttery snack-size appetizers in this recipe. This one is super versatile, so feel free to cover the puff pastry with pizza toppings of your choice. Serve them along with a zesty tomato sauce for dipping.

Pepperoni Pizza Puff Pastry Bites

Makes 16 appetizers   

1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
32 slices pepperoni
¼ cup green pepper, diced
¼ cup fresh mushrooms, diced
4 slices mozzarella cheese, quartered
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 cup marinara sauce for dipping

Thaw puff pastry at room temperature for no longer than 40 minutes. Unfold. Cut pastry dough into 16 squares.

Top each square with two slices of pepperoni. Sprinkle with green peppers and mushrooms. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and top with a slice of cheese.

Bake in a 400 F oven for approximately 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately along with a bowl of warm marinara sauce.

Italian Pasta Salad
Full of color and hearty ingredients, this salad gets better with age. Assemble it the night before the game and give all those wonderful flavors time to come together.

Serves 6-8

Italian Pasta Salad

Dressing
⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salad
12 ounces penne or pasta of your choice
4 ounces salami, sliced thick and cut into quarters
4 ounces sliced pepperoni
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into cubes
¼ cup banana pepper rings
¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
¼ cup olives, halved
Basil leaves, torn

For the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk all ingredients together. Set aside.

For the salad: Cook pasta according to package directions. Allow to cool for approximately 30 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine cool pasta and the remainder of salad ingredients.

Whisk dressing once again and pour over salad. Serve immediately or overnight in an airtight container. 

  

Toasted Ravioli
Toasted ravioli was one of the first dishes I made with co-editor Mary Helen Darah in preparation for an upcoming cooking spot on WTVG a few years back. Since then, the appetizer remains a favorite and shows up frequently at my parties.

Toasted Ravioli

22-ounce package frozen cheese or beef ravioli
2 eggs, beaten
1 ½ cups bread crumbs
Olive oil for frying
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
2 cups marinara sauce

In a bowl, place eggs.  In a separate bowl, place bread crumbs.

In a medium frying pan, heat oil.

Dip each ravioli in egg, then coat with bread crumbs.

Carefully add ravioli to the frying pan and cook on both sides until brown and slightly crispy.

Top toasted ravioli with fresh parsley and sprinkle on Parmesan cheese.

Serve with warm marinara sauce on the side for dipping.

Plates & Places - Found Our Haven

Found Our Haven, a new home décor store in the heart of downtown Toledo, may be small in square footage but it's huge on inspiration and offerings. The petite boutique, created by Jennie Lewis, is filled from floor to ceiling with vintage, antique and farmhouse-style finds as well as handcrafted items.

Lewis stocks her store with her refinished furniture, hand-sewn pillows, floral and greenery arrangements, and found treasures she has given new life and purpose.  In addition, there are handmade candles, charcuterie boards, soaps, and decorative accessories made by local vendors. 

“One of my goals for the store is to provide local creators with a venue to sell their work,” said Lewis. “It’s very important to me to help and promote other vendors in my community.”

Jennie Lewis

Found Our Haven shares its bricks and mortar with Rustbelt Coffee, located at 119 N. Ontario Street. 

The multi-use destination gives visitors a perfect opportunity to grab an espresso or a chai latte, along with a raspberry Russian tea biscuit before or after shopping.

Decorating has always been a passion for Lewis. “I’ve been a creator my whole life,” she said. When Lewis was about 6 years old, she built her first clubhouse with some sheets and a hammer and then decorated it. “I didn’t build it for friends to play in. I just wanted to sit and look at how pretty it was,” she reminisced. “I’ve always wanted a store, and now my dream has come true.”

Currently, Found Our Haven is open three days per month from Thursday through Saturday. Lewis hopes to add more days soon. 

For opening days and hours, visit Found Our Haven on Facebook or Instagram.