S'mores doughnuts and a Firehouse Subs giveaway!

Who like's firehouse subs? If you do keep reading!

Now let's go back in time for a moment shall we?

Back to a time far far away before I got the hang of food blogging...

Psh, who am I kidding we could be talking about yesterday. I still have no idea what i'm doing when it comes to blogging. Half the time my pictures look horrible, and my ramblings make no sense, but hey I try.

I made these doughnuts last summer, yeah I know i'm late, which is partly why the pictures are so bad. I had no idea at how to take decent pictures back then, and while im still not great, i'm at least a little better I think.

These doughnuts may not look to pretty but for my first attempt ever at doughnuts they came out pretty alright! I was a little disappointed the chocolate didn't melt as much as I wanted it too, but they still came out pretty good. The dough was especially good, and even after they cooled down I just popped them in the microwave for a few seconds and they became light warm and fluffy once again!

Now, who's excited for my very first giveaway?! Psh, I am! The very kind people at Firehouse Subs invited me to a sub and soda pairing with the owner and founder of Firehouse Subs, which was so cool! The sandwhiches were amazing and the people were so friendly and seemed like genuinely good people. 

Now i'm not going to lie, that was the first time i'd ever been to Firehouse Subs before. I was a little hesitant about it because they are a chain, but I can honestly say I would definitely go back again! We tried 4 different subs, and out of the 4 I think the smokehouse beef and cheddar brisket was my favorite. They all were very good though, I can't say for sure!

They really do seem to try and help out the community, and they were very kind enough to give me 5 $10 dollar gift cards to giveaway to my followers!

Wanna try your hand at scoring one? Just leave a comment with your first name and email address below and you'll be entered to win. For additional entries post the link to this page on facebook or twitter and leave a comment telling me you did so.

Contest entries end February 5th, winner will be contacted February 6.

Contest officially over.

And if you do win I suggest you go and try a sandwhich you've never had before! Change it up and maybe find a new favorite!

Thanks guys and good luck!

S'mores Doughnuts

(Recipe adapted from Tartelette)

Makes 8 to 12

Basic Raised Dough:

3 tablespoons (22grams) active dry yeast, divided 

1 cup of whole milk, heated to 110ºF, divided

2 to 2 1/2 cups bread flour, divided

2 tablespoons (30 grams) superfine sugar

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 egg yolks

½ stick (4 tablespoons / 2 oz) unsalted butter or vegetable shortening

vegetable oil for frying

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided

10 graham crackers, finely crushed

2 teaspoons superfine sugar

1 batch Basic Raised dough (recipe follows)

1 tablespoon milk or water

twelve 1-ounce squares milk or dark chocolate(I used Hershey's bar)

48 mini marshmallows

For the Dough

In a medium bowl, dissolve 2 tablespoons of the yeast into ¾ cup of the milk. Add ¾ cup of flour and stir to create a smooth paste. Cover and let rest in a warm spot for 30 minutes.

Combine the remaining milk and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the rested flour mixture along with the sugar, salt, vanilla, and egg yolks. Mix until smooth. Turn off the mixer and add ½ cup of the remaining flour. Mix on low for about 30 seconds. Add the butter and mix until it becomes incorporated, about 30 seconds. Switch to a dough hook and add more flour, about ¼ cup at a time with the mixer turned off, kneading the dough at medium speed between additions, until the dough pulls completely away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and not too sticky. It will be very soft and moist, but not so sticky that you can’t roll it out. You may have flour left over. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (and up to 12 hours).

Line a baking sheet with a lightly floured non-terry dish towel. Roll out the dough on a slightly floured surface to ½ inch thick. With a doughnut or cookie cutter (can use a glass, too) cut out 3-inch-diameter rounds with 1-inch-diameter holes (for filled doughnuts, don’t cut out the holes).

Place the doughnuts on the baking sheet at least 1 inch apart and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm spot to proof until they almost double in size, 5 to 20 minutes, testing at five-minute intervals. To test whether the dough is ready, touch lightly with a fingertip. If it springs back immediately, it needs more time. If it springs back slowly, it is ready. If it does not spring back at all, it has overproofed; no worries- you can punch it down and re-roll it once.

While the doughnuts are proofing, heat a heavy-bottomed pot with at least 2 inches of oil until a thermometer registers 360F. With a metal spatula, carefully place the doughnuts in the oil. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes per side or until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on a wire rack over a paper towel, and let cool before glazing.

Assembly and Fry

Stir together 3 tablespoons of the melted butter, graham crackers and sugar. Cover and set aside.

Prepare the dough as directed through the proofing stage. Roll the dough to just a bit more than 1/4 -inch thick. Cut into 3-inch diameter rounds. Roll out half of the rounds to about a 3 1/4-inch diameter. To assemble, lightly brush each wider round with the milk or water and place a square of chocolate and 4 mini marshmallows in the center of each. Top with the smaller rounds and lightly pinch to seal. Then re-cut with the same cutter to seal the edges.

Fry the doughnuts as directed and let cool for only 3 minutes. Brush each doughnut with a little melted butter, then dip into the graham cracker mixture. Serve immediately.