Donuts Made Easy with the CoolDaddy Fryer

My husband has always wanted a deep fryer.  After 18 years of marriage, I finally let my guard down and we got one.  Deep frying can be so unhealthy.  Of course, whenever I go to Islands or Red Robin, I’m always ordering my french fries extra crispy.  The thing is, I don’t often order fries, so it’s not so bad.  I feared having a deep fryer at home meant we’d deep fry a lot.  So far we have had 3 deep frying experiences in two months.  I guess that’s not so bad.  Though it’s hard for my husband and I to stomach the amount of oil that needs to be used at one time.

Nonetheless, I have to say, I have been amazed at how good our fried foods have tasted.  We have made meaty potato chips (like the kind I LOVE at Montgomery Inn in Cincinnati), golden brown steak fries, delicately crispy egg rolls, and donuts…or really, Cronuts (cross between a donut and a croissant).

We are a family that loves to entertain and with all of the baseball, NFL, and college games going on right now, making fun fried food snacks seems like a great fit while watching the games.  Although we intend on serving fresh french fries and potato chips for our hungry crowds, it’s our Cronuts that will cause our friends to jump to their feet, wander into the kitchen, and ask for more.  You see, thanks to a good friend of mine, Silvia, she told me the ticket to making donuts fast and easy.

How to Make A Dozen Donuts in less than 10 Minutes

Silvia suggested I used Pillsbury Dough to make our donuts.  She recommended the Pillsbury Grands, but I only had refrigerated Pillsbury Croissants on had.  Perfect, I thought, why not see what the big Cronut craze is all about, without having to travel to New York.  We rolled out the dough and my two kids and my husband each got a third of the package to create their own Cronut concoctions.

We gathered Hershey Syrup, Nestle Morsels, chopped apples, maple syrup, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and more to begin creating.

My son, the chocoholic, decided to stuff his donuts with chocolate chips.

My husband chose a “healthier” version by cutting up some apples and sprinkling them with cinnamon.

The cinnamon apple Cronut turned out fantastically, sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon on top.   Just look at the flakiness of the croissant?

My daughter and I like the simple glazed donut.  She decided to make a smaller donut with a whole in the middle.  We realized that by creating a whole in the middle, the donut cooks faster and more evenly.

Doesn’t her Cronut look delish?  She made a maple glaze on top using powdered sugar and maple syrup.  Scrumptious!

At Walmart, I looked for a deep fryer that had a large capacity, had a big window for watching the frying process, and was reasonably priced.  I ended up with the PRESTO CoolDaddy Fryer, Elite.  They call it CoolDaddy Fryer because it is supposed to be cool to the touch on the outside, minimizing burns.

CoolDaddy Fryer

Features:

• Big basket – fry up to 6 servings at a time
• Exterior handle can lower food into fryer while cover is closed
• Built-in drip cup to capture water when lid is opened
• Has automatic temperature setting, no confusion as to what temperature for which food
• Light indicator tells you when oil is ready
• Great sized window to watch frying process without having to open the lid
• Includes a charcoal air filter which absorbs frying odors and is easily replaceable
• Reasonably priced
• 1500 watts
• Removable lid for easy cleaning

Pros:

• it’s very easy to clean by removing the pot and washing it
• ability to lower the frying basket into the heated oil with the lid close tight to avoid splattering
• nice wide-sized frying basket to give maximum exposure to items to be fried
• the house did not smell like a fast food joint afterwards, the charcoal air filter works!
• has a vent to let out steam
• is inexpensive considering how many servings as you can fry at once

Cons:

• the CoolDaddy fryer’s outside shell  is still hot, but you won’t burn yourself if you remove your hand quickly
• you can still burn yourself badly if you touch the inside bowl
• no built-in timer to help you watch your frying cook times

Our Fun with the CoolDaddy Fryer Elite

As I mentioned earlier, one of the downfalls of fryers is the large amount of oil you need to use.  The  good news is that you can re-use the oil, you just need to finitely strain it to get out any particles.  One of the tips I read online for the CoolDaddy fryer was to buy a metal mesh spatter guard from a dollar store and cut it to fit into the bottom part of your fryer.  When you’re done, and the oil has cooled, lift up the splatter guard to catch any frying debris.  This helps keep your oil cleaner for re-use.

The CoolDaddy Fryer Elite  is available in Walmart stores and at Walmart.com for $34.92.

A Mom’s Perspective

I have tried frying some foods before on the stove and it always results in a mess all over my stove as well as some splattering burning oil on my arms.  No thanks.  With the CoolDaddy fryer, the fryer is ready to go in 10 minutes and there is no messy splattering with it’s helpful lid with the big window.  And in fact, we kept the lid open while we fried the donuts and did not encounter splattering.  Our kids had a blast making and frying their own Cronuts.  The layering in the dough and crispness of the fried Cronut rivaled Krispy Kreme.  And best of all, there was little mess to clean up.

We are anxiously awaiting to have guests over so we can offer them the same custom Cronut experience we had.  It’s fun, fast, and incredibly delicious.  The CoolDaddy Fryer is yet just another great small appliance we found at Walmart for a reasonable price.  Other appliances we love and continue to use include our fresh Iced Tea Maker, Yonanas, Snow Cone Maker, Crock-Pot Casserole Crock, and Bella Linea appliances.