Ella: I have concluded that donuts are my absolute favorite food. One recent night at around 11 pm, my mom could not stop talking about how all she wanted was a good old jelly donut, to which I semi-seriously told her I would make the 20 block trek to Dunkin Donuts to pick up a box if she paid me $50. Both of my parents found this hilarious. But in all seriousness, we were determined to get our donut fix that night so the two of us bundled ourselves up and called the closest Dunkin Donuts that was still open, to make sure they had jelly donuts in stock. I decided that it only made sense to try and make our own donuts, and it seemed the perfect time to do so. With the success of our chicken and waffles we realized that deep frying is not too intimidating - it's actually fun and delicious!! Also, if you’re going to eat a donut, why not eat a fried one?!?

Vivi: We went to Mexico recently and were excited by all the bright colors and patterns of the textiles, and the pretty dishware. The metal plate in the picture is from a shop in the Aurora Art and Design Center in San Miguel de Allende, and the striped placemat is from a shop in Guadalajara.

Makes 18 donuts, takes roughly 2 and 1/2 hours - between prep, waiting for the dough to rise, and cooking

2 (¼ ounce) packets of yeast
6 tbsp water heated to approx. 115 degrees
½ cup of sugar plus one tbsp
1 cup of milk
1 tsp kosher salt
2 eggs
5 tbsp vegetable shortening
5 cups of sifted all-purpose flour, more for rolling out the dough
Canola or corn oil for frying
½ cup - 1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

In the bowl of a standing mixer combine yeast, warm water and 1 tbsp sugar. Let sit for 10 minutes until yeast has activated. Add the remaining sugar, milk, salt, eggs and shortening to the activated yeast. Using the dough hook attachment, slowly add in the sifted flour with the machine on a low speed and beat until a smooth dough is formed. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, approximately one hour.

Once dough has risen, turn the dough out onto a very lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out to about a ½ inch thickness. Cut out donuts using a 3 ½ inch and 1 ½ inch doughnut cutters. Place the cut donuts and donut holes on baking trays lined with greased parchment paper. Cover the trays and let rise again for approximately 30 minutes.

Heat 2-3 inches of oil in a pot until the temperature reaches 325 degrees. Using a slotted spoon, place about 2 donuts in the oil at a time. Once golden on the first side, flip. Remove once the second side is golden, about 1-2 minutes on each side. Place fried donuts on a cooling rack with paper towels underneath, to catch extra oil that will drip off.

Mix the additional sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Once the donuts have cooled down enough to be handled, dip both sides into the cinnamon sugar and serve. They are best when they are fresh!