HearthSong ~ Mini Donut Maker Review & Giveaway

Every once in a while my husband will wake up a little early, head to the store and surprise the kids and I with donuts in the morning. It's such a fun treat for the kids. In fact, Kaelyn often asks if we can make our very own donuts right here at home. She loves to help in the kitchen, and since making donuts is something I remember doing with my mom as a child...I thought it would be a lot of fun. Searching for the best way to do this, I came across the Donut Maker on the HearthSong website.

Since 1983, HearthSong has committed themselves to providing parents with age-appropriate, wholesome, and quality playthings for children. It is their belief childhood is a vital chapter in life and a special time when children can experience as much creative, imaginative play as possible. They guarantee that each item is carefully selected for it's quality and safety...and as their motto states, their products are Toys You'll Feel Good About Giving.


By now you probably know what a big HearthSong fan I am. I love the unique variety of children's products that they offer, and couldn't have been happier to learn we were going to have the opportunity to review the Mini Donut Maker.

Features/Benefits:

• Bakes in less than 4 minutes
  
• More energy efficient than an oven
• Makes 7 mini donuts at one time
• 8" diameter
• Perfect portion size

We were excited to check out the Mini Donut Maker when it arrived. As I pulled it out of the box, I was very impressed with the quality. It's more durable than I expected and reminds me a lot of a waffle maker in appearance and the way it works.

To get started we first wiped off the baking plates with a damp rag and sprayed it with cooking oil to make it easier to get the donuts out. I have to admit that as I prepped this little appliance, I was wondering just how these donuts would turn out. The place for each of the donuts was smaller than I had expected, so I was even more excited to try it out and see the results.

Before doing anything further, Kaelyn and I decided to mix up a batch of donut batter which was a lot of fun. There is actually a recipe right in the back of the instructional manual, but I'm sure there are many others out there as well.

Once we were ready, we plugged the Donut Maker in and the ready indicator light came on. This let us know that the appliance had begun preheating. We let it pre-heat until the light went out so that the cooking plates reached the correct temperature of cooking. Now we were ready to make some donuts! YAY!

Since the Donut Maker was so hot, this is a step I did on my own while Kaelyn sat back and watched. I lifted up on the handle to open the appliance, and began pouring in a small amount of donut batter into each place and let it bake for 3-5 minutes until golden brown.

Once done, I lifted up on the handle (with an oven mit, the outside gets pretty hot too) and removed each donut with a spatula. I was amazed with how easy they removed from the baking plate. We dipped the tops into melted butter, then sugar or sprinkles and ended up with a lot of yummy little treats for breakfast (or any snack throughout the day). What a great way to make homemade donuts! They are the perfect portion size.

I'm looking forward to trying other donut recipes and using this many more times with Kaelyn. She had a blast and couldn't believe how quickly we had a plate full of donuts. It's definitely more fun, and cost-effective to get our donuts this way. Not to mention that the donuts take about 4 minutes to bake up fresh without any deep frying. I love it!

Enjoying her donut

Since the cooking plates are coated with a non-stick cooking surface, very little cleaning is required. With the use of a damp cloth I was able to clean it easily. Once it was cooled and cleaned, I slipped it in the cupboard. I love that it's small enough where it doesn't take up much space and can be stored horizontally or vertically to save on space.

We've been extremely pleased with the Mini Donut Maker! It's convenient, great quality, and a fun way to spend time in the kitchen with Kaelyn. There is also a mini cupcake maker version of this appliance which I would love to get at some point too!


Buy It: You can purchase the Mini Donut Maker for $29.98 at HearthSong.com.

Win It: One very lucky reader is going to win a Mini Donut Maker like the one we received.

Mandatory Entry - Visit HearthSong and let me know another product you'd love to have.

Extra Entries: (Only valid after the mandatory entry has been completed. Leave 1 comment for each extra entry)

1. 1 extra entry - Like HearthSong on Facebook

2. 1 extra entry - Sign up for the HearthSong Email Newsletter

3. 3 extra entries- Blog about this giveaway (linking to this post and HearthSong) and leave THREE comments with the URL to that post.

4. 1 extra entry- Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can tweet once a day for one extra entry every day)! You can copy and paste:

#WIN a Mini Donut Maker from HearthSong! #momsbalancingact http://bit.ly/dOdSLA Ends 3/18

5. 3 extra entries- Post my blog button or blog URL to your blog and leave a comment with the URL to your blog. (If it already is, leave me a comment letting me know)

6. 2 extra entries- subscribe to A Mom's Balancing Act via e-mail (found along the side column) and leave TWO comments letting me know.

7. 2 extra entries- 'Like' A Mom's Balancing Act on Facebook

8. 2 extra entries- Follow my blog publicly on Google Friend Connect

9. Enter any of my other current giveaways. Leave me a comment on which one(s)....ONE entry for EACH giveaway you enter!!

10. 1 extra entry- Share about this giveaway on your Facebook status by including a link back to this giveaway (you can do this once a day, for an extra entry every day).

Leave one comment for each entry you complete above including with each, your e-mail address (or make sure it's visible in your profile) so that I can easily contact the winner!!

This giveaway will end March 18th and is open to US and Canada

**The products for this review and giveaway were provided for free by HearthSong. All opinions are my own and were not influenced in any way. The opinions of others may differ from my own**