All photos: Laura Hobbs, Fayetteville Flyer

Hubs and I have the same sweet hankering first thing in the morning. Before any eggs are scrambled or bacon is fried, we both need a little nibble of something sweet. It could be a spoonful of peanut butter, it could be a bite of leftover dessert from the night before – but the morning isn’t complete without something sweet. Oooh,that rhymed!

Of course, we could just cut to the chase and have sweets for breakfast, which happens more often than we’d like to admit. Even worse, we’ll have sweets alongside our breakfast, which is no wonder why I’m trying to convince myself that it’s my jeans that are shrinking, and not something else that’s growing.

Buttermilk Biscuits

There’s been a yellowed, smudged index card stuffed inside of my trusty red recipe folder for quite some time, with my mom’s all-caps handwriting neatly setting out the ingredients and steps for her orange breakfast ring. The last time this card was used was Christmas of 2001, when Hubs and I were living in sin on South Church Street in Fayetteville with our rockstar roomie, Bev. My parents came over Christmas morning and brought with them my mom’s orange breakfast ring, along with her recipe for me to keep – one of the first in my collection.

While the end result is worthy of a standing ovation, the steps to get there are mind-numbingly simple – dipping canned biscuits into melted butter, rolling them in sugar and orange zest, and piling them all into a Bundt pan. There are many variations to this recipe; some like to use sugar and cinnamon, some even involve chocolate. But I love the sweet tang of the orange, and the butter’s rich compliment to its flavor.

While the ring bakes, you can work on the icing, which is a simple mixture of cream cheese (or mascarpone, for you fancy pants out there), powdered sugar and orange juice, and takes less than five minutes to make. You can spend the rest of your time sipping your coffee, reading the paper, or wowing your significant other or pet with your best Steve Inskeep or Renee Montagne impression.
Of course, this delicious ring is best for a crowd; but if there are just two of you, refrigerate it for the remainder of the week and treat yourself to a bite or two – or ten – each morning. It’s a wonderful way to wake up your taste buds. Enjoy!

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Orange Breakfast Ring

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Ingredients:
1 c. sugar
3 Tbs. orange zest
2 (12 oz.) cans refrigerated biscuits (preferably Grands)
1/3 c. butter, melted
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. powdered sugar
2 Tbs. orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a bowl, combine the sugar and orange zest, using your fingers to rub together until thoroughly combined. Separate the biscuits and roll them into balls. Set up an assembly line of the melted butter, sugar mixture and biscuits. Dip each rolled biscuit in the melted butter, then roll in the sugar mixture and place in a Bundt pan. Repeat until all of the biscuits are in the pan. Pour any leftover butter and any leftover sugar mixture over the biscuits. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, until the biscuits are puffed and browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes before inverting onto a serving platter.

Using a standing or hand mixer, combine the cream cheese, powdered sugar and orange juice in a mixing bowl, whisking thoroughly to combine. Pour the icing over the inverted ring and serve.

Photos

Laura Hobbs
Laura is a regular contributor for the Fayetteville Flyer. She was born and raised in Fayetteville, but has recently moved to Boulder, Colorado. She is a self-proclaimed foodie and avid cook. For more from Laura, check out her food blog, Prana & Pie.