Just getting this doughnut list up to date!
Posted January 6, 2017
I thought it was time for an update on the doughnut chronicles! In the past year, I've experienced some INSANELY delicious doughnuts - from the London Fog filled doughnut at Glory Hole in Toronto to the Gooey Butter Cake Donut from Strange Donuts in St. Louis - doughnuts continue to be my mission in every city!
Posted June 3, 2016
What came first, the doughnut or the doughnut hole?
You would probably be inclined to answer doughnut, but in fact, the term "doughnut" was first used to refer to what we now know as doughnut holes. Doughnuts entered the American lexicon in 1809 in Washington Irving's History of New York:
An enormous dish of balls of sweetened dough, fried in hog's fat, and called doughnuts, or olykoeks.
If you're anything like me, you've struggled to decide whether or not you should type doughnut or donut. You've probably wondered why the heck there are even two different spellings to begin with. Same.
I did some research and the spelling "donut" first appeared in the late 1800s as a contraction of the original "doughnut." It wasn't until Dunkin Donuts was founded in 1950 that the alternate "donut" spelling became more popular.
Still, "doughnut" is the preferred spelling so I suppose I should stop being lazy and opt for all 8 letters when I'm writing about these delicious desserts.
Why the weird discussion? Because today is NATIONAL DOUGHNUT/DONUT DAY in the US and unlike many of our random food holidays, it turns out that this one has some historic importance. Actually, 75+ years of history!
National Doughnut Day began in 1938 as a campaign by the Salvation Army to remember those in their ranks who served doughnuts to American soldiers stationed in France during World War 1. Around 250 volunteers traveled to France to provide baked goods to Allied troops - doughnuts were an instant favorite (those Allied soldiers had good taste). These women who volunteered eventually became known as the "Doughnut Dollies."
In honor of this special holiday, go to one of the many chains participating with free donuts and other perks. And read on for a round up of the many doughnut shops I've reviewed. What are you waiting for? Start that doughnut bucket list today!
Psycho Donuts
San Jose, California
Doughnut Plant
New York, New York
Oh, 2014 pictures...
Dough Loco
New York, New York - CLOSED
Flex
New York, New York
Dough
New York, New York
Glam Doll Donuts
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Stan's Donuts
Chicago, Illinois
Glazed & Infused
Chicago, Illinois
Union Square Donuts
Boston, Massachusetts
Voodoo Doughnut
Austin, Texas
Gourdough's Donuts
Austin, Texas
Habit Doughnut Dispensary
Denver, Colorado
The Doughnut Project
New York, New York
Official review to come, but I. LOVE. THEM. because they are so unique and not overly sweet!
Underwest Donuts
New York, New York
No official review- but I was a big fan of these guys! They operate out of a CAR WASH but there donuts are cakey and delicious with a good glaze to dough ratio!
Doughology
Lynbrook, New York
No official review but I love that these are cute and little so you can try lots and lots! And they're customizable too!
The Cinnamon Snail
New York, New York
Paula's Donuts
Buffalo, New York
Nibble Inc.
Troy, New York
The Donut Shop
Old Forge, NY
The Donut Shop has been around for 50 years! They make old fashioned donuts - offering just plain and cinnamon sugar. Not my favorite, and not exciting, but still addictive-ly sweet and satisfying after a 3 mile run!
Huron Mountain Bakery
Marquette, MI
I wasn't a huge fan of these donuts - I didn't enjoy the taste of the dough or the fillings and frostings.
Pharaoh's Donuts
St. Louis, Missouri
Gotta admit - these vegan donuts are my least favorite of the heavy-hitters in NYC. I'm just not a fan of the dough's flavor! It could be because they're vegan and not what I'm used to. But for people unable to eat a traditional doughnut - these come pretty damn close!
Strange Donuts
St. Louis, Missouri
WOW. I was absolutely blown away by how much I loved these donuts and they are hands down some of my favorites EVER.
After 23 days in St. Louis, I finally had a half dozen Strange Donuts delivered to me (and only me) at the stadium. While I don't know exactly what each of them was, I can give you a pretty good idea of what I sampled.
I loved Strange Donuts so much because they were cake donuts, incredibly most, with super sweet glazes. The flavors were simple but the dough was incredible!
Gooey Butter Cake Doughnut
This was unreal. Tied with the Tres Leches doughnut from Doughnut Plant for all time favorite cake doughnut ever. The powdered sugar on top was the finishing touch on doughy perfection - sweet, but not sickeningly, with a slight citrus hint!
Glazed, Glazed with Sprinkles
The vanilla cake paired with the melt in your mouth glaze made me a fan of what I would normally consider "lame" doughnuts.
Chocolate Glazed
I think I preferred the vanilla cake, but the chocolate cake had the same moist consistency with good cocoa flavor!
Butterfinger
If you're a chocolate fan, this should be your order. Chocolate cake, chocolate glaze, sprinkled with Butterfinger crumbs and injected with some extra frosting in the middle for good measure!
The Holy Donut
Portland, Maine
These donuts are made with POTATOES in the dough! I really enjoyed these, and there were TONS of flavor options. I wanted to love them MORE, because there's a SWEET POTATO doughnut, but they didn't break the top 3 for me.
They are definitely worth a visit if you're in Maine though, and I highly recommend the ginger glazed sweet potato donut!
Sidecar Doughnuts
Costa Mesa, California
Donut Bar
San Diego, California
Peace, Love & Little Donuts
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rise Biscuits Donuts
Raleigh, North Carolina
East Main & Main - Port Jefferson, New York
Long Island is finally get involved in the doughnut game!
Dilla's Delights - Detroit, Michigan
Banana pudding cake donut, HOLLER!
(*Adorable donut earrings from my coworker!)
Blackbird Doughnuts - Boston, Massachusetts
Citrus old fashioned! GET IT!!!
Kane's Donuts - Boston, Massachusetts
This was Kayla's introduction to doughnut tasting and I was so happy that she got totally into it with me. We started with one - but that was just a lie we were telling ourselves.
Dough - Tampa, Florida
More than anything, what I appreciated about Dough was that they gave me the opportunity to have a ridiculous doughnut photo shoot with my friends portrait mode. And the fact that their creme brulee dooughnut was ridic.
La Donuteria
Barcelona, Spain
Crunch Donut Factory
Las Vegas, Nevada
Doughnut Vault
Chicago, Illinois
Glory Hole Donuts
Toronto, Ontario
The Earl Grey. Incredible.
#BLESSED - and always taking new reccomendations!
YOUR TURN:
WHAT DOUGHNUT PLACES DO I NEED TO ADD TO MY BUCKET LIST?
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE DOUGHNUT SHOP?
DO YOU LIKE YOUR DOUGHNUTS FLUFFY OR CAKEY?
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2019 was pretty great. I always like ending the year with a trip down memory lane!