The Apples in My Orchard

We love donuts. Obviously, donuts are not good for you. They are tasty, though. Every time we have a chance to have donuts that are made in a specialty store or bakery, we take advantage of it.

For a while, we had a Krispy Kream in our area. While it was fun to take our young children to see the donuts made and go through the ovens and frosting machine, we felt that all the donuts tasted the same. One of my favorite donuts is a French Cruller. When made right, these donuts have large air holes inside. Wikipedia says the following about crullers, “A French cruller is a fluted, ring-shaped doughnut made from choux pastry with a light airy texture.^[3] The German Spritzkuchen is very similar, while the Dutch and Belgian sprits are baked instead of being fried.”

I guess there is a debate as to whether the french cruller is really a donut at all – they are made with different dough than your typical donut. French crullers are made with choux pastry and are fried. Some feel they are more of a pastry than a donut. The fact that some places are making French Crullers with donut dough accounts for the reason that some crullers taste and look like a “regular” doughnut inside. Such was my experience at the Krispie Kream store – their French Crullers were made to look but not taste like a cruller. In fact, all the donuts there tasted the same.

When we are in Buffalo, my sister-in-law treats us to Paula’s Donuts. This is a donut empire local to the Buffalo area. They make a large variety of donuts, although I cannot speak to the French Crullers. One of their most famous, as I understand it is their cannoli donut, filled with the Italian pastry’s cream. It was invented at Paula’s in 2019 as a fundraiser donut for the local hospice. Soon after the fundraiser, which was so successful Paula’s had trouble keeping up with demand, the cannoli donut became a permanent fixture in their stores!

I like donuts, and besides the French Cruller, I like a plain fry cake or a cinnamon twist. When I was growing up, we’d have a dozen donuts for a weekend treat. Then, I’d typically choose a jelly-filled donut. Part of what I like about donuts is that they go well with my morning tea or black coffee, too.

Do you like donuts?! If so, where do you like to buy them? What’s your favorite type?