• Donut mess with our Sunday morning treats

    July 30, 2017 / No Comments

    During my 43 years on this planet, I’ve lived all over the United States. Moving around has exposed me to different people, cultures, music and food.

    And living in New England has given me an appreciation for the humble pastry known as the doughnut.

    Yes, there are literally hundreds of Dunkin Donut shops here, and at least two within a 5-mile radius of my house. But there are also local donut shoppes, run by family bakers who eke out a living by making these delicious pastries from scratch. To honor their efforts, M and I scour the web for lists of the best examples. Then we put ’em to the test.

    Green Mountain Orchards has the best apple cider doughnut I’ve ever tasted. In the fall, we pick buckets of apples from the trees and haul up piles of pumpkins from the patch. Once our wagon is full, we hit the barn, attack the doughnut display and pay for our haul. The still-warm doughnuts are always gone by the time we reach home.

    At Klemm’s Bakery, we discovered the joys of the simple cinnamon cake doughnut. It’s a surprising light confection, not too sweet and just enough fried crispness to highlight the spice.

    Recently I drove north to check out Brothers Donuts. Although their treats are fresh and tasty, you have to get there early to snag some (they go fast). These doughnuts are particularly notable for their height and breadth. Even a simple glazed doughnut was no less than 2 inches tall. And the apple doughnut was so jam-packed with filling that it ballooned to the size of a softball.

    There are many more bakeries to visit, and we’ll be sure to do so in the coming months and years. In the meantime, Sunday is here. There’s a white bakery box on the dining room table. Time to end the weekend with some doughnuts, tea/coffee and a good book.

  • In which Dan Pashman makes me eat things

    July 13, 2015 / No Comments

    I’m incredibly suggestible when it comes to food. Mention pizza, and suddenly, I have a craving. If I just hear the sizzle of fajitas as a waitress walks by, I instantly want some. And don’t even get me started on the evils of bakery scents. I could walk into a bakery, totally full from a meal, and the moment that delicious yeasty, warm bread-y smell hits, I’m a lost cause.

    So you can imagine how well I resist the urge to devour treats while listening to Dan Pashman’s podcast “The Sporkful.” In particular, the episode titled, “Donuts Old School, Donuts New, Donuts Glazed, Donuts Blue.”

    Needless to say, I didn’t resist at all. Next thing I knew, I was in the kitchen, prepping dough, mixing a bowl of cinnamon and sugar and heating up the oil. At 4 a.m., with the rest of the world asleep, man… those doughnuts were good.

    Thanks, Dan.

    Photo by Cheryl Leinonen.

  • dream doorway

    Weekend fun and dreams come true

    June 15, 2014 / No Comments

    Today was a pretty good day. It was a weekend, of course, which meant I got to hang out with M, the love of my life. Few things are more enjoyable than that. We spent several hours in bed, drove down to Massachusetts and ate barbecue, heard the news that one of our closest friends had gotten engaged (woo hoo!), saw a double-feature at the movies then drove home under a full vanilla moon.

    Due to our schedules, I rarely have the opportunity to sleep with my husband. And when I do, I generally fall asleep faster and rest more fully. Today, I didn’t sleep for very long, but the dreams were tasty. One involved going to a Dunkin Donuts and ordering an entire box. The dream version of me stood in front of a fully-stocked counter of treats and picked out all the ones I wanted to try. Before I could take the first bite, however, I woke up.

    On the way home from the movies, we stopped by a DD for coffee. Lo and behold, the Munchkin racks were newly stocked (a rare occurrence late at night), so I ordered a small box just for the hell of it. And thus, in the course of just 12 short hours, I made a dream came true.

    (Photo by Palto)