Looking for a Few Good Bakeries

I'm in search mode now . . . looking for a few good bakeries.  I've made my list of haunts I hope to visit, and on Friday I'll be taking to the streets to sample some of these fares in spots around Indianapolis.  I'd like to see where my taste buds can take me.

Naturally, everyone has a few favorites.  I've already visited Boyden's (southside), Daylight (southside), Hilligoss (Brownsburg), and even discovered Golden Brown (South Haven, Michigan).  But there are many others.

Have a favorite?

I'd love to hear from you.

Drop me a line if you have a favorite donut hang-out or a bakery I should try. I'll add it to my list and try to make the rounds in the coming months. 

Do You Dunk?

Not long ago I caught a Seinfeld rerun in which Kramer was telling his friends about Joe DiMaggio.  Evidently Kramer had seen the Yankee baseball icon in a Dinky Donut shop . . . and he was dunking.  Jerry and George were certain that Joe DiMaggio would not be a "dunker".

Better yet, Kramer decided to put the great DiMaggio's concentration to a test and began banging on the table and yipping.  DiMaggio continued dunking his donut and was not distracted.  The Yankee Clipper still had the ability to zone in on the task at hand.

I'm not certain as to the percentage of people who are dunkers, but I'm not one of them.  Oh, I'll dunk occasionally, but for the most part I'm a donut eater and a coffee drinker.

Percentages?

Be interesting to note who is and who isn't a dunker among the blog readers.  So, which are you? 

Dunker?  Or Not?

Worst Donut List

This week I was directed to a web site that listed the "Ten Worst Belt-Busting Donuts".  The key here was calories, naturally, and someone had actually taken the time and effort to compare one donut against another, analyzing and calorie-counting and weighing results in a laboratory.

And I thought donuts were for eating!  Silly me.

Of course, when the final tally came in, the worst donuts to eat were the ones that tasted the best.  A few of these were my favorites.

I'm not going to list the top ten here (don't want to plagiarize some idiot's hard-won research), but I will mention a few of the donuts that made the list.  No particular order.  And I'll offer my comments in italics.

The Chocolate Toasted Coconut Cake donut from Dunkin' Donuts
     This is one of my favorites, and when I eat four or five of these suckers in a single sitting, according to the research, I should lapse immediately into cardiac arrest and have to be revived with the paddles.

The Crueler from Starbucks
     I've had one of these, and they are okay.  But what can you expect from a display case?  Evidently this S.O.B. is loaded with sugars and fat.  That's why I get the coffee instead.

The Blueberry Cake donut from Dunkin' Donuts
    Okay, but I thought if a donut had blueberries in it, this meant it was in the fruit group.  And aren't blueberries loaded with anti-oxidants?  This is one of my favs and I'm pissed it's on the list!

Entenmann's chocolate covered donut
    I rarely buy Entenmann's, but I do know they have a display case at the end of the aisle (veiled Seinfeld reference from episode where Elaine ate the Petermann wedding cake and Peterman says:  "Lubek, you glorious tit-willow, you just netted me a profit of a $90,000!")  Okay, it was either a quote from Seinfeld, or M*A*S*H* or Gomer Pyle, or The Andy Griffith Show . . . take your pick. I've seen every episode of each show at least a dozen times.  And I'm not eating an Entenmann's.

What's on YOUR LIST?

Frozen Donuts

I am always amazed at what one can find in a church freezer.  And this past week I discovered a veritable trove of frozen donuts.  I'm sure these were "leftovers" from Easter, but after bringing home a bag and placing some on a plate for thawing . . . they weren't half bad.  Even the chocolate covered ones thawed out nicely.

Over the years I've discovered that donuts can be served up a multitude of ways.  Fresh.  Day-old.  Stale (but freshened up in the microwave with a damp paper towel).  Frozen. 

I'm wondering if anyone has considered making a donut on a stick?  I think that could be a great snack food success.

If there's anyone out there who knows how to market a product like this and would enjoy going halves with me . . . just write to me at this blog.

I'm at no loss for donut ideas.  And I'd be glad to meet for a discussion of these business ideas.

Over donuts . . . of course.

My Dough Heaven

Recently a young lady asked me a question about donuts:  Some of my friends are telling me that there will be no donuts in heaven.  They say that donuts are not heavenly food.  What do you think?  Will there be donuts in heaven?

Well, Virginia, let me answer your question.  Your little friends don't understand the nature of dough. Oh, sure, some people--especially adults--lose faith in the raspberry filling and the custard as they get older, and they believe they are trading their fairy tales for things they can see, like pink frosting and chocolate icing.  But, Virginia, they don't understand that as long as there have been donuts and people to eat them, donuts have lived in the mouths of children and will continue for as long as people love bakeries.  Yes, Virginia, a year from now, a thousand years from now, donuts will live on in the hearts of those who appreciate them.  Your little friends are mistaken.  Yes, Virginia, there will be donuts in heaven.

I'll see to it.

Donut Confessional

A bakery is a like a confessional.  Interesting . . . the conversations one overhears while drinking a cup of coffee.

Once, I overheard two women talking about an office romance that one of them was involved in.  Evidently, this is commonplace now, and a bakery (of course) is the perfect place to discuss the nuances of when and how such things "just happen."

On another occasion I overheard a job interview . . . which was not difficult, being that the boss and the prospect were seated within inches of my table.  The boss seemed very pleased by his location selection, but the prospect was, to say the least, both nervous and confused by the proximity and the personal nature of the questions the boss was asking.  At one point the prospect wondered aloud if they could "conduct the remainder of the interview in an office somewhere."  The boss declined, citing his busy schedule and then said, "I don't have any privacy at my office."  What?!  Duh?  The prospect walked away.  I wonder why?

Of course, I like to meet people for conversation in bakeries also.  But my conversations are more in the vein of:  "How about those Cubs?" or "What do you think of that jelly-filled scone?  Feel the buzz yet?"

If I'm going to listen to a person's confession, I'm not going to do it in a bakery.  I'm going to do it in a nice restaurant where the waiter can bring me a moist towelette and a dessert cart.  And if the penitent is willing to pay for my steak, I'm pretty sure all will be forgiven.

Golden Brown Bakery

On Tuesday, April 3, Becky and I stepped into The Golden Brown Bakery in South Haven, Michigan.  It's a mom-and-pop bakery on main street.  The first question I asked was, "What's good here?"

I was directed to the Walnut Log . . . a pickle-shaped cake donut that was sprinkled with sugar and finely-crushed walnuts.  "Do you want some coffee with that?" the attendant asked me.

"By all means," I replied.  "What's a Walnut Log without hot coffee?"

"Half a log," was the answer.

The poet in me began reciting, "Half a log, half a log, half a log onward.  Into the valley of death rode the six hundred."

Okay, but that's just me.  Sorry.

It was a great joy sharing my Walnut Log with Becky.  Some donuts just taste better when you share them.  And when you are in Michigan enjoying a beautiful day, it helps to stumble, unexpectedly, into a great bakery.

Golden Brown.

I won't soon forget you!

Easter Breakfast

One of my favorite days is Easter . . . and not just because, thank God, Christ is risen!  It is also because we have one humdinger of a breakfast . . . and donuts are part of the fare.

An Easter donut is a special treat.  Especially if that donut has Easter egg colors or exudes that special flavor that only Easter donuts possess.  Everything tastes better when the Son is shining.

And, if memory serves, there are also plenty of donuts left over.  Which means I get to bring a few home to enjoy later.  And, with Easter coinciding with the final round of The Masters golf tournament, those donuts might just make their way into my hands down the final fairway.

Fore!