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INTERVAL WORLD ■ Issue 1, 2018 33 32 INTERVAL WORLD ■ Issue 2, 2018
IN GOOD TASTE
WARNING:
THERE MAY BE HOLES IN THIS STORY.
Nuts for Dough
BY REBECA PICCARDO
There’s a certain nostalgia about eating
a doughnut: With just one bite, you’re
suddenly a kid again, holding a warm,
puffy ring of dough in your hands. It was
a similar feeling of comfort and familiarity
that made this sweet confection an American
food staple. Originally introduced to the U.S.
by Dutch settlers as olykoeks (oil cakes), the fried
dough changed in shape and ingredients as different families
crafted their own recipes and variations. The doughnut craze
truly began after World War I, when Salvation Army volunteers
served the scrumptious pastry to soldiers in the trenches.
When the war was over and the soldiers returned home, the
love for them stuck.
Nowadays, doughnuts are everywhere, with massive
chains selling them by the dozen on every other street
corner. But America’s favorite treat is evolving once again, as
innovative bakers across the country elevate this unassuming
fried dough into a culinary delicacy. These gourmet doughnuts,
handmade in small batches with fresh ingredients in new, ingen-
ious flavors, are as far removed from a box of Krispy Kreme as
a Belgian saison is from a bottle of Bud. So keep an eye out for
these local bakeries making weird-yet-wonderful creations — all
within an hour drive of Interval resort vacation areas.
NEW FORMS, NEW FLAVORS
There are only a few places in the world where you can get your
hands on a “cronut,” the mythical croissant-doughnut hybrid
invented by French pastry chef Dominique Ansel in his SoHo
bakery in New York City . It takes three days to make,
using laminated dough fried in grapeseed oil, filled with cream,
rolled in sugar, and glazed on top. The end product has
a traditional ring shape with the flaky, delicate layers of a
croissant. The official cronut is only sold at Dominique Ansel
Bakery locations in NYC, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and London.
They’re about $6 each — you just have to be willing to wait
in line for them!
Also in New York City, Dough owner and pastry chef Fany
Gerson created her own food mashup: “doughkas.” Inspired
by her Mexican and Jewish heritage, Gerson’s doughkas
are babka loaves made from the bakery’s signature dough-
nut dough that is then rolled, cut, braided, and baked.
Flavors include Mexican chocolate, lemon and olive oil, sticky
banana, and apple cinnamon. There are limited batches baked
daily in Dough’s Flatiron District location, but you can reserve an
order by calling a day in advance.
Portland-based Voodoo Doughnut opened its first East
Coast shop at Universal Orlando this spring. Of its
offbeat, eclectic menu, the fried dough bearing the business
namesake is also one of its most interesting offerings: a voodoo
doll stuffed with raspberry jelly, topped with chocolate frosting,
and, for (edible) authenticity, stuck with a pretzel stake in place
of a pin. They also roll blunts, but don’t expect to indulge in any
cannabis here: This maple blazer blunt doughnut is dusted in
cinnamon sugar, and the top is dipped in maple frosting and red
sprinkles. In addition to the 50 flavors of yeast, cake, and vegan
options listed on the menu, the shop’s “doughnut artists” can
create unique, custom creations for special occasions, upon
request.
The doughnut of choice in Hawaii is the malasada,
which was brought over to the islands by early Portuguese
settlers. And Leonard’s Bakery in Oahu has been making
Dominique Ansel Bakery
Donut Bar
Alexandra Haseotes; Kirsco; HAD Imaging;Maria Fanelli/Kirsco; Dominique Ansel Bakery;Voodoo Doughnut