Crave Grounds, Scottsdale, AZ - March, 2018

Crave Grounds

Web Site: http://cravegrounds.com/
Address: 10105 E Via Linda Rd A-106, Scottsdale, AZ 85258
Rating: 

Opened in late 2017, we enjoyed visiting Crave Grounds (North Scottsdale) in March of 2018.  Their niche (like so many others these days) is mini donuts--make your own.  Their donuts are all cake donuts and there are at least 40 flavors.  All flavors are based on yellow mini cake donuts--the variety is in the icings and toppings.  On our maiden visit, we ordered:  birthday cake (vanilla with rainbow sprinkles), cinnamon roll (maple, cinnamon sugar, cream cheese drizzle), coffee cake (mocha, cinnamon streusel, caramel drizzle), desert tortoise (chocolate, pecans, caramel drizzle),grand canyon (chocolate, peanut butter drizzle, chocolate drizzle, nutella drizzle, shaved chocolate, pinch of salt),  chocolate chip, oreo, samoa (like the Girl Scout cookies), snickers, toffee coffee (mocha, health, caramel drizzle, pinch of sea salt), smore's, cinnamon sugar, ginger sugar, and plain frosted rounds of chocolate, lemon, mocha and vanilla.  As is obvious from the list, Crave Grounds (they also do coffee) gets an A+ for marketing and concept.  However, we did not sample the donuts until several hours later after dinner, and they get a C+ for flavor. They were truly adorable, but the flavor (disappointedly so) was greatly lacking. 

San Diego - January, 2018

VG Donut and Bakery

Web Site: vgbakery.com
Address: 106 Aberdeen Dr, Cardiff, CA 92007
Rating: 

Back for a second visit, VG’s did not disappoint. I learned that donuts up and down the North County Coast are a huge part of the surfing culture.  Apparently, surfers get up early to do their thing then head over to VGs (or other favorite spots) and indulge.  Of course, we arrived way after prime surfing time, but there were donuts to be sampled, nonetheless.  

Our 2:45 pm arrival (even though they close at 9) meant the selection was disappointing. I had hoped to sample the monthly special--toffee something.  That aside, this is the site of my original introduction to old fashioned donuts, so I have a sentimental attachment to VG's.  

The chocolate glazed donut was good—it was warm when served and the milk chocolate glaze was gooey and delicious (though the gooey-ness made the donut quite difficult to eat).  The plain old-fashioneds were a beautiful sight. And each donut, of the dozen I ordered, was lovingly wrapped in waxed paper. 

All in all, a yummy snack— my only regret is I wish I'd had two and I wish they'd been dark chocolate!

Egypt - December, 2017

Aboard the M/S Tosca
Luxor, Egypt
Rating: 

A cooking demonstration of Egyptian donuts (Zalabia)! Apparently, zalabia are a Mideast phenomenom-- the identical pastries are also made and served in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, etc., and in Morocco (with the accent on the 3^rd syllable).  The proper Egyptian pronunciation places the accent on the 2^nd syllable.  Speaking of accents, Arabic is spoken throughout the Arabian peninsula and in many areas of the Mideast.  Each country, with Egypt being no exception, has its own dialect.  But, we digress.

The chef, Hamdy, and his abled-bodied assistant, Karim, started off by giving us some history.  Zalabia have been prepared and served as sweet treats (on Fridays to usher in the day of rest) for the past 400 – 500 years.  Next, the chefs handed out recipes.  The batter is simple enough—sugar, milk, yeast, flour salt, corn oil, and corn starch (Hamdy explains corn starch makes them crunchy on the outside). 

Once the ingredients are mixed together, they are left to rise for two hours.  Then, they are spooned by teaspoonfuls into hot oil.

When done, the Zalabia are dipped into cinnamon or powdered sugar or a sugar syrup (honey could substitute) and eaten—immediately.  They were delicious!  Donut holes with a crunch but much lighter.  Hamdy and Karim served each of us 3 of these tasty treats—but some of us consumed many more than that!  They were scrumptious!!!!  Several of us had the opportunity to try our hand at spooning the batter into the hot oil.  Let's just say it was harder than it looked!  What a fun way to spend part of the afternoon on Christmas Eve.

Our wonderful guide Ossama

Boston - December, 2017

Union Square Donuts

Web Site: http://unionsquaredonuts.com/
Address: Main location: 20 Bow Street, Union Square, Somerville, MA
Rating: 

Highly acclaimed, Union Square Donuts (Brookline location) was my first stop on a December 2017 trip to Boston.  I sampled three donuts— cinnamon sugar cake (crunchy with a spicy bite— delicious!), vegan with Belgian dark chocolate glaze (the chocolate was even too strong for me and the vegan didn’t hold a candle to Dun- Well’s vegan donuts in Brooklyn), and toasted coconut yeast (the icing was delicious, the donut was dry). 

There were many other premium flavors such as: cranberry, eggnog, Vietnamese coffee and more. I only had an appetite for three! The staff—including a young man, Micah, whose mom grew up in Wayne’s hometown, was super friendly. Alas, alack, Union Square, I wish you had more cake varieties and I wish I’d had a buddy along so there could have been more tasting!

Blackbird Doughnuts

Web Site: https://www.blackbirddoughnuts.com/
Address: Main location: 492 Tremont, Boston, MA
Rating: 

Blackbird Doughnuts, in Boston’s South End, describes itself as “ the only artisanal doughnut shop in Boston that bakes on site!” It does not disappoint. I found Blackbird to be one of the few doughnut shops I have visited with equal numbers of cake and yeast style doughnuts. Of course, I focused on the cake and sampled three-mocha chip (double chocolate with mocha glaze and chips), apple cider (generous amounts of cinnamon) and chocolate old fashioned (chocolate doughnut with vanilla glaze). There was one critical discrepancy at Blackbird (at least to this reviewer). What were touted as “old fashioned” doughnuts were really not old fashioned doughnuts at all— but rather traditional cake doughnuts (albeit  with awesome flavors) by another name. So that was disappointing. But if you’re after wonderful cake (and I assume yeast) doughnuts in Boston and aren’t too caught up in the Union Square doughnuts craze, visit Blackbird. A yummy breakfast indeed.

Kane's Donuts

Web Site: http://www.kanesdonuts.com/
Address: Main location: Two International Place, 90 Oliver St., Boston, MA 02110
Rating: 

Founded in 1955 and highly lauded, Kane’s Donuts (past the North End in Boston) is well worth the tunnel traffic. They had a wide array of cake and yeast style donuts and many seasonal and regional flavors sampled including— but not limited to— ginger beer, chocolate candy cane, blueberry cake, crepe brûlée, gluten free chocolate coconut, toasted coconut, chocolate cruller, chocolate iced with Christmas sprinkles. The ginger beer was divine!  I wish Kane donuts were closer to home!