Tradition over quality (part 2)

Growing up in Massachusetts, Dunkin’ Donuts was vital to my childhood. I have many memories of waking up in the morning to find that my dad had gone out for coffee and brought donuts back home as well. Usually, it was a Boston Creme for me (my now standard suburban order). Now with all due respect to my roots, Dunkin is not high caliber donuts, but rather something that will do in a pinch. My memories around these donuts aren’t really for their awesome flavors, but the traditions that came with them.

In one of our first posts, Jason talked about tradition over quality when enjoying our favorite treats. Like many others, I travelled to visit family for the holidays and was reminded of this thought once again. Being back in Massachusetts always brings back old memories and the times of my youth and this was reinforced this holiday season. As in the past, I awoke one morning to find that my dad had gone to The Donut Shack in Lowell, MA and returned home with a giant white paper bag full of homemade, old fashioned donuts. Yes, a Boston Creme was included. These yeast donuts were soft, chewy, and full of texture. The glaze was extra sweet, the filling extra ooz-y, and each one was remarkably fresh.

These are not the fancy, artisanal craft donuts that I usually write about when home in New York, but they have an extra sort of charm that makes them special. As Jason said before, “Are they the best-tasting donuts? Nope! But in this case, it’s not about having the best. It’s about the tradition of being together.”

Doughnut Plant: Gingerdough Man and Christmas Tree

With Fall Flavors officially behind us, I’m a bit late to the game in trying the holiday donuts from around town. Much like Apple Cider dominating autumn, Chocolate Peppermint and Eggnog are common flavors for this time of year. I still plan to round up some of those before the new year, but started off my seasonal adventure with two that were a bit more fun and festive.

For the holidays, Doughnut Plant is in full celebration mode offering up seasonal specials like Gingerdough Men, Christmas Trees, Gingerbread, Coconut Snowman, and Marzipan (in both star and jelly filled varieties). I kept things a bit basic and opted for a Gingerdough Man and a Christmas Tree. Both are larger than the average circular donut and the fun shapes add to the holiday bliss and while I tend to always stick to cake over yeast, for the holidays I made an exception.

The Gingerdough Man was heavy and dense, more so than most yeast donuts, and the sugar coating really packed on the sweetness. The dough itself was extra chewy and the size, density, and texture really made it quite filling. The Christmas Tree was also on the larger size and its bright green glaze really added the festive nature to the enhance the shape. Underneath the minty outer shell (which reminded me of a lovely Andes candy), the yeast donut is filled with a rich chocolate pudding that takes each bite to another level and perfectly achieves the chocolate and mint pairing so one never overpowers the other. Doughnut Plant always excels in the look of their treats, perfectly round with an immaculate shine, each one looks like it could’ve come straight from a display case and not just a shelf behind the counter. These holiday donuts take it up another level so not only is each bite delicious, but just staring at them will put you in the holiday spirit.

Gingerdough Man: 8/10
Christmas Tree: 10/10