Doughnuts to Donuts--What's your favorite?

I recently saw a sign that sent me into sugary transports. A Krispy Kreme is coming to my town. Wow! Talk about anticipation!


To pass the time, I checked out doughnuts on the Internet. Did you know doughnuts were supposedly first introduced to North America by the Dutch, who called the fried dough prepared in pig fat, olykoek, or oily cake? They were a far cry from the doughnuts we Americans think of today. The pictures I’ve found remind me more of an apple fritter than anything else. Oh, and the hole in the middle? That little modification is credited to an American sea captain by the name of Hanson Crockett Gregory around 1847, though the story itself varies.

To be fair, modern doughnuts are as internationally diverse as the human population. Pick a country, and it probably has its on take on the sweet pastry. Beignet (France), vada (India), sufganyiot (Israel), Berliner (Germany), rosquilla (Spain), are just a handful. Since I’m by no means an international traveler, (I rarely get out of Florida), my doughnut choices are strictly domestic. Here are my top five favorites.

#5: The standard yeast doughnut with maple icing topped with nuts. Sometimes I snag the one with the hole in the middle, and sometimes I go for the rolled one with the hint of cinnamon. (One of my main weaknesses.)
#4: The mini doughnuts you find at fairs or flea markets. You know, the ones you can watch being cooked and get hot out of the oil, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar? Yeah, that smell draws me in every time.
#3: The Dunkin Donut blueberry cake donut with a touch of glaze. I always expect them to be heavy because they’re cake, not yeast, but they never fail to surprise me by melting in my mouth. Major comfort food!
#2: The Krispy Kreme cream filled with chocolate icing. (White cream, not Bavarian, please.) Talk about a sugar rush! I try to limit myself to two a year.
#1: And the ultimate in doughnut bliss? The no muss, no fuss, original glazed Krispy Kreme yeast doughnut—preferably hot off the assembly line. Mmmmm. There’s just something about the taste, smell, and texture that can’t be duplicated.

So, store bought or home made? Yeast or cake? Glazed, iced, or powdered? Holed or filled? Tell me, what’s your favorite doughnut/donut?