Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts - Mark Klebeck [4]
But although it’s widely accepted that the modern doughnut originated with the Dutch, just how it became so popular in America is a subject of some debate. According to one theory, when the Salvation Army dispatched women to Europe during World War I to comfort and care for the troops there, the “lassies,” as they were called, made dozens upon dozens of doughnuts. Edge writes:
Though contemporary accounts differ as to how and why, there is no doubt that their decision to fry donuts would transform fried dough from a vaguely foreign food, loosely associated with the Dutch, into a symbol of American home and hearth, a gustatory manifestation of the ideals for which the soldiers fought…When American soldiers got home from World War I, they arrived with a taste for, among other goods, French wine and filterless cigarettes. But no acquisition would affect the way Americans ate as would their taste for donuts.
Veterans opened doughnut shops. Doughnuts moved from being a homemade goodie to an almost uniquely store-bought treat. Doughnut shops became de facto community centers, places where people could go to gossip, fuel up on coffee, and break up their day.
As mass production became the norm across the food industry and people became increasingly mobile, Americans developed an even stronger taste for goods produced outside the home. Over the course of the 1950s and ‘60s, when American car ownership boomed, people started buying doughnuts on the go, at drive-throughs and gas stations. Doughnut chains expanded, and doughnuts became a quintessential American icon.
Doughnut sales languished in the latter part of the 20th century, but today America is in the grips of a doughnut renaissance. Spawned by a recession that increased sales in comforting consumables, such as junk food, beer, and—you guessed it—doughnuts, the boom has inched its way across the foodie world, too, starting with high-end restaurants, where doughnuts began appearing in fancier forms on dessert menus a few years ago. Today, designer doughnut stores are blanketing cities, brides are choosing doughnuts over traditional wedding cakes, and the eating public is replacing its cupcake craving with a soft spot for boutique bakeries that take the doughnut concept to the next level, with creative flavors and coffee lounge atmospheres. And Top Pot’s right out in front.
TYPES OF DOUGHNUTS
At Top Pot, we make three basic types of doughnuts: cake (vanilla, spiced, and chocolate), yeast-raised, and old-fashioned. Though their ingredients and preparation differ, they’re all quite manageable at home. Can’t decide where to start? We suggest cake doughnuts with a simple icing, because they require the least amount of time and attention.
Cake Doughnuts
Made with cake/soft-wheat flour to keep them light-textured, and plenty of nutmeg for Top Pot’s signature flavor, these doughnuts are the best choice for creative decorators. Our version is a bit crispier on the outside than those you’ll find in big-box doughnut shops. For our devil’s food cake doughnuts, we use Dutch-processed cocoa for a deep, rich chocolate flavor.
Yeast-Raised Doughnuts
Bread/strong flour makes our yeast-raised doughnuts pleasantly chewy, and the yeast makes them airy. At Top Pot, we let our mace-spiked raised doughnut dough rise in a warm, moist proofing oven big enough to fit a small car. Since you probably don’t have one of those, we’ve devised a foolproof rising technique that yields rings, bars, and fritters very much like the ones you’ll find in our stores.
Old-Fashioned Doughnuts
The signature split on the top of a rich, tangy old-fashioned doughnut—our bakers call the ring in the center the doughnut’s “ridge