Pepple's Donuts via Mojo - San Francisco, CA

Our East Coast correspondent B. Laks was in town on official BLOUGHNUT business.  My faithful readers know I will rarely exceed my $2 threshold for a single doughnut.  This time B. Laks lost a bet so since she was paying I directed the gang to Mojo for some of that Pepple's vegan cake goodness.  The barista told us it was a crumb doughnut and that was all the information she was giving.  We detected some maple and brown sugar on this mofo.  Either way it was a fine complement to the Americanos on our table in the sun on Divisadero.

See for yourself.  Meet me at the Donut Farm on San Pablo in Oakland one of these beautiful sunny mornings?  I hear they're making vegan fritters now.

Red's Donuts - Monterey, CA

Visited Ma n' Pa this weekend so I made 2 special trips to the mothership, Red's Donuts in Monterey. Frequent visitors to this blog know how deep my affections run for this small joint on Alvarado Street. If you haven't yet experienced a maple bar from Red's you can't really call yourself a doughnut enthusiast.

Can I make a recommendation to make your next visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium even more enjoyable? RED'S CINNAMON ROLL HEATED UP IN A MICROWAVE WITH A PAT OF BUTTER!

Donut Farm - Oakland, CA

My enthusiasm for vegan doughnuts is blossoming!  On my regular commute down San Pablo Ave to the shop this morning I saw a storefront with "Donut Farm" stenciled on the window.  Had I been missing something?!  No (of course not!), it's the new Pepple's Donuts cafe, only been there a couple weeks.

Salt Caramel organic vegan cake doughnut, $3.  More than Team Bloughnut likes to spend on its treats, but what can I say I was feeling generous.  I gotta say it was good.  I couldn't taste the salt (it wasn't Bi-Rite creamery, after all) but the cake wasn't stale, so it was an improvement on my other Pepple's encounters.  The caramel was creamy (apparently it has coconut milk in it), the dough was springy.  Not sure what kind of coffee they serve as I had brought my own.

The gentleman behind the counter also answered a question Team Bloughnut associate Hillary K. "raised" on this blog nearly 2 months ago: "Can they even make a vegan raised?"  Well, faithful readers, check back at the Donut Farm in a week or two.  They have the special oven needed (a "Proofer" it's called, it's airtight) and they will be making raised doughnuts and fritters for sale in-store only (they go stale in only 5 hours!).  Sadly, but luckily, these won't be organic, so they won't cost an arm and a leg.  Estimate is $3.  I'll definitely be back to check them out.  According to their website, they also have a kiosk at the SF Ferry Building (a dozen dough-doughs will set you back $26!!  Yes you read that right: dollar sign twenty-six).

'Til next time, keep it maple 4-eva.

Cyrus - Healdsburg, CA

This interesting creation at the end of a very long menu is titled "Orange Blossom Fritter with Apricot, Basil and Pine Nuts" (paired with Vouvray Moelleux, Huet "Clos du Bourg - Iere Trie", Loire Valley, France 2008).

I wish I could remember more about this sublime little fried gift from the gods, but after 7 courses it was too much; like everything at Cyrus, over-the-top.  Taken on its own, in the morning, with a fresh 4 Barrel Gibraltar, this reviewer surely would have been ready to tackle a long day of design/build. 

I appreciate what they do at Cyrus, with their compressed fruits and dishes that stimulate the 5 elements of taste perception (sweet, salty, sour, bitter, savory----guess which is my favorite?!), and this doughnut didn't disappoint, but after such sensory overload, at the end of a 3 hour meal even this most dedicated doughnut blogger couldn't jot such informative mental notes!  And if you are dining at Cyrus, dear reader, you probably aren't there for the doughnuts anyways.  Cyrus: "Go for the lobster and fois gras, stay for the orange blossom fritter."

Rainbow Donuts - Berkeley, CA

On the way to an install at William Stout Bookstore on Solano Avenue, Matt wanted a fancy coffee.  Next door was Rainbow Donuts (San Pablo @ University), what a pleasant surprise! Unfortunately, the best part of this maple bar was the name of the establishment.

Just your standard plab doughnut fare, nothing special.  The glaze was crispy and sweet, the dough was too heavy for my liking. But it did give me the juice to get the install done.  If you find yourself in the neighborhood, you are better off heading up to the UC Berkeley campus to Kingpin. Which reminds me, that place is due for another visit from Team Bloughnut.

Fleur de Lis at Hollywood Farmer's Market - Portland, OR

Team Bloughnut has been hibernating in the Bay Area, but our INTERNATIONAL correspondents have been busy. Here's the latest from our British Columbia Bureau, which had to cross a border to research this posting:

Down in Portland for a wedding, I swung by the Hollywood Farmer's Market this morning. I was surprised to see a stack of gorgeous doughnuts at the Fleur de Lis bakery stand. They specialize in French pastries of all stripes, but I took a chance on a cinnamon sugar doughnut. The yeast is the star here: this was a fluffy and flavorful raised doughnut with an appropriately spicy sugary coating. I don't know if there's anything French about it, but it's definitely tasty.

Thanks to Bloughnut contributor Kelly Mc. for the review.  Have a wondoughful day.

Mighty O at Stumptown Coffee - Seattle, WA

Team Bloughnut took a trip on an aeroplane to the Northwest, home of Filson, Boeing, and Seattle's Best Coffee (as if!).  We hoped to hit Top Pot as required by most Seattle sources but didn't make it.  What we could accomplish was stop for some of Portland's finest coffee in one of their Seattle cafes, where we were (sort of) pleased to find Seattle's vegan doughnut option, Mighty O.

These tasted a lot like a vegan doughnut I have sampled here in the Bay Area: just alright.  The flavors were a yawn (vanilla chocolate and a blueberry mini--75 cents a bite).  "Can they even make a vegan raised?" queries Team Bloughnut associate Hillary K.  That's a good question, with my limited vegan doughnut experience they are always cake.

Here's another question: Do blueberries and yellow cake doughnuts make green?

The final question I will pose to you is a territorial one:  Do you think, based on this neon sign (I love all the neon in the Northwest, by the way), that the Portland-based micro-roasting behemoth Stumptown is trying to represent a little bit of P-Town pride among their neighbors to the north?

These vegan cake doughnuts just don't do it for me. If someone has found a vegan maple bar, vegan chocolate old-fashioned, or a vegan apple fritter, please let me know!