The Sacrifices I Make

Sometimes I must make heroic sacrifices in the name of research, and I made one such sacrifice this week. In case you haven’t heard Dunkin Donuts has come out with a version of Dominique Ansel’s Cronut. As you know a little over a year ago I tried the original, and then tried a version from my favorite French bakery in Philly, so it seemed only right that I try Dunkin Donut’s version.*

I freely admit that my expectations were low. I do love donuts, but I don’t indulge very often, and when I’m craving a great one Federal Donuts not only has better ones, but it is closer to my house (and has better coffee) than Dunkin’s. If and when Federal Donuts decides to add a croissant donut to their menu I promise to try it and report the results. For now though they’re a bit late to the party, I still thought I’d give this one a try.

When I bought it I asked the cashier if I should heat it a little when I got home, “NO!” she was most emphatic, “heating it up will make it hard, just eat it the way it is.” I didn’t want to think why heating a pastry would make it hard, so I pushed those thoughts aside and soldiered on. As you can see the Croissant Donut comes in a special box with a window to show off it’s surface and contours. It is about the same circumference as a regular donut, but much taller. It didn’t seem particularly fragile, so I think the box is a way to justify the $2.49 price. And notify us that it is special.

One of the HUGE differences between things like croissants and other pastries made by operations like Dunkin Donuts, and those made by small (good) bakeries is the use of commercial shortening vs. butter. Butter is the reason good quality baked goods taste so good, and melt in your mouth. unlike shortening of any sort. Butter starts to melt at 90°F (a bit lower than the temperature of your mouth) while shortening’s melting point is way above body temperature making it shelf stable, as well as difficult for your body to process. That’s why baked goods made with shortening can leave a scummy feeling in your mouth.

Because I had my CD (enough with typing both words already) with hot coffee I can’t be sure if it would have left the inside of my mouth feeling like it was coated in plastic, but there is no way this was made with butter. The taste was a single note; sweet. It wasn’t sickeningly sweet, but there were two dimensions to it, sweet and chewy. It wasn’t bad, nor was it memorable, or more important, crave-able. If I’m go back to DD I’m just as likely as ever to get one of my two favorites there, a plain or glazed donut, and I won’t even be tempted by their expensive big brother. 

 *In case it isn’t apparent by my rhetoric, I was neither paid nor reimbursed for my Croissant Donut purchase.