Donut Taste-Off

This past weekend, Andrew and I did a donut ‘taste-off’ with the Nyes (minus Mrs. Nye, who had to go to church early that morning), something we’d been talking about for quite awhile. Mr. Nye has always raved about the peanut donuts at our local Tops, and–of course–Paula’s is a sensation for sure. I’d been excited about this event since we started planning it.

We decided to include both Dunkin’ Donuts and Tim Hortons as ‘controls’ of sorts, as well as Tops and Paula’s, and threw in two more ‘dark horses’ for good measure: Donut Kraze, a tiny 24-hour donut & coffee place Andrew and I discovered and hit-up every once in awhile when we’re in Buffalo, and Eileen’s, a West Seneca bakery the Nyes like that makes excellent birthday cakes.

Donuts to be taste-tested included peanut and plain glazed, as peanut donuts are the Nyes’ favorite, and glazed are Andrews.’ He’s a picky one, that man. We ended up with five total for each flavor category, as Tim’s didn’t have a peanut donut and Tops didn’t have a glazed.

Mrs. Nye prepped some of the donuts before she left so we could have a psuedo-blind tasting:

I facilitated the tasting, beginning with peanut. I cut one donut from each location into small pieces and any extra was lined up on a platter in the order in which it was presented in case people wanted more of a particular one. We each scored the donuts as we liked (Professor Adam used letter grades, I used a scale from 1-10 and gave each a range with comments).

Andrew tallied up all the scores–can’t you just see the steam coming out of his ears??

Here are the results, ranked from BEST to WORST:

Peanut: Donut Kraze, Eileen’s, Paula’s, Tops, Dunkin’ Donuts.

Glazed: Donut Kraze, Eileen’s, Tim Horton’s, Paula’s, Dunkin’ Donuts.

Boy, aren’t we glad we included both Donut Kraze and Eileen’s! In reviewing my personal notes on the peanut donuts (I didn’t really participate in the glazed testing, as I don’t really like them anyway and didn’t want to waste the calories.), I liked Eileen’s the best, followed by Donut Kraze, which I noted to have a ‘peanut butter’ flavor, followed by Paula’s, which had a hint of cinnamon.

We also got to taste a couple other offerings from these places, including French Crullers from Dunkin’ and Tim’s (both of which were awful–way too much glaze), Paula’s red velvet (my personal favorite–basically a red velvet cake in the shape of a donut) and a cinnamon ‘bun.’ I also love sour cream donuts, and I can only assume our winning locations would be the best places to get them.

Thankfully, we pawned off all the leftovers on family members after church, so I wasn’t plagued by donuts all week, praise God. Also, neither of our winning locations (Donut Kraze and Eileen’s) are in East Aurora, nor are they even places we drive by very often, so there isn’t really a danger of starting a habit of stopping for donuts.

Now, if only I could find that adorable donut-shaped pillow I saw in the window at the Toy Loft in town a few weeks ago…

Buffalo Chicken over Sweet Potatoes

I’m not exaggerating when I say that this combo is one of the best I’ve ever had. It checks all the nutrient boxes (carb, fat, protein) while packing a ton of flavor into a healthy punch. It feels indulgent, but isn’t.

I was inspired by a Facebook photo of a friend’s takeout meal from a downtown restaurant: buffalo chicken over roasted sweet potatoes. I wondered by she was having it on sweet potatoes instead of a bun–was she gluten-free or paleo, or did the restaurant just serve it that way. We may never know. But, more importantly, why hadn’t I thought of that?

I’d purchased a container of blue cheese as a post-Whole30 indulgence (only to be put back on an elimination diet by my doctor for unrelated reasons–grrr), and decided to go ahead and use-up the container by adding it to this dish. In all honesty, it doesn’t need the blue cheese, whether you use the included mayo-based dressing or not…it’s THAT flavorful.

(Excuse the poor photo–snapped while eating lunch at my desk at the hospital.)

I adapted a recipe from Well Fed 2, by Melissa Joulwan. She includes a recipe for Buffalo Chicken Salad that begins with cooking chicken breasts, but I went with a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store for convenience.

Here’s what I did:

1 rotisserie chicken, breasts only, shredded

2-4 oz blue cheese crumbles

4 small sweet potatoes, halved

1/4 C hot sauce (any brand)

2 T butter or ghee

Dressing: mix together 1/4 C homemade mayo, 1/2 T cider vinegar, 1 tsp chopped garlic, 1 T chives, 1/8 tsp paprika

Roast sweet potatoes cut-side down on a foil-lined baking sheet for approx 45 minutes, or until soft. Let cool.
Melt 2 T butter (or ghee, if you’re paleo) and mix with 1/4 C hot sauce in a bowl. Add shredded chicken and stir to coat.
Place 2 sweet potato halves cut-side up in a container (or on a plate) and top with 1/4 of the buffalo chicken mixture.
Top each with some blue cheese and a drizzle of your homemade dressing.
Enjoy!

Book Review: Unmasking Superfoods

Unmasking Superfoods: The Truth and Hype about Acai, Quinoa, Chia, Blueberries and More
By Jennifer Sygo, RD
HarperCollins (2014)
Reviewed by Holly R. Layer, RD

Claims:

This book isn’t as much a diet plan as it is a ‘user’s guide’ to the environment of over-hyped and under-performing ‘foods’ (as well as those that live up to the name) available to anyone with an Amazon account. Written by a Canadian Registered Dietitian, Unmasking Superfoods seeks to inform readers of the facts and give them her own ‘bottom line’ about each supposed ‘superfood.’

Synopsis of Diet Plan:

Sygo arranges the book into five chapters, beginning with the most mainstream and talked-about foods, such as acai and goji berries, to the classics, like almonds, and even those that fly under the radar, like oysters and pistachios. For each item discussed in the book, Sygo presents ‘the science’ behind its nutritional claims, often debunking them due to lack of actual scientific evidence. Additionally, Sygo includes the nutritional information for each food, a little background as to why it may be considered a superfood, and a ‘bottom line’ from a dietitian’s perspective. Her typical advice? Eat real food instead of supplements, practice portion control, and don’t believe everything you hear/read/see. She also addresses countless health- and nutrition-related concerns throughout the book, such as cholesterol and eggs, peanut allergies and caffeine intake.

Nutritional Pros and Cons:

Perhaps the best chapters of this book are those that remind readers of the ‘true’ superfoods, from the ones that have gotten a black eye recently, (beef, cheese, cocoa, eggs, peanut butter), the classics (almonds, avocados, beans, chickpeas, lentils, beets, blueberries, broccoli, green tea, oats, kale, strawberries, spinach, sweet potatoes, walnuts) and those that aren’t recognized as being ‘super’ (amaranth, collard greens, kiwi, oysters, mussels, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds). Readers are presented with unbiased information about each food and related health and nutrition concerns that are backed up with references for studies throughout.

Bottom Line:

There is so much to like about this book. If you’ve ever fallen into the trap of a ‘superfood,’ consider doing a little homework before buying expensive supplements or putting too much emphasis on one food over another. While some foods are certainly more nutritionally dense than others, ALL real food (I’m talking meat, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, some dairy) ARE super in their own right. Whole foods are packed with everything we need for our bodies to function: carbohydrates, healthy fat, protein, vitamins, minerals and fiber. It’s always best to eat a well-balanced diet full of variety in order to meet all your nutritional needs, rather than rely on pills, powders, smoothies or a single food with over-hyped health claims.