Customize Bland Grocery Store Donuts With Your Favorite Frostings And Toppings

Donuts with toppings
Donuts with toppings - Static Media/Shutterstock

Donuts should be fun, and just because you are grabbing more affordable grocery store donuts doesn't mean you have to settle for anything less. Donuts succeed or fail based on their quality like any other baked goods, but we don't always have the convenience of hitting a local shop and rarely have the time to make them fresh ourselves. In that situation, a basic glazed donut from a grocery store can serve as a nice blank canvas to upgrade its relatively bland flavor with anything your mind can dream up. When you are staring into a case of donuts doesn't your eye naturally drift to the topped offerings, covered in sprinkles or coconut or crumbled cookies anyway? Sometimes a great finish really can salvage a just okay product.

One of the tastiest and easiest ways to upgrade your donuts is with a homemade glaze. You only need cream, sugar, and some tasty chocolate to make a chocolate ganache that will turn even the most boring donuts into a luxury. Even easier is giving donuts a brighter twist with a fruit glaze. Mix a cup of powdered sugar with two tablespoons of milk and one tablespoon of any jam you like, and then just dip a donut and wait for the glaze to dry for a surprisingly fresh-tasting treat. And of course, glazes are just the beginning.

Read more: 23 Whole Foods Baked Goods, Ranked

Donuts Are A Great Vehicle For Tons Of Popular Flavor Combos

assorted glazed donuts
assorted glazed donuts - AlexeiLogvinovich/Shutterstock

If there is a product that you love, you can probably turn it into a donut. Love Reece's? Take that chocolate ganache donut you made and finish it with a peanut butter cream drizzle. How about s'mores? Marshmallow fluff is readymade to be spread on top of donuts with crumbled graham crackers and chocolate syrup. And many things you love are ready to be turned into a donut topping directly. Higher-end donut shops have embraced the trend of putting cereal like Fruity Pebbles, Cap'n Crunch, or Fruit Loops on their products, and there is no reason you can't use a simple sugar glaze to help them stick and do the same. Crumbled cookies like Biscoff or Oreos will work the same way.

Some of the best toppings skew away from purely sweet options. Potato chips or crushed pretzel sticks bring both crunch and a satisfying salty counterpoint to sweet glazed donuts. If you really want to go for it, you can even combine it with breakfast favorites by using everything bagel seasoning to top a vanilla glazed donut. That might sound suspect to you, but trust us, it works. And besides, if you don't like your flavor experiment the only thing you lost is a cheap donut from the grocery store, so feel free to go wild.

Read the original article on Tasting Table.