Donuts & More, Our Favorite Donut Shop

Part of our annual trek to the Adirondacks includes a pilgrimage to Donuts & More in Speculator, New York. It’s a tradition for us to have these delicious donuts at least once during the trip, but some years we indulge a few times. The shop has been there for many years and is now owned by Gwen and Mark Crary, who bought it in Fall 2007 and officially reopened in May. The previous owners, Marie and James, ran the shop for a number of years. Sadly, Marie passed away in March, but Gwen and Mark are doing a fine job keeping the tradition going.

I don’t know their secret, but this little place makes the best donuts I’ve ever tasted anywhere. They have a delicious fluffy crumb and aren’t the least bit greasy. The shop sells eight varieties; mostly cake, but they also have a few yeast donuts with cream or jelly filling. My favorite is the cinnamon and sugar cake donuts (in the photo above), though I will happily eat any of the varieties they sell! Mark arrives at 4 am to start the donuts and then continues to make them fresh throughout the morning based on demand, and it’s quite a treat to walk into the shop and see the fresh donuts lined up in the case.

The lines can be quite long in the mornings, especially on the weekends, so plan ahead and get there early. One dozen donuts costs $7.00, and they are absolutely worth it.

Details

Donuts & More

Location: Speculator, New York at the intersection of Routes 30 and 8; The Lane Emporium in the Charlie John’s Store parking lot

Open: Memorial Day to mid-October

Hours: 7 am to 12 pm, Thursday through Monday (Summer), 7 am to 12 pm, Saturday and Sunday (after Labor Day)

More information: Speculator Chamber of Commerce, Town of Lake Pleasant, Wikipedia – Speculator, NY

Central New York Regional Market, Syracuse

We made our traditional trip to the Central New York Regional Market in Syracuse on Saturday morning. It’s a large, fun market with several rows of sheds and tents, and I always depart with the wish that we had something of this scale in Northern Virginia. You can find great local organic produce, flowers, plants, fresh maple syrup, wines, honey, eggs, cheese, and butter, as well as crafts and flea market type items. The Amish community brings in lovely baked goods, which seem to go very quickly. The place gets busy early in the day, so arriving close to the 7 am opening time is a good idea.

I wandered around taking photos of some of the produce stands. The boys were very excited by all the fresh fruits and vegetables, especially when they got to help purchase the items and helped Grandma and Papa carry the bags.

I thought these donut peaches had a beautiful color and fun shape.

Corn is now in season, and we bought a bunch of ears of the popular bicolored butter & sugar variety. This is a good variety for home gardens, with just 75 days to harvest.

We’d never seen Ishtar squash before, and had to ask about it. The vendor told us it’s similar to zucchini squash, only sweeter. We’re already scouring online trying to find seeds for next year.

Carrots and beets and other root vegetables are starting to come in. I really liked the colorful varieties in this display.

The flowers were especially pretty this time.