Walking into any one of Maine’s three Holy Donut operations is an all-five-senses experience. The line twists out the door as funky music plays overhead. The smell of fried sugar has your mouth on salivation alert as your eyes go directly to the tantalizing wall of donuts. Runners literally finish up a few miles on Saturday mornings at this location, as it’s the perfect place to reward their hard work.

At Holy Donut, the energy is high and the line moves fast. Employees behind the counter quickly take orders and pack up white cardboard boxes with donut flavors that range from triple berry, fresh lemon, and coconut, to their most popular donut: the dark chocolate sea salt.

The secret (until you read this, of course) ingredient in these popular donuts came from a friend of Holy Donut owner Leigh Kellis. He suggested Kellis try potatoes in her donuts, noting, “Potato makes everything better.” Turns out he was right. “We have always used real Maine potato,” says Kellis. “In addition to wheat flour, Maine potato adds moisture and a texture that is delicious.”

Kellis turned to making donuts for a living because she was longing for a project and had a serious craving for some comfort food—donuts, to be specific. She decided Portland needed a good donut shop so in 2011, Kellis started honing her skills in her home kitchen. Using Maine’s largest crop proved the perfect combination and selling point. Countless test donuts later, Holy Donut was born.

Keillis’ first wholesale order was a dozen donuts a day for a local coffee shop. Now, six years later, Holy Donut has 80 employees and makes over two million donuts a year. With three locations—two in Portland and one in Scarborough—Holy Donut often sells out early, closing its doors when the supply runs out. Kellis admits making the right amount of donuts can be tricky.

Holy Donut makes about 20 tried-and-true flavors daily, including plenty of gluten-free selections. These beauties are as healthy as donuts can get, Kellis says. “We use all natural, from-scratch ingredients. Cage-free eggs, unbleached wheat flour, real potato, and real buttermilk make all the difference,” she says. “We also roast our own sweet potatoes for sweet potato donuts (my other favorite!) and make glazes with real fruits and only vegetable coloring. Never fake stuff!”

Leigh Kellis-Owner, the Holy Donut
Portland, Maine
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Top image courtesy of Leigh Kellis

The post Holy Mashed Potatoes! appeared first on Take Magazine.

Lori Kettelle is fickle. Today the vanilla sprinkle is the donut love of her life, but when PVDonuts introduces a different menu next month, all bets are off. “My new favorite might change then,” admits Kettelle, head baker for PVDonuts, Providence, Rhode Island’s first specialty donut shop.

The 26-year-old graduated from Johnson and Wales University with a degree in Baking and Pastry Arts. The first inkling of what might gradually spiral into an obsession came when she and her husband, Paul, began to scope out specialty donut shops in practically every city they visited. “Whether it was Holy Donut in Maine or The Salty Donut in Miami, we just kind of sought these places out,” she says, “and then we’d come back to Providence and there’d be a void that just needed to be filled.” Filled with fluffy, yeasty, brioche-style donuts.

Mmmm donuts, photo by Sudheer Apte

Kettelle perfected her donut recipe over two years, experimenting with her creations and handing out tastings at Paul’s gym. In May 2016, PVDonuts made a splash at Sin, a popular dessert stop in Providence.

Kettelle officially opened her donut shop on Ives Street in September 2016 and has not looked back since. And while PVDonuts now has competition with the opening of Knead Doughnuts, the insanely long lines that snake around the Ives Street block have not diminished in strength. PVDonuts has a cult-like following, not just in Providence but all over New England—one happy enthusiast even drove down from southern Maine for a donut fix.

PVDonuts’ constantly rotating menu is a huge draw. Kettelle has a soft spot for her ‘90s themed menu that delivered a lip-smacking, nostalgia-inducing assortment of treats including Cosmic Brownie, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Dunkaroo, Rice Krispie Treats, and more. Vegan options such as Rosewater Pistachio are part of the menu on Wednesdays and Sundays. Donut purists need not worry: PVDonuts also makes more traditional varieties with baking powder or baking soda instead of yeast.

Setting up shop in a foodie city like Providence is not for the faint of heart, but Kettelle was up for the challenge. The woman-owned business, with a staff of nearly 12, has carved a special spot on the city’s food map. “It’s really great, we feel supported by a ton of people in the community, and it’s very empowering to walk into work and see my entire team—a lot of these women, we have been together for a long time and we’ve grown dramatically since,” Kettelle says.

A strong believer in giving back, Kettelle’s PVDonuts is a business with a conscience. A percentage of sales from the April “Doughklava” creation benefited local beekeepers, while a special pin fundraiser for Planned Parenthood is also on tap.

Kettelle brainstorms new creation ideas with her team. The most outlandish thus far has been the Friendsgiving donut, a take on Thanksgiving with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and fried chicken atop a cranberry glaze, that satisfied Kettelle’s appetite for a savory donut.

All told, the donut is essentially a delicious canvas for Kettelle’s artistic expression. “It’s always new and exciting to work with, and to create something new,” she says. “It was important for me to find a donut base for the flavors I like to experiment with.”

PVDonuts
79 Ives Street, Providence, Rhode Island
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Photos by Sudheer Apte

The post Time to Eat the Donuts in Providence appeared first on Take Magazine.