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Posted

Since it's feeling like fall here whatever the calendar says, and we'll soon hit leaf season and the annual deluge of queries about food around Burlington, I thought I'd mention that the most delicious sweet thing I have eaten recently in Vermont are the still-warm apple-cider doughnuts at the Shelburne Orchard, located a mile or two off Route 7 near the Shelburne Museum. They're lighter than their typical compatriots, sanded with a crunchy layer of cinnamon sugar, and have a beguiling diversity of textures: sugar, slightly resistant outside crust, fluffy interior. (Yankee purists can buy them sans sugar, though I think this is a mistake.) Delicious, when fresh; but to get them that way, come in the a.m., as their half-life at peak is short. Six bucks a dozen, and worth it.

The orchard, by the way, is worth a visit -- especially at the annual "local food festival" in early September. It's this sort of this hobbity fantasyland for Nick, the proprietor, what with treehouses, swings, a doughnut truck and a million-dollar view of Lake Champlain. The apples are "ecological" (eg, some spraying to dampen the endemic scab) not organic, but are as tart, lemony and delicious as you'd expect. They grow multiple varieties, but picking-wise, I've only been directed to Macs, though this may be a function of the timing or my innate lack of assertiveness. They also sell mediocre apple pie, and excellent unpasteurized cider.

On the other, weightier, end of the cider-doughnut spectrum, I also find the sinkers at Boyer's Orchard (in Monkton, off Silver Street) to be stand-outs among the half-dozen or so cider variations I've tried around here. They're heavier (but not leaden), with more textural integrity. The lack of topping makes the flavor of the crumb easier to divine, and it's good.

But now that I have started, I want to continue my orchard education with more, more, more. So tell me, what other Vermont orchards are serving great doughnuts these days?

Posted

Sigh...I'm from New Hampshire and this thread is making me homesick. What I wouldn't give for a nice drive through the mountains on a crisp fall day at peak foliage, screeching off the road at every sign that says "CIDER DONUTS". I'm afraid I don't have any places to add to the thread as I am now an exile to the land of Krispy Kreme.

"There is nothing like a good tomato sandwich now and then."

-Harriet M. Welsch

Posted

While recently in New England, my wife and I picked some some FABULOUS apple cider doughnuts at a farm stand just into Vermont along U.S. Route 4 on the Vermont/New York border (near FairHaven).

When I used to live in Burlington, Vermont, one could always count on the Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury (near Stowe) for delicious cider doughnuts as well.

Liam

Eat it, eat it

If it's gettin' cold, reheat it

Have a big dinner, have a light snack

If you don't like it, you can't send it back

Just eat it -- Weird Al Yankovic

Posted

An hour south of Vermont brings you to Atkins Farms and their cider doughnuts in Amherst, Mass. Dangerously addictive.

Posted (edited)
Sigh...I'm from New Hampshire and this thread is making me homesick.  What I wouldn't give for a nice drive through the mountains on a crisp fall day at peak foliage, screeching off the road at every sign that says "CIDER DONUTS".  I'm afraid I don't have any places to add to the thread as I am now an exile to the land of Krispy Kreme.

Ditto! I'm from Connecticut (but went to prep school in NH and spent ample time with my family in NH and Mass), and all I can think about now are foliage and apple orchards. :wub:

I think a road trip may be in order this fall...

BTW, for my fellow New Yorkers, Hearth has some delicious cider doughnuts on their fall/winter menu - or, at least they have for the past couple of years. So good, and almost a worthy substitute. :biggrin:

Edited by Megan Blocker (log)

"We had dry martinis; great wing-shaped glasses of perfumed fire, tangy as the early morning air." - Elaine Dundy, The Dud Avocado

Queenie Takes Manhattan

eG Foodblogs: 2006 - 2007

Posted

Two other options for fresh cider and cider doughnuts in New England, from my old stomping grounds of Central CT:

Lyman's Orchards

Located at the Junction of Routes 147 & 157 in Middlefield, CT 06455.

Main Phone: 860-349-1793. Farm Market Fax: 860-349-1223. Office Fax: 860-349-1424.

“Owned and operated by the Lyman Family since 1741, Lyman Orchards is recognized as the ninth oldest family-owned business in America. Now in its eighth generation the family business continues to grow and evolve while maintaining a steadfast commitment to preserving the land for future generations”

Lyman's has a big facility now and can also be a fun place to take kids; they have "pick your own" fruit, a large store, outdoor area with a duck and swan lake, a corn stalk maze in the autumn, etc.

Roger’s Orchard located right on Shuttle Meadow Reservoir on the New Britain/Southington border is also a great place. It is also family-owned for many generations and the retail space is in a quaint old wooden building. They also have wonderful baked goods, jams, etc in addition to fresh cider doughnuts and cider.

I still love visiting both these orchards when I go home.

"Under the dusty almond trees, ... stalls were set up which sold banana liquor, rolls, blood puddings, chopped fried meat, meat pies, sausage, yucca breads, crullers, buns, corn breads, puff pastes, longanizas, tripes, coconut nougats, rum toddies, along with all sorts of trifles, gewgaws, trinkets, and knickknacks, and cockfights and lottery tickets."

-- Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1962 "Big Mama's Funeral"

Posted

Another vote for Atkins Farms in Amherst. These are seriously good cider doughnuts, with just the right touch of crispness on the outside. We had some heavy clunkers over the weekend at Bushy Hill Orchard in Granby, CT. to their credit, however, they're Macoun apples are outstanding.

We're split in our family over sugared cider donuts vs. plain. Hubby and youngest daughter prefer the former. Oldest daughter and I, being true purists, prefe the latter. Plain cider dounts allow more of the cidery tang shine through :smile:

Posted
When I used to live in Burlington, Vermont, one could always count on the Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury (near Stowe) for delicious cider doughnuts as well.

Oh yeah, Cold Hollow is amazing. A little digging yields that their donut was the fourth :blink: tastiest in the nation by Gourmet Magazine in 2000. Their shop has a pile of excellent things. Several types of maple syrup, house granola, great pickles, tons of things.

I also remember (vaguely!) partying with Eric Chittenden the ownert 'til 2000 a while back. He is descended from Vermont's first governor. Still lives nearby.

"I took the habit of asking Pierre to bring me whatever looks good today and he would bring out the most wonderful things," - bleudauvergne

foodblogs: Dining Downeast I - Dining Downeast II

Portland Food Map.com

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

do cider donuts exist in maine? I grew up eating them from Indian Ladder Farms in Altamont, NY... great orchard--with lines out the door for the donuts that flew back out as soon as they were done.

Deadheads are kinda like people who like licorice. Not everybody likes licorice, but people who like licorice, *really* like licorice!

-Jerry Garcia

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