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Do-nut Eat!
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This week, The Weekly Beet reports on the power that one little, caked ring can have over us! Mary Kent kicks the Kreme, searching for a healthier solution to the doughnut craving!
 With one of the hottest IPOs, we all know who took the cake with some pretty sweet earnings in the year 2000! With sales reaching 1.3 billion doughnuts per year, it's safe to say the Kreme has landed itself in a serious dough-making business. Growing up in the south, who couldn't resist the temptation of a hot Krispy Kreme! Perhaps it was the red, HOT neon sign that drew us all in or maybe it was simply those colorful sprinkles and cream! Whatever it was, when Krispy Kreme hit London's High Street in Harrod's with a line out the door, I knew something sugar coated was being mixing up behind the scenes! Being the nutritional detective that I love to be, I recently headed to Krispy Kreme to get a feel for what was really going on and try to relive the doughnut experience I had as a kid. I immediately researched the doughnut making process and from what I learned I can honestly say I'm pretty speechless. After the dough, mixed from a secret formula of white flour, yeast, and whatever else, is made, the newly made doughnuts are plunged into a bathtub for forty seconds in 350 degrees of hot oil, which is said to be trans fat free. Then, after the doughnuts are cooled off a bit, they go for an adventure through the glaze waterfall. The glistening glaze is made of white sugar, cow's milk, and lots of other not so fabulous ingredients. The doughnuts then take a spin around the store on a conveyer belt, where they are popped into a box or a waxy bag and sent off to wreak havoc on your waste line, not to mention your cholesterol. I took home a dozen doughnuts for a whopping price of $7 to photograph and can honestly say that, luckily, this time, the temptation didn't suck me in! Click here to see how Krispy Kreme makes the doughnuts. It's absolutely scandalous!
The most interesting thing I learned at Krispy Kreme was the recent labeling of 'trans fat free' on the boxes. Claiming that their doughnuts are trans fat free is a bit of a twisted cruller if you ask me! As you can see from the label to the right, there is an itty bitty wording that reads 'per serving,' which does not mean they are completely trans fat free. Click here to see what the FDA says. And, with partially hydrogenated oil stated in the ingredients on their website, I was completely confused, as partially hydrogenated oil is known to be a trans fat! So, doughnut fans beware - especially those with a bit of a weight or heart problem. There may not be the hole truth being told about these doughnuts! Here is the ingredient information stated on Krispy Kreme's website. Unfortunately their recipe is as
secretive as their business model, so we'll never really know exactly what's in those glazed rings, but this list is pretty interesting:
The only animal byproducts used in our doughnut are eggs (whites and yolks) and dairy products (including milk, butter, yogurt, whey, nonfat milk and nonfat
whey). Our doughnuts are cooked in 100% vegetable oil shortening (partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil). All monoglycerides, diglycerides and enzymes are vegetable based. The lecithin we use is soy based. We also use wheat in our doughnuts, including bran, germ, gluten, starch and flour. Our products may contain allergens.
 With 200 calories, 22 grams of carbs, and 12 grams of fat per glazed doughnut, after being at Krispy Kreme I decided it was time to look for a healthier alternative! So, I went out in search of a what I knew just had to exist! I didn't find these treats in Harrod's or on the streets of New York! Instead, I found them quietly tucked away on a shelf in our local health food store neatly wrapped in cellophane. But, now that they've been named unBEETable, let's hope we see alot more of them! So, what's a better name for a doughnut than the combination of nutritious and delicious? There really isn't! Nutrilicious makes by far the closest thing to what I'd call a healthy doughnut, as they are made with less fatty oils and unrefined sugars. And, with flavors like Chocolate Marble Swirl, Chocolate Spelt, Glazed Spelt, Soy Glazed Blueberry, and Pumpkin Pie, Nutrilicious tops the list as one of the healthiest sweet-baking companies around! They even do doughnut holes and cookies, which are really to die for! This company has successfully mastered smart, healthy sweet choices for those who are trying to lose weight and for those who are trying to kick the sugar habit! Luckily, you won't find any white sugar or dairy glazed waterfalls at Nutrilicious, as their glaze is made of soy and unrefined sugars. And, the best thing about these healthy doughnuts is that they are:
 - Cholesterol Free
- Egg Free
- Dairy Free
- Refined Sugar Free
- Hydrogenated Oil Free
- 100% Vegetarian
- And a few are
Wheat Free
Located in Illinois, we have the insider scoop on where to order these tasty treats! Call Pegge at 1-888-879-3146 and tell her you read about Nutrilicious on The Beet!
It's ok to eat a doughnut every once in a while - just make it Nutrilicious! Don't miss a Beet. Stay tuned for next week.
Love,
Mary Kent
PS. Doughnuts photographed on the left are from Krispy Kreme and the donuts photographed on the right are from Nutrilicious!
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