Last week we celebrated one of the most popular food items in our country. Sorry to disappoint you, but it was not the McRib nor the newly introduced “Grandma McFlurry.” Just to bring you up to McSpeed, McDonald’s new Grandma McFlurry is reduced fat vanilla ice cream with butterscotch flavored syrup and crumbles. McDonald’s says in a press release that the name pays tribute to items that were often found in the bottom of Grandma’s purse. If that was their intent the crumbles should have been pieces of Vick’s cough drops and shelled pistachios infused with red dye #2.

On June 7th, we celebrated National Donut Day! Many donut emporiums and franchises offered special freebies and deals to help recognize the day. Donut Day is a tradition started by The Salvation Army in 1938. 

Although World War 1 ended in 1918, The Salvation Army started Donut Day twenty years later to honor the noble efforts of the women, known as “Doughnut Lassies.” They served donuts to troops in the front lines and trenches in France. Over 250 women volunteered to provide this “taste of home” service to gladden our troops. FYI, although American soldiers were known as “doughboys,” researchers have many theories about the origin of the term. Ironically, the attribution to donuts is just one of many references. Also, either spelling of donut or doughnuts is acceptable, so I used both. 

Soldiers looking for a hot snack would put the cold doughy treat in a helmet and hold it over a fire. The aroma spread among the troops and helped boost morale by providing a scent and taste of life back home.

Thanks in large part to the Dunkin’ Donut franchise proliferation, donuts are one of our favorite snack items. A brief history of the company begins in 1950. in Quincy, Massachusetts Bill Rosenberg started a small-scale establishment named “Open Kettle.” It served coffee for ten cents a cup and donuts for a nickel.

Soon it became obvious to Rosenberg and his backers that it was time to branch out with other stores. They came up with the name “Dunkin’ Donuts” after seeing customers at the counter dunking their donuts in a cup of coffee. Their stated business plan was to “make and serve the freshest coffee and the most delicious donuts” quickly and courteously.

Their first Dunkin’ franchise opened in 1955. Within 10 years the number of stores was over one hundred locations. Today, Dunkin’ operates more than 14,000 stores and, besides their variety of donuts and food items, serves almost two billion cups of coffee annually.

Part of their success has been the willingness to introduce novel items. In 1972, they introduced “Munchkins,” their version of a donut hole. Donuts used to be made by hand and a small interior piece of dough was removed and thrown away before the circular-shaped dough was “dunked” in the fryer. 

Realizing that they might have another revenue source, executives told the bakers to roll the extracted interior pieces into tiny balls. They were fried in oil and then coated with the already sweet coverings used in a traditional donut. 

They used the “Munchkin” name to lure their target audience that they assumed would be children. However, soon adults were attracted to the donut holes that were tasty and easier to reach into the bag when driving.

In the past few decades, many donut shops have drawn some customers away from Dunkin’ by introducing unique varieties. Here are some of the most popular twists on the traditional donut. For the Christmas holiday season, you can bite into a creamy eggnog infused doughnut. For those whose tastebuds crave the combination of peanut butter and chocolate, some places now fill their doughnuts with a “Snicker” inspired mixture of peanut butter, caramel and chocolate.

I am not a wizard in the kitchen. However, last week I hollowed out a Boston Cream doughnut and filled it instead with a melted Snicker bar. It was, to borrow a phrase from a popular fried chicken franchise, “finger lickin’ good!”

Hudson Cooper is a resident of Sullivan County, a writer, comedian and actor.