A Sweet Frenzy: Three Doughnuts in Orange County You Should Devour

I was on a fervent mission to find the top three doughnuts in Orange County, which prompted me to sit down, examine and intensely taste test the highest-rated doughnuts in town.

This project completely poked at my foodie heart strings and ignited all of my senses.

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. – The sight of a pink cardboard box can activate a sugar-lusting dream. Your imagination takes over, as you know that what lies inside are bite size pieces of heaven with a zero-calorie center. Yes my friends--these are doughnuts. But once you take a quick glimpse and see a lifeless glazed twist perched against a squished old-fashioned, your hopes suddenly sink. These are doughnuts of yesterday. Today, we’ve entered a fresh new territory. Doughnut crafting is now a fine art. Elite-baking connoisseurs focus on gourmet ingredients and eye-popping presentations considered Instagram candy.

In Orange County, Calif., three sweet dough specialties spark the frenzy. If these doughnuts don’t get you going, you need to schedule a dental appointment to get your taste buds checked.

1. OC Donut Bar

Address: 18011 Newhope St., Fountain Valley, Calif. 92708

Website: Donutbarsandiego.com

Must have item: Big Poppa Tart Donut / $4

It may be the size of your face—actually, a bit larger. Its rectangular body is slightly puffed and at any second, its seams may pop with a mere touch. Well, that wouldn’t be too much of a shocker, given its world-famous title.

OC Donut Bar Head Chef and Owner Hector Garcia didn’t know he would conceptualize a mind-blowing, sweetly familiar beast that would tantalize all doughnut lovers, not just in Orange County. He ran with everyone’s favorite throwback munchie, pop tarts, and baked it into a softly-fried vanilla cake—literally.

“What catches everyone’s attention is that it weighs a whole pound,” Hector Garcia said. “We stuff a whole strawberry or S’mores- flavored pop tart inside the doughnut with several layers of fresh strawberry jam. Then we gently dip it in our house-made marshmallow glaze, sprinkle crumbled pop tarts on top, decorate with more jam and coat with multi-colored sprinkles.”

Don’t think about calories here. Even if you’d like to know about calorie consumption, the OC Donut Bar won’t tell you. Sorry. When you consume one of these puppies, it’s essential to simply savor the moment since you are sinking your teeth into a word-famous, slightly devilish dessert. Put the diet on hold for a minute.

“We make 100 pop tart doughnuts a day and usually by noon, we’re sold out,” Garcia said. “In the morning, we’ll have an ongoing line for two to three hours.”

‘Big Poppa’ captured the attention of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” “The Steve Harvey Show,” and “On Air with Ryan Seacrest.” Yes, the King of all doughnuts has blissfully melted the hearts of celebrities, press and acclaimed Instagram food junkies using the hash tags bigpoppatartdoughnut and poptartlover.

“People have loved pop tarts since they were kids,” Garcia said. “We knew this would be a pastry that people could really relate to. We just bumped it up a few notches. I like to say it’s our own ‘over-the-top’ pop tart.”

2. Sidecar Doughnuts & Coffee

Address: 270 E 17th St., Ste. 18, Costa Mesa, Calif. 92627

Website: www.sidecardoughnuts.com

Must have item: Huckleberry Doughnut / $3

Berry connoisseurs say the mountain huckleberry from Oregon is the most juicy and vibrant berry grown in the West. Sidecar Doughnuts brings in a new shipment of this ripe fruit every night to blend into its ‘secret-recipe’ cake batter. After more than four hours of mixing homemade yeast, King Arthur floured-cake batter, huckleberry and pungent spices- you have the Huckleberry doughnut, an indie-hip attraction that sweeps you into nature with just one bite.

Incorporating the most fresh and gourmet ingredients is what sets Sidecar apart from the ordinary bakery. General Manager Jon Desprez handles all operations and finances. According to Desprez, Sidecar’s profit has increased 100 percent in the past year. With this in mind, it is quite clear that Sidecar will pay top dollar for prime additives. Desprez purchases the huckleberries from a niche Oregon farm, but the exact location can’t be discussed. It’s a secret.

“Since the huckleberry is our top-seller, I can’t talk too much about the baking process and key ingredients,” Desprez said. “But we have a golden recipe we use that is extremely light to the taste. When you eat our Huckleberry doughnut, you feel like you can eat another one.”

Aesthetically, this beauty stands out. Its bright purple-hued glaze meshes with dainty huckleberry bits, emitting the perfect amount of sweetness. The actual cake has a slight external crunch. The center is fruitfully-fluffy and velvety-smooth in texture. Let’s just say, it puts any blueberry doughnut to shame.

“We always have a fresh batch of huckleberry ready to go,” Desprez said. “One batch is usually gone within five minutes. It’s safe to say, it’s everyone’s favorite.”

3. Dough Exchange

Address: 201 E 4th St., Ste. 101, Santa Ana, Calif. 92701

Website: doughexchange.com

Must have item: Twix Doughnut / $2

When syrupy caramel tangoes with robust milk chocolate, it’s the beginning of a love affair. Try adding in the crunch of vanilla shortbread. Stop. It’s looking dangerous.

The classic Twix candy bar is America’s-signature treat because it was just done right. A single bite will ease any heartache or messy personal problem. But just for a second, imagine a Twix doughnut. If you’re speechless, it’s okay. The rest of the world is, too.

The birth of the Twix doughnut was not planned. It was a mistake. Dough Exchange Head Baker Tyler Mosier baked shortbread tart crusts for a lemon pastry and it unexpectedly crumbled into meager pieces. The baking temperature was too high. He set aside the cracked morsels, whipped up a fresh batch of traditional doughnuts and whisked a quick chocolate and caramel sauce. Mosier then assembled Dough Exchange’s signature doughnut.

“I played around with flavors and became in-sync with my adventurous side,” Mosier said. “The Twix doughnut is a familiar taste that people just love. It melts in your mouth.”

The Twix doughnut baking process begins around 3 in the morning. It’s quite a simple recipe, but sometimes simple is better.

“For the Dough Exchange, the Twix doughnut has been a real game changer,” Mossier said. “We only bake a couple dozen a day, but we sell them like it’s hot.”

So, do you still need to make that dental appointment for a taste bud check? If you’re a certified foodie, you should be salivating by now. It’s pretty evident--the Orange County doughnut buzz is at its peak and is here to stay. So don’t be timid—throw down a little dough, sweeten your day and savor a bit of gourmet heaven.