On my venture to Ely, Minnesota last weekend for my friend's wedding, I spotted a grocery store in town advertising home made donuts while on my way to the ceremony. Mental note taken. My plan was to stop on the way home the next day to grab some sugary breakfast and see what this small town bakery had to offer.
I wanted to pick up an assortment of donuts from behind a bakery case, but unfortunately, they only had pre-packaged containers. There were donuts from a few different bakeries and I choose the package of four apple fritters made by the store's own bakery. I chatted briefly with the woman at the checkout counter about their bakery. She said their blueberry muffins are the big attraction. They often sell out and she's heard many people who don't normally like blueberry muffins comment on how wonderful they are. I know this is a donut blog, but apparently the next time I'm in Ely, I'll have to try a muffin.
As soon as I got out of town and onto the two lane highway, I sampled one of the fritters and hoped that someone would be available later that evening to help me polish off the other three and do an "official" taste test. No luck. Lucy and Junita had other plans, Meg was free, but is trying to cut out sugar and I didn't want to try calling Christina during the school day.
The Donut
The fritter was pleasing to the eye and looked almost like a cinnamon roll. In fact, it was constructed more like a cinnamon roll than an actual apple fritter and as I sampled the treat, I wondered if it had been mislabeled. Though the donut had hints of apple flavor and the packaging said there were apples inside, there were no chunks of apple to be found. While that may not be an issue for some, it was an extreme disappointment for me.
The Verdict
While the apple fritter was tasty and aesthetically pleasing, the lack of apple chunks significantly hurt performance. I give it a 4. I'm not counting out the Northland Market, though. There were certainly hints that their bakery may excel at other types of donuts and the cashier's comments about the blueberry muffins have certainly piqued my interest.
No apple chunks in the apple fritter? That's a negative in my book, too. I think Ely has a blueberry festival every August. Perhaps, that's where the famous muffin sprang from.
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