Doughnut: A Global History

Edible

by Heather Delancey Hunwick

Doughnuts, like hot dogs and apple pie, are widely seen as a quintessentially American food.But their story is much older, one that began in the Old World. Doughnut : A Global History reveals the long history and wide reach of these deep-fried dough delights. Heather Hunswick takes readers on an exciting ride from pre-history, to Ancient Egypt and Rome, through medieval and Renaissance Europe, and up to the New World. Here, doughnuts evolved from the open-hearth to the present, with its many old and familiar local favorites, popular commercial brands, and new waves of mouth-watering artisanal creations. It’s a story that encompasses not just culinary history, but the doughnut’s role in art and culture, health and social changes, and fad and fashion. So pour a cup of coffee and settle in for a great read, one sure to delight doughnut lovers and food historians alike.

Genres: Food, History, Nonfiction, Food and Drink, Cooking

160 pages, Hardcover

First published September 15, 2015

Reviews

[Maryann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I teach food writing, so I'm interested in reading some of it as well. This was a topic featured in a student project in a recent semester, and a lot of her research came from this book. I enjoyed learning from this short book. Would be interested in others in the series.

[L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the story of Adolph Levitt putting his new doughnut-making machine in the window of his shop, adding the production of these treats to their allure. Mostly, though, this makes me want to try all of the different variants of doughnut-adjacent sweets from around the world. I will also be reading more of this series!

[Matthew Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good, quick read. Feels like a huge info dump with a lot of names for donut-like things thrown around and barely explained. I was disappointed that Houston’s Shipley Donut was left out of the mentions. It did make me want to read some of the other books that were discussed.

[Jed Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Masterpiece

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good balance of history and modern brands, and devotes a reasonable amount of space to "indie" donut shops.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just okay.