Taste sensations: Doughnut makers always searching for next big flavor

It's Homer Simpson's dream job: brainstorming brand-new doughnut flavors then making the fantasies real.

It happens every Thursday at 7 a.m. in Julie Darling Donuts on Frazier Avenue. The staff gathers near the cardboard cutout of Elvis and tries to conjure the perfect summer doughnut -- fresh, sunshine-y, happy. Their biggest hit was a shortcake-ish doughnut topped with juicy, just-picked strawberries, the only time the shop has used fragile fresh fruit since it opened in 2010.

Jacob Hardin removes the holes while making fresh doughnuts.

The fresh doughnuts are glazed right after frying.

"We couldn't keep those strawberry doughnuts on the shelf people bought them so fast; we're going to make that again this summer," general manager Scott Smith says.

Peach doughnuts are another brainstorming success perfect for summer, but Smith says there are some doughnut flavors Chattanoogans will only buy during specific seasons. For example, customers will only buy the Pumpkin doughnuts in the chilly autumn or winter cold. And he was surprised to see that customers only liked Peppermint doughnuts in the winter, perhaps because the red and white stripes as well as the taste remind them of Christmas candy canes.

"We try to keep some variety in the case so every time you come in, it's a little bit different than the last time," owner Kent Davis told the Times Free Press when his store first opened right before Valentine's Day 2010.

The ingredients for about 35 different flavors are in the store, ready to be mixed and baked and iced. On Thursday, doughnuts are made from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. so if he has the ingredients on hand, Smith can whip up a newly created flavor minutes after the staff dreams it.

And customer reaction quickly show him which are hits. Just recently, the staff was surprised to see customers ignore a new Rum Raisin flavor, and they never warmed up to the Guava doughnut. The Nacho Cheese doughnut, a creation suggested by a customer, was just too edgy for Chattanooga palates, although the Maple-Frosted Pancake Batter doughnut decorated with bacon crumbles remains very popular.

But the biggest flavor fail was one the staff was sure would catch on: the Margarita doughnut.

"It was rum-flavored cake with lime frosting and sea salt sprinkles on top," Smith says with a wistful smile. "We sold maybe two. We gave the rest of them to the Community Kitchen. I hope the homeless people enjoyed them."

Julie Darling does not use nuts in any of its doughnuts out of concern for customers with allergies. Smith would like to find something that tastes like peanut butter -- but isn't -- so he can create a hypoallergenic Peanut Butter Cup doughnut. He thought poppy seed butter might be a good swap for peanut butter, "but it tasted terrible! Don't ever try it!" he warns.

But customers embraced some of the past year's brainstorm doughnuts, including The Blue Cheese (the doughnut actually has purple frosting with blueberries in a cream cheese filling), Blackberry Pie, Kettle Korn and last week's Mint Chocolate. The new flavors are announced on the store's Facebook page and Twitter feed.

The brainstorm ended at 8 a.m. last week and a photo of the Mint Chocolate doughnut topped with jade-colored icing and black stripes was on the Facebook page by 9 a.m.

Things are a bit simpler for George and Lindsay Aquila, who bought the Monkey Town Donut Company food truck seven weeks ago. The truck came with recipes for cinnamon-sugar doughnuts, nothing more. But the couple found inspiration in the Chattanooga Market where they set up every Sunday. George says they bought organic, freeze-dried strawberry powder and are playing with ideas for a new flavor that combines the powder with fresh fruit.

"Right now, we're concentrating on the mastering the basics in a truck kitchen that has about 5 feet of space to move and no air conditioner," George says with a laugh.

He is keeping his day job as a high school teacher "and we have four kids to take care of. But business seems steady."

Molly Hall hand decorates the doughnuts once they're glazed at Julie Darling Donuts in North Chattanooga.

To make it worthwhile to set up at events like Nightfall, which serves beer, they've been playing around with new flavor ideas.

"We have been thinking of creating a savory doughnut that would go with alcohol," he says.

Back at Julie Darling, Kristen Gordon peruses the doughnut-crammed glass case. A slender blonde, she doesn't look as if she spends much time thinking about pastry. But she offers an idea for a new flavor that the staff finds intriguing.

"How about tiramasu?" Gordon suggests, referring to the rich Italian dessert typically made from coffee-drenched lady fingers, mascarpone cheese flavored with cocoa and fluffy meringue. "That's one of my favorite desserts. I think it could be a delicious doughnut."

Later that day, 7-year-old Kyle Palmer is eagerly pulling his mom by the hand toward the front door of the doughnut emporium. When asked what new flavor he would like in a doughnut if he could have anything in the world, he replies: "Alligator."

His mother thinks his answer was overly influenced by his morning at the aquarium.

Contact Lynda Edwards at ledwards@timesfree press.com or 423-757-6391.