Whether you prefer glazed, old-fashioned, jelly or chocolate covered, June 7 is the day to indulge without guilt because it’s National Doughnut Day.
The beloved Mary’s Donuts in Santee knows how to celebrate the unofficial holiday; the doughnut shop has been baking one of America’s favorite pastries for 35 years.
It has become a staple for locals, who cover the walls of her store. Mary has lined the shop with photos of her customers since the 1980s.
One of those customers, 10-year-old Tyler of La Mesa, can devour a maple bacon bar in about a minute.
“On a scale of one to ten, I like them ten,” he told NBC 7’s Marianne Kushi.
Mary’s Donuts in Santee is located at 8959 Carlton Hills Blvd. and is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The shop also has locations on Main Street in El Cajon and on Maine Avenue in Lakeside.
National Doughnut Day was created to honor the Salvation Army “Donut Lassies” who served along the front lines during WWI and WWII, giving soldiers free coffee and doughnuts in the trenches.
The exact origin of the doughnut is somewhat murky; some form of the doughnut can be traced to Native Americans and the Dutch who called them oliekoecken, or oil cake.
But according to the Smithsonian, the doughnut by that exact name was invented by a New England ship captain’s mother who made a deep fried dough to ward off sickness and wrapped it around a nut, hence the literal dough-nut.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2012 — the last year data was available — the country’s 8,700 doughnut shops contributed to $4.86 billion in revenue.
Photo Credit: Monica Garske
This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
Source: NBC San Diego
Be First to Comment