It Happens Here: Behind-The-Scenes At Kane's Donuts In Saugus
SAUGUS (CBS) -- It Happens Here in Saugus. Early industries in the community, located north of Boston, include iron works and ice harvesting. It's a hockey town, once home to Bruins greats Gerry Cheevers and Derek Sanderson. It's also where you'll find the familiar orange dinosaur overlooking commuters along Route 1.
Right next to the dino, you'll find a donut-lover's paradise. Welcome to Kane's Donuts, the newest location of the beloved Saugus institution.
"Kane's started in 1955. My mom and dad took it over in the late 80's," explained chef and co-owner Paul Delios.
Delios has some specially crafted donuts for Valentine's Day, including a red velvet cheesecake donut, a "pink boa" donut and a strawberry white chocolate donut.
"Back in 2007, I was the first one in Boston to put that kind of spin on donuts," he explained.
Kane's has some crazy flavor combinations, like maple bacon, turtle, and crème brulee. But the most popular is the simple glazed raised donut, or honey-dipped.
To make them, they start with a giant mound of soft dough that gets fed through a machine that looks and works a lot like a pasta machine. It thins out the dough and lays it out on a board where it goes through a bit more shaping by hand and with a rolling pin. Then it goes through the cutter.
Paul is picky about which donuts make the cut. Anything misshapen gets tossed back into a bowl to use later.
"Got to be able to give the customer what they are paying for. Give them the whole donut, not one that's missing a piece," he said.
The dough sits to give it a chance to rise, and then goes off to the frying kettle. After a tray of donuts is lowered into the oil, it's time to flip. Using what looks like drum sticks, the bakers flip each one individually. Speed is key to ensure they are evenly browned, but they have to be careful not to poke any holes.
"If you deflate it, you're fired," he laughed.
Then the donuts go to the glazing station. It starts thick and gooey, but eventually the glaze dries into a sheer covering that is the signature look of a honey-dipped donut. Yum.
