Jelly Buns a New York Institution

The Monday Nut:

This weekend I took a trip through upstate NY on the Harley , fortunately the weather was beautiful. I waited for the rain to abate on Saturday and took off for my adventure. It was a beautiful start, the sun came out, the wind whipped through my helmet and I could feel my muscles relaxing in to the rhythm of the bike; serenity.

Although the weather was perfect for a ride the one facet of motorcycle riding that most lay people would not always consider is temperature, the longer and later you ride the cooler it gets; this Saturday was no exception. To be perfectly blunt, when I am riding, I hate the cold. I love whizzing down the road but lack of feeling in my hands, is not high on the fun scale. Fortunately for you and I, my hands went completely numb just off route 90 outside of Little Falls, NY; home of everyones favorite little tea bag Salada. "That's Salada tea!" As the ad used to go. As much know for their tasty tea as their witty quips on the tea bag label, I have kept one for the better part of 30 years that says "Beer in a water bed makes a foam mattress", the company that created it, Redco Foods, Inc, still calls Little Falls home and is a constant reminder of American manufacturing; but I just digressed.

As it happens there is one other institution that also calls Little Falls home which donut aficionados around the country will be happy to visit, even with numb hands, The White Rose Bakery.  Like many of the best small town shops if a local had not told me where it was I would have passed right by it.

The White Rose Bakery is nestled in a non-descript "old-timey" sidewalk of shops that line main street in a one-way traffic flow. Look to the right quickly before coming to the intersection of N. Ann St. and there it is. Wait one second too long and you'll miss it. Once inside you'll be glad you found this 30+ year old neighborhood institution. Not only are their prices better than anywhere I have yet to visit, $.50 a donut, $.40 a cider donut; I got a coffee and 2 donuts for $1.80!, but the friendly staff, welcoming smells of breads, cookies, pastry, and of course donuts cause the line of familiar patrons to form fast, sometimes cycling through twice. OK, that was just me.

On to the donuts. I consider myself a "Jelly Donut Aficionado", but I am surprised to say the White Rose had something extra special in store for me; the Jelly Bun, an Upstate staple. It might seem harmless enough, sitting quietly, football-shaped, poised and ready....take a bite and then - BAM!!  a virtual Jelly Explosion!!! The folks at the White Rose have taken the best parts of a bun, the crispy outside and soft chewy middle, and mated that with the best part of a Jelly Donut - the jelly! If only I had had a trailer I would have ordered a dozen and then promptly eaten then all. I refrained. So the next time you find yourself whizzing down Route 90 in Upstate NY and having craving for donuts, or tea for that matter, go visit the friendly folks at The White Rose Bakery....and bring back a jelly bun for me.