(Photo Credit: @mikejchau)
As with most things in life, doughnuts are better with cheese. Satisfy your sweet and savory cravings with these 9 cheesy doughnuts.
1. At Tom and Chee, doughnuts get the griddle: At this nationwide grilled cheese chain, they slice doughnuts in half, stuff them full of cheese, and grill ‘til gooey. Riff on the classic with a savory cheddar-stuffed doughnut, or indulge your sweet tooth with The King, bestowed with banana, peanut butter mascarpone, and mozzarella.
2. Don’t let Glam Doll’s sweet treats fool you, they’ll satisfy your savory snack cravings too. This Minneapolis shop’s Girl Next Door line merges doughnuts with cheesy hand pies. Try the “All Decked Out”—filled with havarti and muenster, glazed in beer, and sprinkled with a brown butter crumb—for a real midwestern treat.
Doughnut sandwich from Union Square Donuts in Somerville, Ma. Photo Credit: @onehangrycouple.
3. Can’t decide between a doughnut or a breakfast sandwich? At Somerville, Ma.’s Union Square Donuts, you don’t have to choose. Instead of frying, they bake these doughnuts so the brioche-style dough stays soft and fluffy with enough structure for lots of filling, like cream cheese and smoked salmon, or bacon, egg, and cheese.
4. Why mess with a cheese board when it can all go on a doughnut? At New York City’s The Doughnut Project, fig jam-filled dough is layered with goat cheese, prosciutto, walnuts, dates, and honey for an all-out charcuterie-inspired dessert (pictured in header). For its Restaurant Series, they knocked out cheesy doughnuts with some of the city’s top chefs, like Lupa’s pasta-inspired take topped with Guanciale and Pecorino Romano.
Porcini doughnuts with whipped raclette at Rich Table in San Francisco. Photo Credit: @richtable.
5. In San Francisco, doughnuts and umami go hand in hand at Rich Table. They fry simple yeasted doughnuts, then toss them in a house-made dried porcini powder. They’re served with whipped raclette for a super savory pairing, while the aerated cheese adds a touch of lightness.
Doughnut grilled cheese at Clinton Hall in NYC. Photo Credit: @nycmouth.
6. At New York City’s Clinton Hall, get ready to ‘gram: Their iconic grilled cheese takes a glazed doughnut, stuffs it with mozzarella, and suspends it all above a bowl of tomato soup for that dreamy cheese drip. Their Bronx location switches it up with gobs of cheddar between a scallion-filled, cream cheese-glazed doughnut served with potato soup.
7. Forget the bagel—at Boston’s Blackbird Doughnuts, you can pair a fluffy doughnut with your usual schmear. Remix your breakfast with the Everything Bagel Doughnut: This brioche-style dough is topped with a blend of garlic, onion, sesame, and poppy seeds and filled with cream cheese, so you can satisfy two cravings at once.
8. Chicago’s Eden pairs doughnuts with gooey Raclette. In this version, the savory dough balls are filled with roasted mushroom miso or pork confit and dusted in soy-sugar. On the side: a Raclette-rich bechamel.
9. In New Orleans, it’s a beignet, not a doughnut—but the fried dough goodness remains. Trinity incorporates Louisiana’s classic crawfish into these dense, fontina-filled dough balls. Tear them apart, and dip into fresh tarragon aioli.
Bettina Makalintal
Bettina Makalintal is culture's former editorial assistant. With a background in the food industry and as a bike mechanic, she can often be found biking in search of new donut shops.
