Frickin' Delights Donuts

Two Fridays ago, I attended the debut of one of my closest friends. A debut is a grand coming-of-age birthday celebration in the Philippines for girls turning 18 years old. While debuts are very exciting (I had an unforgettable night!), they can also last for many hours. With that being said, I was looking to do something relaxing and low key the next day. I decided I wanted to take a trip to the Old Strathcona Farmers' Market (OSFM) - I knew Frickin' Delights Donuts (www.frickindelights.com) would be at the market that Saturday, so I definitely did not want to miss my chance to satisfy my craving for their donuts. 

The Old Strathcona Farmers' Market (osfm.ca) is located in the heart of the Old Strathcona district in Edmonton. It is just north of Whyte Ave (82 Ave), one of the city's most popular places to visit. I've only ever gone to OSFM once before, so this trip would be my second time going there. It is definitely an awesome place to check out. I still consider myself to be a "newbie" market-goer though, so I am yet to learn about making the most of my future trips there. I find farmers' market "culture" to be quite fascinating - the vendors, their products, the food, and the hustle and bustle inside the entire building is great. Every shopper seems to have an appreciation for the Alberta-produced products and the need to support the city's local vendors. The Market runs every Saturday from 8 am to 3 pm and also offers free parking. I really wish I had the opportunity to visit OSFM more often! 

I picked up CJ around 11:30 am, so we didn't get there until a little after noon. My advice: arrive early! You'll be able to take advantage of the free parking that is conveniently across the street from the Market, and you'll also have a greater selection of products to buy. 

Taken during my first visit to the Market.

I immediately made a beeline to Row 6, where the table for Frickin' Delights Donuts was located. I was blown away by the fact that there was only about 5 or 6 packs of the assorted donuts left! If we had arrived any later, I probably would have missed out on the donuts altogether! I decided to buy not one, but TWO full packs of the assorted donuts. One pack would be for CJ and I, and the other for my family. Each full pack cost $10, so I paid a grand total of $20. For 7 unique and delicious donuts, $10 is a very reasonable price. There are also the 3 pack chocolate and vanilla varieties, which cost $5 per pack. 

A full pack of donuts, 7 for $10.

Before I describe the flavours of the donuts I had, I want to talk about Frickin' Delights Donuts some more. Frickin' Delights Donuts is a vegan donut company owned by a lovely lady named Mandy. Despite the fact that I've gone to the Market twice now to buy her donuts, I am too shy to introduce myself to her! I would really love to have a conversation with her. I can tell that she puts her heart into every donut she makes, and that she is truly passionate about her work. I follow her Instagram page, and I love seeing her posts about her amazing donuts. 

Now let's talk about donuts. Frickin' Delights Donuts are vegan donuts, which means they do not contain any animal products. Some of the donuts contain nuts, so that's something to watch out for if you have allergies. Three of the donuts in the full pack have a chocolate cake base, while another three have a vanilla cake base. The seventh donut in the pack is the Gourmet Donut, which is different each time they are at the Market. Frickin' Delights are at OSFM every second week. 

All 7 donuts from the assorted full pack.

The Gourmet Donut for that week was the Vanilla Lemon Raspberry. It was a lemon cake donut containing organic raspberry jam, topped with a vanilla bean glaze. It was nice and light, and I could definitely taste the raspberry jam inside the donut. The chocolate varieties were Raspberry, Peanut Butter Fudge, and Mayan Chocolate. I love that Frickin' Delights uses real fruit - it made the Chocolate Raspberry (named Raspberry Dreams on the website) taste so much better. I've always loved the combination of chocolate and raspberries, so the Chocolate Raspberry is one of my favourites. The Mayan Chocolate donut was quite interesting for me. While it had a beautiful, rich chocolate taste, there was just a perfect amount of heat and spice from the addition of red chillies and cinnamon. The last chocolate donut was mine and CJ's favourite in the bunch - the Peanut Butter Fudge. I enjoyed the combination of the peanut butter glaze and the chocolate cake base, as well as the extra crunch from the bits of peanut on top. After eating every last crumb of this donut, I immediately wanted more. 

The vanilla varieties were just as tasty as the chocolate ones. The vanilla flavours included Blueberry, Earl Grey Latte, and Strawberry Rhubarb. I loved the balance between the blueberry glaze and the vanilla base in the Vanilla Blueberry donut (named the Big Blue on the website). The Earl Grey Latte was another personal favourite. I don't usually drink earl grey tea, but the earl grey taste on the donut is awesome. Finally, the Strawberry Rhubarb donut had a nice, sweet tasting glaze on it. However, since I've never really tasted rhubarb before, I couldn't really distinguish it from the strawberries in the glaze. The donut is very refreshing nonetheless. 

Yes, I arranged the donuts on a tiny coffee table for a photo.

I love Frickin' Delights Donuts. They have the perfect amount of sweetness, and each donut offers a unique experience with every bite. The cake base is beautifully moist as well. Be sure to refrigerate these donuts if you don't consume them all within the day! I love the fact that the flavours change every time - I am always looking forward to something new and exciting. Mmmm... just the thought of writing about these donuts is making me crave for them. I'm hoping to stop by the Market again for these donuts before the end of my summer. I strongly recommend everyone to try out Frickin' Delights... even if you don't have much of a sweet tooth, I promise you will love them as much as I do. Thank you Mandy for creating such frickin' delightful donuts!