The Daily Monut

Sunday is for Monuts!

Lindsay — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:26:00 +0000

We want to add another day for deliveries and pick-ups, similar to our Friday thing. We have a few options, so I thought I’d share! I’d love to hear your feedback on which option, if either you’d gravitate toward.

Sunday Morning: For brunches and churches and outside donut eating, Bloody Mary drinking time. You’d order in advance, we’d make a few extra and then you pick up from The Cookery in the AM (time tbd). Maybe we’d even do eclairs if you expressed you’d like that… Bicycle pick-ups get discounts!
Monday or Thursday Morning: This would be a targeted delivery route, say to RTP or the general vicinity. We need to hit 10 orders to justify our hour in the kitchen. Preferably, we’d hit closer to 20. Could some of you RTP people help make this happen? Downtown Durham loves Monut Mini Fridays! PEER PRESSURE.

Nothing is barring me from doing both of these options, so if we can drum up demand, let us. I have helpers in the kitchen now and I’d love to give them steady part-time work and more hours!!!!

Go BULLS! Go BULLS! Go BULLS !Go BULLS! Go BULLS! Go BULLS! Go BULLS!

Making Moves.

Lindsay — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:03:44 +0000

We’ve had a busy last couple of days with events, meetings, interviews and waking up at the butt crack of dawn, but I’m happy to report, we’re still chugging along. Plans for Monuts the Shop are quickly coming together, and I’d love to hear what some of you think. If you have ideas or suggestions for us as we start to flesh out the details of our schedule, menu, location, offerings, ambiance, etc… I’d love to hear them, so send me an e-mail at Lindsay@monutsdonuts.com with the subject “If I were a Monut shop, I’d be…”

We finally set our menu for our Donut and Mixology brunch class on May 20th. I think there are 3 slots left, so you should probably grab those before someone else does. As you can see by the menu below, there will be something sweet, salty, fried, baked, glazed, dipped, rolled, piped, dropped and fresh. If you’re interested, visit Durham Spirit Company’s website, and BOOK THIS CLASS. In addition to the donuts, Katie will also be teaching us how to mix some brunchy cocktails. Think coffee, bloody mary’s and bubbles– pretty much my favorite things.

Salted Butter Caramel Eclairs with Lemon Cream Filling
Savory Ricotta Fritters with Fresh Tomato Salad
Coconut Dream Cake Donut with Coconut Milk Glaze and Streusel Topping

We still have order slots available for Friday and we’re toying with the idea of a special Mother’s Day delivery this Sunday. If you’d be interested in such a thing, shoot us a message to get your name on the list. The menu will likely be a jazzed up version of what’s available the rest of the week, with something special for all the moms out there.

Speaking of Menus:

Maple Bacon Bourbon
Lemon Pistachio
Double Berry
Chocolate Earl Grey

…and the week in general:

Thursday May 10: Monuts and Milk in the PARK. This is new and just for the kids. If it goes well, we might roll it out on a larger scale.
Friday May 11: Deliveries and Pick-Ups available for both Monut Mini’s and regular dozens.
Saturday May 12: We’ll be at the Durham Farmer’s Market starting at 8am this week. We don’t want anyone to miss the chance to get donuts bright and early!
Sunday May 13: Donuts for Mom. Inquire for details.

Don’t forget, we cater! Visit our catering website for more information on pricing and directions for getting a quote!

Hope to see everyone around this week!

<3 Lindsay Monuts.

Schedule and Menu.

Lindsay — Tue, 01 May 2012 20:11:40 +0000

We were super busy and loving every second last week. We sold over 100 dozen and are hoping to do the same in the week to come. In case you were wondering, here’s a quick look at where we’ll be and what we’ll have in tow over the next few days!

Menu:

As always, the menu may change a bit, but as it stands today:

Coconut Dream: Coconut cake donut with coconut milk glaze and topped with graham cracker streusel.
Honey Sesame: Our fluffy yeast donut, covered in a thin honey ginger soy glaze and topped with toasted sesame seeds. A little sweet, a little salty, a little nutty, but lotsa delicious.
Carrot Ginger: Remember how much you loved our pumpkin chai donut, well this one is the same recipe, made with organic, garden grown carrot puree instead of pumpkin. It will be tender, sweet and covered in an earthy, slightly spiced ginger glaze or maybe a spiced sugar mixture… still deciding.
Chocolate Salt and Pepper: Another customer fave. Our yeast donut covered in a dark chocolate glaze and topped with freshly cracked pink peppercorn and himalayan sea salt. It will hit all your spots.
Berry Frosted: The princess donut du jour. All natural, not artificial flavorings or colors.

Schedule:

Friday May 4, 2012: We’re making Friday’s fun again! Place your order now for assortment boxes of Monut Mini’s for pick-up or delivery this Friday. Pick-up between 7:30 and 8am and free delivery to downtown Durham and Duke. Slots are limited, so place your orders today!

Saturday May 5, 2012: This Saturday, Monuts will be at the Durham Farmer’s Market. Our pre-orders for Saturday have already been sold out, but we’ll have donuts galore available for day-of purchase. We’ll have bags and sleeves, so the donuts can be bought to eat, or packed to go!

Sunday May 6, 2012: Join us on Sunday, May 6th for an open community meeting to launch a bicycle advocacy organization in the Bull City. Come ready to contribute your ideas and energy, and join our efforts! Monuts and bikeCOFFEE will both be on hand to satisfy your donut and coffee needs. 410 W. Geer Street @ Foster, Durham, NC

Monday May 7, 2012: We’ll be in Carrboro at Johnny’s again next Monday from 7:30am until 9:30. Dozens can be pre-ordered by visiting our website or can be purchased morning of.

ANNOUNCEMENTS!

Monuts Caters! With advanced notice, we can deliver donuts, coffee, milk and orange juice anywhere in the triangle. Visit our catering website for pricing details and ordering instructions. We even make mini donuts, which are quickly becoming a staple of any well-planned work meeting, birthday party or seminar!
We’re co-teaching a Monuts and Mixology Brunch Class! On May 20th, we’ll be teaming up with Durham Spirits Company to offer you one of the best brunch options in town. For $59, there will be hands on cooking, lots of eating FRESH DONUTS and lots of drinking. Head to DSC’s website to register before all the slots are taken!

PS. it’s going to be GORGEOUS on Saturday. Can’t wait.

<3,
Lindsay.

Schedule and Menu

Lindsay — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:00:03 +0000

The best part about making huge deliveries on Thursday is that I get the rare occasion to taste and adjust the new flavors before the Farmer’s Market on Saturday. As we scale up, we’re slowly making the types of changes that we’d need in order to be a brick and mortar. The first of these changes was ordering ingredients rather than making the weekly trip to Costco and Sam’s Club. On one hand this is great because everything gets delivered straight to my shelf at The Cookery. On the other hand, it means changes in brands and working with 50lb bags of everything instead of usual 25. Not that you’re ever anything less than understanding, but if you notice differences in the donuts, this is why. I’m re-tweaking the recipes as quickly as I can, but it will take a little bit of time to adjust to different gluten contents in flours and fat contents in cocoas.

Tomorrow, we’ll be catering another large event, so look for us under the radar until our return to the Durham Farmer’s Market. The menu will include:

Lemon Caramel: Lemon Cake Donut with Salted Butter Caramel Glaze
Maple Bacon Bourbon: Yeast Donut with Maple Bourbon Glaze and Farmhands Bacon.
Strawberry Lemonade: Lemon Cake Donut with Fresh Strawberry Frosting and Rainbow Sprinkles
Chocolate Amaretto: Chocolate Cake Donut with Amaretto Glaze and toasted almonds.

As usual, we’ll be set up on Saturday across the street from the Durham Farmer’s Market starting at 9am and we’ll hang out until we sell out. We’re off on Sunday and then we’ll be in Carrboro on Monday morning at Johnny’s for our first MONUT MONDAY! We’re taking pre-orders, so get em’ while they last!

Off to grab some coffee… or maybe a nap.

<3 Lindsay.

Monuts or Bust.

Lindsay — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:15:03 +0000

Thanks to a couple of big catering orders, we’re going to hit 100 dozen this week. In terms of mass (since that’s how real bakers do things), I’d put that just shy of a metric shit ton. That’s a lot for us, but we’re happy to take it on, and hope that we can keep it up as the season trudges on.

A couple weeks ago, I announced that Monuts was my Plan A. What I didn’t tell you was that I had an offer on the table to get my PhD in Economic Development at UNC. At the time, it was an unfunded offer, which made my commitment to Monuts all the easier. Last week, the department offered me full funding for 3 years. In the world of social sciences, doctoral programs and public schools, it’s what you might call the golden ticket. Making matters worse, I had until today to accept or decline the offer. So, I sent Rob to California, opting instead for a week to myself in Durham– with the beasts and lots of afternoon drinking.

Yesterday, I sent a very uncomfortable message to my adviser letting him know that I had to decline the offer. Being a real life Professor Moriarty has always been my dream, which made sending that e-mail really fucking hard.

It should go without saying that I’m all in. For real this time, with no other hidden doors or safety plans in place. You guys have shown me a tremendous amount of support these past six months and without that, I’d have given up on Monuts a long time ago. In case I haven’t said it enough, thanks for that. Durham really is an amazing place to start a business and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to sneak in when I did. Monuts is making moves and will hopefully have a place to call home sometime soon. My dad, the chef, is even moving to Durham to provide me with some much needed scruples

That’s all for now. Monuts or bust.

Hey May.

Lindsay — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:18:19 +0000

Maybe it’s because I’ve been a student for almost 22 years, but for me, May will forever mean one thing. Summer Time. Thanks to Monuts, and my newly forged commitment to never have a desk job ever again, I’ve decided to reinstate the summer list. It’s more a state of mind than anything else, and I highly recommend it.

The latest update in Monuts is that I have three days left at Duke, then I’m going to San Diego, and then starting with the Farmer’s Market on April 28th, I’ll be FULL-TIME Monuts. Here’s what that means for you:

Every Saturday, you can see my awesome tired face across the street from the Durham Farmer’s Market from 9am until we sell out. We usually sell 35 dozen on Saturday’s in about an hour and we’re looking to scale that up to at least 45 maybe 50 dozen.
Every Monday, we’ll be set up at Johnny’s in Carrboro from 7:30am until we sell out. Dozens can be ordered in advance by following this link or you can buy them day of in any quantity. Just another Monut Monday!
On Thursday’s I’ll be visiting office parks and the like for flash monut mobs! E-mail me (monutsdonuts@gmail.com) if you want me to come to your work!
On Friday’s we’ll be reinstating the downtown delivery route. We’ll also be downtown dipping and sipping with bike coffee after we finish our deliveries!
Catering orders! Birthday parties, office events, weddings, etc. You name it, we do it. Visit our new fancy website for more info!
Events/Food Truck Rodeos/Round Ups! We know our prime market is morning hours, but we love that the Durham Food trucks include us in their events. Hopefully, we’ll be doing more of it in the months to come. If you need a dessert, we’re available, so let us know!

Alright folks, don’t forget, we’re teaching a class at Durham Spirit Company on May 20th. It’s going to be a lot of fun! Hot donuts straight from the fryer into the glaze, into your mouth. We’ll have several glazes, several toppings, sweet, savory, yeasty, cakey– all for your Sunday morning enjoyment. A mix and match plethora of donut goodness! And Chef Katie, will be teaching us how to make perfect brunchy cocktails to help wash down the donuts.

Don’t forget to sign up at Durham Spirits Company- the spaces are very limited! The class will be held on May 20th from 1pm-4pm and will cost $59. You’ll get a bunch of donuts out of the deal, some extra dough to take home, cocktails, and some great recipes to tshare with friends. The spots are very limited, so make sure sign up quick, before the class is full. To book the class, visit the calendar page. Below the calendar is a paypal box. Select the $59.00 cooking class, and write in Monuts 5-20-2012 in the field below. Then, just follow the payment instructions!

Alright, it’s back to work for me! Have a great week everyone!

<3 Lindsay

E is for Excitement.

Lindsay — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 17:23:45 +0000

We had our first 4:00am wake up last Saturday. Aside from the pain that came with physically getting out of bed that early, I think we did great. Even at that hour, we could only make about 35 dozen in time for the market, so we’re working the numbers to figure out how to maximize Monut-making potential. 3am seems ballsy, but poss our only option. Thanks again to everyone for coming out. Friendly faces, a nice long-line, small bills– these are the things that help perk us up after an early morning in the kitchen. So, thanks for loving us like you do. It’s completely mutual.

Looking forward, we’re busy and getting busier. We had two birthday parties this weekend. On Wednesday, we’ll be headed to the Carrboro Farmer’s Market from 6:45-8:45 for the opening of their Wednesday Market. We’ll be joining forces with Chirba Chirba, Triangle Raw Foods, Bagettaboutit, Boxcar Farms, so you should be well poised to satisfy all our hunger belly needs.

Our Menu for the night will look something like this:

1. Strawberry Balsamic Crumble: Spiced cake donut topped with a strawberry balsamic frosting that features Vollmer Farms local organic strawberries. On top is our house-made graham cracker streusel.

2. Chocolate Earl Grey: Rich, dark chocolate cake donut topped with an earl-grey infused chocolate frosting. It’s desertty and delicious.

3. Hibiscus Cinnamon: Light and fluffy yeast donut topped with an all-natural hibiscus cinnamon glaze. It’s pinky and sassy, and holds up to the best .

Following our trip across county lines, we’ll be set up in front of Durham Central Park on both Friday and Saturday nights from 6-8:30pm for the Full Frame outdoor movies. Here’s what I’d do if I were you. Grab a bottle of wine or some beer (maybe both), head to the park with your gang a bit early. to nab a great spot on the hill. Then come down to Foster for dinner and dessert from the trucks. Eat, drink, be merry– all while enjoying the cinematic offerings from Full Frame!

Our menu for the movies will include MoHo’s, Chocolate Earl Grey, Strawberry Balsamic Crumble and our Movie Night Special. The details for this one are still coming together, but it’s looking like a fresh yeast donut, topped with a salted caramel glaze, and covered with freshly popped kettle corn. The perfect outdoor movie snack!

The MoHo’s will probably be dusted in some kind of orange ginger sugar mixture and will be sold for 10/$2.50 or 25/$5.00.

Don’t forget to sign up for our Donut and Brunch Mixology class at Durham Spirits Company. The best part about this class is that you’ll get the eat fresh-from-the-fryer Monuts. A rare occasion indeed. Additionally, Chef Katie will be teaching you how to mix up the next best brunch cocktails.

The class will be held on May 20th from 1pm-4pm and will cost $59. You’ll get a bunch of donuts out of the deal, some extra dough to take home, cocktails, and some great recipes to take home and share with friends. The spots are very limited, so make sure sign up quick, before the class is full. To book the class, visit the calendar page. Below the calendar is a paypal box. Select the $59.00 cooking class, and write in Monuts 5-20 in the field below. Then, just follow the payment instructions!

Okay, back to work for me! Hope to see everyone out and about soon!

Lindsay!

Monuts does Carrboro.

Lindsay — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 17:38:02 +0000

And, if all goes well, we’ll do it again and again and again!

Good for the kidneys!

Lindsay — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:21:56 +0000

When i was picking up the hibiscus flowers for our BrewDurham beer (and our donuts), I got into a fun conversation with the store clerk about the health benefits of hibiscus. As it turns out, when consumed regularly, hibiscus tea has been shown to lower blood pressure and prevent kidney stones (I googled it, so it must be true). I won’t pretend that a donut slathered in hibiscus goodness carries the same health perks per say, but I think we might be onto something with our beer… Bad for the liver, good for the heart? A beer a day, keeps the kidney stones away? All this is to say, on Saturday April 7th, our Hibiscus Cinnamon donut will be back! We’ll be set up in the parking lot across the street from the Durham Farmer’s Market starting at 9am (spring hours are back). Maybe, we can convince bikeCOFFEE to brew up a delicious offering of Hibiscus Tea for the occasion… maybe on ice, with a citrus disk…

We’ll also be selling MoHo’s (think munchkins) for the first time! We’re not exactly sure of the frying logistics, so if we show up to the market without the MoHo’s, just give us a hug and tell us you’re sure it will work out next time. You’ll get two flavors, orange ginger and cinnamon lime. One will be dusted in a special sugar mixture and the other will be lightly glazed. In my head, this is coming together very nicely.

I have 2.5 weeks left at Duke, then I’m going to San Diego for a week, then I’m all yours. In the spirit of Rob finishing his dissertation, I’m probably going to need to hire someone to help me in the kitchen. If you or any of your friends might be interested in a part-time Monuts job, shoot me an e-mail. I’m an awesome co-worker.

That’s about all the news I have for today. Don’t forget, we’ll be giving away a special This & That Jam inspired Monut tonight at Fullsteam starting at 8pm. It will be jelly-filled (Strawberry Balsamic w/ Sea Salt) and Peanut Butter topped. Everyone should stop by and meet Ben and Ali, and taste their jams, and support their indiegogo campaign (which ends tonight). They make an awesome product, are incredibly engaged in the community and are all around top-shelf people.

Our menu for Saturday is listed below. We have six order slots left of Bakers Choice dozens, which are being sold for $12.50. Place your order today! If you’re a vegan, and you want vegan monuts, shoot me a message!

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake Donut w/ cardamom vanilla glaze
Hibiscus Cinnamon
Maple Bacon Bourbon
MoHo’s: Orange Ginger and Cinnamon Lime (balls of joy).

Happy Monday Everyone!

<3 Motown.

I love saturdays. especially this coming saturday.

Lindsay — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:47:32 +0000

Has everyone bought their tickets to BrewDurham 2012? If not, you’re a laggard, and we can’t be friends anymore. Maybe I’m kidding, but you should probably come to the event just to make sure…

Reasons to come:

Brew Durham is a fundraising event for The Scrap Exchange. We love that place for a lot of reasons. In 2010, they provided the raw materials for the winning sweater entrant in the “biggest mammal” category for my department’s Christmas party. We were a blue whale and we were amazing. Thanks Scrap!

There will be 72 beers available for tasting! SEVENTY-TWO.
Great music: Oyster Destroyster & Rezurrection Blues
It’s on a Saturday and you probably need some Vitamin D Time anyway.
Pie Pushers is turning 1 and Monuts is turning one-half! Help celebrate our youth!
Chirba Chirba, LOAF and bikeCOFFEE will also be there.
Monuts made donuts and BEER! “Why yes, I’d love a donut to pair with my beer”

I could go on, but I think you get the point. Our menu for the event is posted below. Each donut pairs with one of our beers. It’s like cheese and wine, but for the more refined palate. You won’t be disappointed.

CocoCinnaLime: Cinnamon cake donut dusted in a lime & coconut sugar mixture.
Black Pepper Caramel: Old fashioned chocolate cake donut topped with a black pepper caramel glaze.
Pink Mo-Jito: Grapefruit infused cake donut covered with a garden mint glaze and topped with chopped pistachios.

I can’t wait to see all of your smiling and slightly tipsy faces on Saturday!

<3 Motown.