This doughnut was created in collaboration with John Whaite as part of a charity initiative to raise money for ‘akt’ as part of their Pride events in 2024. I tried this about two weeks ago, in August. Here in the UK, Pride Month is held in June, however Crosstown state on their website that their commitment to Pride is something they do all year round. This is so nice to see because usually in June, every company in the UK changes to reflect rainbow colours, and then as soon as 1 July hits these rainbows all disappear. So it is nice to see that the company is raising awareness around Pride throughout the year.
‘akt‘ is a charity dedicated to supporting LGBTQIA+ youth who are either at risk of homelessness or currently experiencing it, so is clearly a very important cause. John Whaite is also a baker from the UK who is known for winning The Great British Bake Off in 2012. He is also a very vocal advocate for LGBTQIA+ issues and uses his celebrity to raise awareness around the issues that these communities face. With this in mind I wanted to make it very clear to everyone reading this blog that this is a safe space that is open to everyone. Veganism is not for any particular type of person, and as a movement it seeks to reduce harm within society as much as is possible. Whilst I am a heteronormative white woman, I will forever advocate for equal rights and protections to every member of society, and so whilst I may never be able to truly understand the issues that the LGBTQIA+ community face, I will always be a vocal supporter and am always looking for ways in which I can help more. So please know that no matter who you are, you are welcome here and you always will be.
Naturally I had to try the new doughnut. Not only does it look stunning, but it is also for a good cause, which therefore means I am doing something good simply by eating a doughnut. What more could a person want?!
I have to say that whilst the outside of the doughnut looks gorgeous, the real showstopper is the inside. The inside dough is rainbow coloured! I was not expecting this at all so was very excited when I bit into the doughnut for the first time. It doesn’t affect the taste in any way, as the dough is still the traditional sourdough base of all Crosstown doughnuts, but it was a very fun little addition that I very much enjoyed. The glaze on the top of the doughnut is coconut flavoured, with some freeze dried fruit and flowers on the top. I found that these little additions didn’t add much by way of flavour, but I do admit that they made the doughnut look very decadent.
The inside of the doughnut is filled with a passionfruit custard. Now I am not the biggest fan of custard normally – just isn’t for me – but I do admit though that the custard had quite a nice tart flavour to it from the passionfruit so it wasn’t as sweet as I had first expected. My husband however is a big fan of custard (to the point where he could drink it straight if that was socially acceptable) and he was impressed with this, so I shall take his word on this! I do think the passionfruit did help to add a sharp flavouring to the doughnut, which I do think is needed with a doughnut that is otherwise quite bland. The sourdough of the base means it isn’t sweet, and the coconut added a very subtle sweetness, so it did need this sharp passionfruit to wake the whole doughnut up.
This doughnut was probably one of the most expensive ones I’ve tried, as it was £6.25 on its own. You can though include it within a multipack box which is also good to see. As the doughnut is for charity it does make sense for it to be priced higher, however Crosstown’s website says that they only donate 50p of every doughnut sold to the charity. I feel when a doughnut is this expensive, at least donate a whole pound, but maybe that is just me. Anything for charity should be celebrated and I hope this leads to more charity initiatives moving forward.
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