Doughnuts

  Maple brown butter glaze Total time: 20 minutes Servings: Makes about 2 cups glaze, enough to frost a batch of doughnuts Note: Grade B maple syrup is less filtered than Grade A, making for a more richly flavored syrup; it is generally available at most markets. 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter 1 pound powdered sugar, sifted 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 cup maple syrup, preferably Grade B 1. In a small saucepan heated over medium-high heat, melt the butter and continue to cook until the butter browns, being careful not to burn . Remove from heat and set aside.

Umamicatessen Think Umami Burger with kitchens specializing in doughnuts, coffee, booze and pork. LOCATION 852 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, (213) 413-8626, umamicatessen.com. PRICES Ham plates, $10-$40; snacks and sides, $3-$10; sandwiches, $11-$14; burgers, $10-$15; salads and soups, $4-$10; doughnuts, $4-$8. DETAILS Open daily, 11 a.m. to midnight. Credit cards accepted. Full bar.

  Buttermilk doughnuts Total time: 1 hour Servings: Makes about 1 1/2 dozen donuts 4 1/4 cups (18 ounces) flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 teaspoon salt Pinch grated nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 2 eggs 1 egg yolk 3/4 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup buttermilk 3 tablespoons butter, melted 1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, grated nutmeg and cinnamon.

In this era of "less is more" and "cheap runs deep," it's no surprise that Spam, the canned meat staple that haunted dinner tables of the 1940s and 1950s, is reporting a continued and otherwise inexplicable uptick in sales. Edible forms of Spam continue to enter the culture, with the latest coming courtesy of an aircraft mechanic from Auburn, Wash. He's won the grand prize in the Great American Spam Championship with his recipe for Spam doughnuts. Full disclosure: This writer is not completely unbiased, having once helped her best friend create the winning entry at a private Spam party in Orange County: Spam Zimbabwe, consisting of chunks of Spam, pineapple and hearts of palm impaled on tiny spears.

Re "Social-Class Patterns in Scones and Doughnuts," Around the Valley, Feb. 24. All this time I thought it was a Rolex, a beemer, a huge stock portfolio, a ZIP Code that reflected one's social status. I am shocked to discover that I must also flaunt a scone in one snooty hand and a cup of Starbucks in my other upscale hand. Now that I know that my choice of coffee and pastry determines my snootworthiness, tell me, what social status symbol determines my true worth as a decent, ethical, human being?

In the coming disaster movie "2012," tragedy strikes Randy's Donuts in Inglewood when its giant rooftop donut becomes unhinged and is last seen bouncing down the street in the direction of star John Cusack's limo. The incident is just digital magic, of course. In real life, Randy's -- once a member of the now-defunct Big Donut chain -- is very much intact, as 405 Freeway drivers know well. But over the last half century, a half dozen former Big Donuts have disappeared, gobbled up by developers.

There are no better doughnuts than Bob's at the Farmers Market (3rd and Fairfax) ["Who Needs Cupcakes?" Nov. 16]. Just the thought of a glazed buttermilk makes all other doughnuts pale in comparison. LAURIE KELSON Encino

I normally don't eat doughnuts, but there is a place that makes all others pale by comparison. It's Henry's Donuts on Lambert Road in El Toro. The doughnuts are made with potato flour, which absorbs less oil. A. SWINSON, La Mirada

Willie Brown and his cohorts running the Democratic Party in California insulted the average Democrat by offering to buy votes for one dozen doughnuts to maintain the 33rd state Senate District in their fold. And the strange part is that so many voters took the bait. It cost them 13,000 dozen doughnuts, but we have to assume that at least 6,500 were serious voters and would have voted without the doughnuts. But that leaves quite a few voters who sure put a small price on their vote.

New Orleans We enjoyed a fabulous meal at Herbsaint in the business district: baked crab cakes with eggplant, creamy corn and rice cakes, okra, sweet potato fries and doughnuts with ice cream. Herbsaint Bar & Restaurant, 701 St. Charles Ave., (504) 524-4114; http://www.herbsaint.com . Open 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Mondays-Fridays, 5:30-10 p.m. Saturdays. Small plates from $11; main courses from $26. Cheryl Kohr Redondo Beach

It is a union of glaze and gluttony, of fresh and fried, of fruit and fat. Displayed behind the glass of a humble food stand, it is breakfast, a midday snack, a dessert, a craving. Behold the Donut Man's strawberry doughnut. Photos: The Donut Man's glaze of glory For nearly four decades, this clamshell of fried dough stuffed with a gooey mess of strawberries has kept a small Glendora shop thriving. Weathering tough economies, health fads and breakfast competition from the bagel and Egg McMuffin as well as upscale brethren like croissants and scones, it remains a sought-out gem. Situated on a forgettable strip of old Route 66, the Donut Man is little more than a shanty with a takeout window and four gnarled benches.

The summer of superhero movies is upon us, which means millions will be looking up at the big screen thinking, "Man, those abs are awesome. " So what does it take to get pecs like Thor's, shoulders like the Green Lantern's and a six-pack like Captain America's? Things most mortals can only dream about: a top personal trainer to help you work out every day, tailored meals and Sisyphean determination. Trainer Mike Knight, who owns the Art of Strength gym in West Bloomfield, Mich., was one of the trainers who worked with "Thor" star Chris Hemsworth for six months to get his body into chest-baring shape.

The debate over high-protein, high-fat diets versus high-carb, low-fat diets may never be settled. But the book "Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It" makes a solid case for upping the protein and excising some carbs, such as starchy vegetables and sugar-laden foods. The book's author, Gary Taubes, talks about his take on diet and nutrition in a live Web chat on Monday at 11 a.m. Pacific Time (1 p.m. Central Time, 2 p.m. Eastern Time). Taubes is a contributing correspondent for the journal Science and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Independent Investigator in Health Policy Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health.

There were more witnesses when Jeffrey and Kathryn Elliott renewed their vows in the lobby of a doughnut shop than at their first wedding in Hawaii. This time, instead of family and friends, the ceremony was observed by a ring of delighted tourists snapping pictures on their cellphones while a skinny "voodoo priest" in battered Chuck Taylors and a mask fashioned from a paper bag officiated over their declaration of love. The couple ? she's a technical writer for Microsoft; he's a management consultant ?

  Homemade doughnuts? Yes! And not just any doughnuts, but French crullers. They're made with pâte à choux, the same dough used to make cream puffs and éclairs. So they're crisp on the outside and light and airy on the inside ? both delicate and structured, as L.A. Times Test Kitchen manager Noelle Carter puts it. "After a lot of trial and error (and several dozen eggs)," she came up with a winning recipe. She took a couple of cues from Rose Levy Beranbaum's "The Pie and Pastry Bible," adding additional egg whites and using water instead of milk to increase the crispness.

As Nevadans streamed to the polls Tuesday morning, Sen. Harry Reid gave handshakes and hugs to volunteers phone-banking in a Las Vegas campaign office, which was down the street from an apartment complex touting its "Recession Special!" The embattled Democrat was notably relaxed, considering his battle with Republican Sharron Angle has been so filled with mud-slinging that a radio station Tuesday dubbed the pair "Dirty Harry" and "Psycho Sharron. " Dressed in a button-down shirt and khaki pants, Reid joked about being scheduled to serve the volunteers doughnuts, a box of which had been opened in a different room.

It’s more than an army that travels on its stomach. A presidential campaign is also carbohydrate-challenged  as President Obama demonstrated in his Seattle stopover Thursday. The president’s day began with Obama and entourage hitting a local coffee shop, the Top Pot Doughnuts.  “Hey guys,” Obama said, getting some cheers from the dozens of other customers. As Michael Jackson’s “Beat It,” played in the background, Obama stepped up to the counter, according to media pool reports.