A Persian, Persian roll or Pershing is a fried sweet roll or doughnut with a spiral shape similar to a cinnamon bun. It may be covered with a sugar glaze, iced or frosted,[2] or sprinkled with sugar or cinnamon sugar.

Persian
A Persian as made in Thunder Bay Ontario, Canada
Alternative namesPershing
TypeDoughnut
Main ingredientsSweet dough[1] or doughnut batter
VariationsIced, glazed, cinnamon sugar

Regional variations

edit

In Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, it is said to have originated at Bennett's Bakery in Port Arthur, where it is served with a sweet, pink icing made of either raspberries or strawberries. Traditional lore is that the Persian was named for U.S. general John "Blackjack" Pershing[3][4] but the exact date of its inception and circumstances of its creation are no longer known, giving rise to competing claims and stories. Its recipe remains a secret, with long-running debates on whether the icing contains raspberries or strawberries. Persians are often used as fundraising items to be sold at schools, churches, shopping malls, and other social events.[5] They may be served "toasted" – sliced in half, heated in a frying pan and iced on both sides.[4]

Persians are popular in the US states of Wisconsin and Maine.[citation needed] In Camden, Maine, they were historically made with chocolate frosting.[6] In Lehighton, Pennsylvania, they were served with chocolate or vanilla icing with a dollop of cherry–strawberry glaze. Persian buns in Wisconsin can have white (vanilla) or chocolate frosting and then topped with crushed peanuts. [7] A version is also sold as a "Pershing Donut" at Titus Bakery in Lebanon, Indiana.[8]

References

edit
  1. ^ Bain, Jennifer (September 18, 2002). "Fresh Air, fresh food". Toronto Star – via "Persians", The Food Timeline. {{cite news}}: External link in |via= (help)
  2. ^ Ojeda, Sofia (February 10, 2013). "Lehighton Bakery Retires the Pershing Doughnut". WNEP-TV.
  3. ^ Brown, Ian (June 29, 2010). "My sweet tooth is satisfied - for the next six years". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  4. ^ a b Jackson, Lisa (September 3, 2018), "The Sumptuous History of the Thunder Bay Persian Roll", Great Canadian Cookbook, Food Network Canada, archived from the original on 2021-01-24
  5. ^ Persians, City of Thunder Bay, archived from the original on January 3, 2018
  6. ^ Curtis, Abigail (June 28, 2011). "21st century remix for favorite Camden treat – Persian buns". Bangor Daily News.
  7. ^ Heery, Michael A. (January 5, 2013). "Farewell party planned for the Persian doughnut". Times News. Lehighton, Pennsylvania.
  8. ^ "The Persian Donut". bakingbuyer1. Archived from the original on 2021-12-17. Retrieved 30 October 2021.