AUBURN, Wash. – No need to choose between a doughnut or an ice cream scoop – a new dessert combines them in a sweet panini.
"It's the ultimate ice cream sandwich,” said Shannon Patten, owner of Legendary Doughnuts.
After attending a restaurant trade show, Patten and her staff invented the Polar Panini. It’s a scoop of vanilla tucked inside a toasty warm doughnut.
A raised ring doughnut is sliced in half and topped with a filling of the customer’s choice (like raspberry, chocolate or peanut butter and jelly,) and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
The real magic happens inside a customized grill, where the sweet sandwich is heated up for a quick 9 seconds.
"It goes into a grill that's somewhat like a Panini grill, so it grills the outside and seals it shut. There's a dome on either side of the lid so it doesn't squish the ice cream or melt the ice cream,” Patten said. “You have a nice hot doughnut on the outside and the cold frozen ice cream on the inside."
The "Apple Pie" is a top seller, but every Polar Panini is made to order so customers can create their own flavor combination.
Legendary Doughnuts has several locations in the South Sound and they’re open seven days a week.
