Fan Fan Doughnuts

"You can’t leave this Clinton Hill spot without ordering at least one of their namesake fan-fan donuts. They look like a mashup between a long john and an eclair, and our favorite flavor comes filled with fluffy cream cheese and topped with a tangy guava glaze and crumbled graham crackers. The denser dough can stand up to a variety of fillings, so lean towards versions like the chocolate-glaze topped with churros and the Danny Boy with salted brown butter caramel and nuts." - molly fitzpatrick, carlo mantuano, sonal shah, neha talreja, kenny yang

"As befits a doughnut guru, pastry chef Fany Gerson’s take on hot chocolate at her eponymous Bed-Stuy doughnut shop is topped with a mound of toasted, airy doughnut croutons. This introduces a savory, crunchy element to this Belgian-style, milk-and-dark chocolate treat.  Throughout the season, Fan Fan Doughnuts rotates specials, including an upcoming spicy hot chocolate on January 31." - John Tsung

"In 2020, Fany Gerson severed ties with partners at Dough, and went off on her own to open Fan Fan to much acclaim. The Danny Boy doughnut, with brown butter and salted caramel, is a crowd favorite, named for her husband. Flavors rotate and might include mango lassi, lemon-lime, Mexican cinnamon sugar, and more." - Eater Staff

"Fany Gerson, the dessert pro who started La Newyorkina and Dough, is behind for this Bed-Stuy bakery on the corner of Franklin and Lafayette avenues. The recipe for her doughnuts is different here — it incorporates Mexican cinnamon and tea — and her pastry case is lined with sticky buns, braided and glazed doughnuts, and fan fans, (filled doughnuts that fall somewhere between an eclair and a Long John). The bakery is located in the building that housed the first location of the Dough doughnut chain, which Gerson stepped away from in 2020." - Eater Staff

"At one of NYC’s most popular bakeries, Fan Fan, there are certain pastries that people will specifically seek out. One such pastry is the Danny Boy doughnut, or a brown butter salted caramel doughnut. To make the treat, Gerson creates the drizzle by mixing sugar and water to start the process of making caramel. When it starts to heat up, Gerson says she mostly uses her smell to tell when the caramel is ready. “When you smell it, you can almost taste it in the back of your throat,” Gerson says. “It just needs to smell like deep caramel and taste like the beginning hints of bitter.” When it’s ready, she adds cream and mixes until it’s smooth, then carefully blends the brown butter in to avoid the caramel splashing back up and burning her. Next, she moves onto the doughnut glaze. “Even though it has a lot of similar ingredients [to the drizzle], they taste different,” says Gerson. “They add layers. I always like to think of different ways to layer so nothing is one note.” For the glaze, she begins by heating up cream in a pot before introducing the brown butter. Once the butter is melted, Gerson stirs in brown sugar, then mixes in confectionary sugar and salt, adding thickness. Finally, Gerson dips the doughnut into the glaze, adds the drizzle on top, sprinkles pecans onto one corner, and dusts on Maldon salt. The first time she made the doughnut, she recorded her husband, whose name is Danny, eating it: He loved it so much that she named the pastry after him. “It’s as sweet as he is,” she says. Watch the full video to see what other pastries Gerson makes at Fan Fan." - Avery Dalal