Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

The fall season used to be a time for sweaters, strolls in the park to watch changing leaves and hanging out in coffee shops.

Then in recent years, pumpkin spice elbowed its way into fall stereotypes. Many mock it but even more unabashedly adore it.

Not to be outdone by the pumpkin spice craze, Voodoo Doughnut stopped by Eugene Weekly with samples of its fall doughnut lineup: the Caramel Cha Cha Chai and Dashing Pumpkin.

OK, back to the doughnuts.

The Caramel Cha Cha Chai. Photo courtesy of Voodoo Doughnut

The Caramel Cha Cha Chai is a yeast-filled doughnut with chai cream, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with chai spice. One EW taster mentioned that she was worried about the cream being overwhelmed with chai but was relieved that it was just a hint.

Each bite of the Cha Cha Chai fills your mouth with the chai creamy goodness, so for those who chase doughnuts with filling and cream, you’d better head to Voodoo before it leaves the menu on Dec. 27. And if you need more incentive to buy some Cha Cha Chai doughnuts, a portion of each doughnut’s sale goes toward the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, which supports students at historically and predominantly Black higher education institutions.

As long as social justice is a topic at hand, we should acknowledge that Voodoo Doughnut’s workers at a Portland store have been trying to unionize under the name Doughnut Workers United. Workers voted to unionize back in March 2020, according to the NW Labor Organizer. In June 2021, the union told Willamette Week that management was union-busting by firing workers. Voodoo management told The Oregonian the unionization efforts were defeated in a vote acknowledged by the National Labor Relations Board. The Doughnut Workers United is still active on social media.

Back to the main event — the doughnut that’s based on a spice so popular that Oct. 1, aka Pumpkin Spice Day, is named after it: the Dashing Pumpkin (we’re guessing a reference to the ‘90s alt-rock band Smashing Pumpkins). The cake doughnut preferers at EW thought the Dashing Pumpkin had an excellent pumpkin cream to doughnut ratio. The doughnut itself was perfectly balanced, crunchy outside and soft inside. The doughnut is available through Nov. 30.