Krispy Kreme Elf Doughnuts Review: A Sugary Holiday Delight
"Elf" hit the big screen 20 years ago, and it's had an impressive amount of staying power for a movie that's more than just a little goofy. Tucked in between "Old School" and "Anchorman" (neither of which are kids' movies by a long shot), Will Ferrell dropped a sugar-fueled, warm-and-fuzzy Christmas movie that's still considered one of the best holiday movies of all time. To celebrate the movie's milestone anniversary, Elf-themed treats and merchandise are popping up everywhere, including at Krispy Kreme, where the doughnut brand is frosting colorful limited edition doughnuts with enough sugar to even make Buddy the Elf giddy.
Fresh off the heels of a popular spooky season Scooby-Doo doughnut collaboration, Krispy Kreme has created three new Elf-themed doughnuts, in addition to a few holiday favorites that are returning to the menu. The new doughnuts include a Buddy Snow Globe Doughnut, a Christmas Lights Doughnut, and a Buddy Makes Breakfast Doughnut. Complete with candy, colorful sprinkles, and Buddy the Elf chocolate décor, a dozen doughnuts also come in a special movie-themed box. Like Buddy, we made our way to New York City to find the special doughnuts, fittingly at a store just a few blocks from the Empire State Building. From the availability and price to the flavors and nutrition information, this is everything you need to know about the new Elf-themed doughnuts from Krispy Kreme.
The Buddy Snow Globe Doughnut
In the movie, Buddy the Elf is given a snow globe of New York City and told that's where his biological father (portrayed by the legendary James Caan) lives. The snow globe pops up in a few places in the film and is the inspiration for the Buddy Snow Globe doughnut. The doughnut is a regular glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut, dipped in a blue sugar cookie-flavored icing, with white nonpareil sprinkles at the base. Small flecks of sugar are suspended in the blue icing, and a white chocolate plaque of Buddy himself stands in the center of the doughnut and mimics the movie's iconic snow globe.
The sugar cookie flavor isn't especially strong, but it is noticeable if you're looking for it. There's a big crunch factor from the nonpareil sprinkles, which might be a deal-breaker for someone who prefers a softer confection. But the sprinkles are pretty secure on the doughnut, so there's little worry about taking a bite and having a lap full of nonpareils afterward. The snow globe doughnut clocks in at 260 calories, with 11 grams of fat, 85 mg of sodium, 39 grams of carbohydrates, and 26 grams of sugar. For comparison's sake, an Original Glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut has 190 calories, with the same amount of fat and sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, and 10 grams of sugar. So essentially, you're just getting a bit more sugar here, which isn't the least bit surprising.
The Christmas Lights Doughnut
For those who want in on the festivities but might not want to go all-in with one of the more elaborate doughnuts, the Christmas Lights Doughnut is a cute upgrade that's essentially just the Krispy Kreme Chocolate Iced Glazed Doughnut with a little extra decoration. Five thin bands of green frosting cut across the doughnut, flecked with multi-color sprinkles that cleverly mimic Christmas tree lights. A small round white chocolate plaque sits in the center of the doughnut and reads, "SANTA! I KNOW HIM!" — a famously recognizable line from the movie that's especially memorable coming from a fully-grown star-struck adult who is, perhaps, a little too excited to see Santa. (We've all repeated it hundreds of times; it never gets old, okay?)
This is the only chocolate offering in the "Elf" lineup, so it's hard to pass it by. It also has 290 calories, 12 grams of fat, 90 mg of sodium, 43 grams of carbohydrates, and 29 grams of sugar. In comparison, the non-decorated Chocolate Iced Glazed doughnut has 240 calories, 11 grams of fat, the same amount of sodium, 33 grams of carbohydrates, and 20 grams of sugar. Anyone who has allergy and dietary concerns should know that all of the doughnuts contain egg, milk, soy, and wheat products and are processed in a facility that also processes peanuts and tree nuts.
The Buddy Makes Breakfast Doughnut
The Buddy Makes Breakfast Doughnut is a hilarious take on Buddy the Elf's early morning meal of plain spaghetti topped with maple syrup and fistfuls of candy. Luckily, the pasta here is just more frosting. The fake pasta topping is actually cake batter-flavored buttercream, which is softer and more fluffy than the icing used on the other doughnuts. It's got a generous sprinkle of mini M&Ms, multi-color sprinkles, and then a final drizzle of maple-flavored icing. To say that it puts the icing on the cake, or rather, the doughnut, is putting it mildly in this case. To hold all the additional toppings, the center of a regular glazed doughnut is filled in with what appears to be a doughnut hole, added back in just before or after frying the doughnut.
You should know, before we even get into the details, that this doughnut is its own meal — nutritionally speaking. But don't necessarily let that deter you if you're dead set on tasting this absolute package of a doughnut. The Buddy Makes Breakfast doughnut has 410 calories, 21 grams of fat, 170 mg of sodium, 52 grams of carbohydrates, and 35 grams of sugar. In full transparency, we thought the additional fat and sodium actually helped balance the more significant sugar content. However, we still weren't able to finish the whole doughnut in one sitting — and needed a big cup of black coffee to wash it all down with.
The Santa Belly Doughnut
The Santa Belly Doughnut is a seasonal doughnut creation that's returning to the Krispy Kreme menu this year. It is included in the "Elf" collection by the dozen, which is a fitting addition to the lineup. It's stuffed with a Cookies & Kreme filling, a twist on Krispy Kreme's signature Kreme filling that tastes like a light and fluffy frosting, not a traditional custard filling like you'd find in a Boston cream doughnut. The red icing on top is unflavored, as is the black icing belt and yellow candy belt buckle spanning the doughnut's belly. Aside from the fact that this doughnut is very red, It's essentially just a cookies and cream-stuffed doughnut.
The doughnut has 360 calories, 18 grams of fat, 140 mg of sodium, 45 grams of carbohydrates, and 26 grams of sugar. For anyone who's a fan of Krispy Kreme's Chocolate Iced doughnut with Kreme filling or the Cake Batter doughnut, the nutritional values are pretty similar. The sweet Kreme filling really takes center stage with this doughnut, and we'd suggest enjoying it with a huge glass of milk to wash it all down with.
Availability and price of the Elf doughnuts
The "Elf" doughnuts were slated to hit stores on November 24th, although we had trouble finding them in several locations. We also noticed that some stores have one or two of the options in stock but not the complete collection. It's clear that the doughnuts are labor intensive and likely require a good deal of hand decorating, which might be contributing to the availability of the doughnuts in some locations. At our location, each doughnut is offered individually for $2.89 before taxes and in the special "Elf" collection for $22.19 per dozen before taxes.
The special collection includes three Santa Belly doughnuts, two each of the Christmas Lights, Buddy Makes Breakfast, and Buddy Snow Globe doughnuts, and three of Krispy Kreme's Original Glazed Doughnuts (a smart move, considering there's always one or two doughnut purists in every group). Some of the limited edition doughnuts will also be available in 6-packs, and delivered to participating Walmart, Kroger, Food Lion, Publix, Stater Brothers, and Wakefern stores. The 6-packs are reported to include the snow globe, Christmas lights, and Santa belly doughnuts. An official end date hasn't been announced for the Elf-themed doughnuts, although the Krispy Kreme website mentions that the Santa Belly doughnut will be available until December 14th. So it's fair to assume that the "Elf" doughnuts will also be available until then or while supplies last.
Perfect for anyone who loves Christmas cheer and lots of sugar
It probably goes without saying that these doughnuts are incredibly sweet, but nevertheless, we're here to confirm it. After all, Buddy the Elf's four main food groups are candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup — so any fan of "Elf" should know what they're signing themselves up for here. But it's the playful spirit of the doughnuts that really counts here. Krispy Kreme has packed these limited edition doughnuts with enough Christmas spirit to single-handedly power Santa's sleigh.
Flavor-wise, they're fine. There's something a little bizarre about the combination of cake batter buttercream, chocolate candy, sprinkles, and oddly-flavored maple icing on the Buddy Makes Breakfast doughnut, but it's supposed to be. And it's still far more appetizing than Buddy's actual spaghetti breakfast creation. The Buddy Snow Globe doughnut is cute, although we weren't sold on the crunchy sprinkles on half of the doughnut. And the Christmas lights doughnut is easy to love for anyone who's already a fan of Krispy Kreme's chocolate iced doughnut, which we are. Nothing can compare to an Original Glazed doughnut hot off the glazing line at Krispy Kreme, but these doughnuts are far more exciting — and spark just the right amount of childlike joy we can all appreciate this time of year.