Doughnut Heaven

Since he began frying doughnuts in his East Village basement twelve years ago, using his North Carolina baker grandfather’s recipe, Mark Isreal has made himself and his doughnuts New York City landmarks, selling to carriage-trade shops like Dean & Deluca and Zabar’s and coyly (and correctly) refusing to ship them anywhere. What sets his doughnuts apart is the quality of the ingredients, particularly the butter—yes, doughnut batter has a lot of it—and the flavorings.

These days practically the first thing a visitor sees at the Doughnut Plant, Isreal’s utilitarian Lower East Side shop, is a sign: NO TRANS FATS . Liquid oil (he fries in corn oil) is no problem for yeast doughnuts—airy, if very large, delights, which ...