A Persian, Persian roll or Pershing is a fried

sweet roll A sweet roll or sweet bun refers to any of a number of sweet, baked, yeast-leavened breakfast or dessert foods. They may contain spices, nuts, candied fruits, etc., and are often glazed or topped with icing. Compared to regular bread dough, ...

doughnut A doughnut or donut () is a type of food made from leavened fried dough. It is popular in many countries and is prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franc ...

with a

spiral In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a point, moving farther away as it revolves around the point. Helices Two major definitions of "spiral" in the American Heritage Dictionary are:cinnamon bun A cinnamon roll (also known as cinnamon bun, cinnamon swirl, cinnamon Danish and cinnamon snail) is a sweet roll commonly served in Northern Europe (mainly in Nordic countries, but also in Austria and Germany) and North America. In Sweden it is ...

. It may be covered with a sugar glaze, iced or frosted, or sprinkled with sugar or

cinnamon sugar Cinnamon sugar is a mixture of ground cinnamon and granulated sugar used as a spice to flavor foods such as Belgian waffles, Snickerdoodle cookies, tortillas, coffee cake, French toast, and churros. It is also used to flavor apples, cereals, and ...

Regional variations

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, it is credited to have originated at Bennett's Bakery in Port Arthur, where it is served with a sweet, pink icing made of either

raspberries The raspberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the rose family, most of which are in the subgenus '' Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Raspberries are perennial with w ...

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

. Traditional lore is that the Persian was named for U.S. general John "Blackjack" Pershing but the exact date of its inception and circumstances of its creation are no longer known, giving rise to competing claims and stories. Its recipe remains a general secret, with long-running debates on whether the icing contains raspberries or strawberries. Persians are often used as fundraising items to be sold at schools, churches, shopping malls, and other social events. They may be served "toasted" – sliced in half, heated in a frying pan and iced on both sides. Persians are popular in the US states of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

and

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. In

Camden, Maine Camden is a resort town in Knox County, Maine. The population was 5,232 at the 2020 census. The population of the town more than triples during the summer months, due to tourists and summer residents. Camden is a summer colony in the Mid-Coas ...

, they were historically made with chocolate frosting. In

Lehighton, Pennsylvania Lehighton () is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Lehighton is located northwest of Allentown and northwest of Philadelphia. Due in part to water power from the Lehigh River, Lehighton was an e ...

, they were served with chocolate or vanilla icing with a dollop of cherry–strawberry glaze. A version is also sold as a "Pershing Donut" at Titus Bakery in

Lebanon, Indiana Lebanon (/ˈlɛbnən/) is a city in and the county seat of Boone County, Indiana, United States. The population was 15,792 at the 2010 census. Lebanon is located in central Indiana, approximately northwest of downtown Indianapolis and southe ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Persian Canadian desserts Cuisine of Ontario Culture of Thunder Bay Sweet breads American doughnuts