Review: Tastykake - Red Velvet Mini Donuts

Tastykake's Red Velvet Mini Donuts are a limited-time flavor that consist of red velvet mini cake donuts covered in powdered sugar.

These go for $2.99 for a 10-oz bag, but I received these courtesy of Tastykake via mail (Tastykakes aren't much available in my neighborhood).

I tried the new Salted Caramel Mini Donuts earlier and mentioned that they were a bit firm and dry, but it seems that's more indicative of mini donuts in general, as I stopped by the supermarket and poked/lightly-squeezed various brands of mini donuts in a highly unscientific comparison. Like many a mini donut, these were also a firm and a bit on the dry side.

The decision to cover the donuts in powdered sugar rather than some form of cream cheese icing is a curious one, since red velvet cakes are most known by the cream cheese frosting and deep red color.

Flavor-wise, the red velvet cake itself is, in many versions, yellow or white cake with cocoa powder to add a mild chocolaty flavor. Mirroring that, Tastykake's Red Velvet Mini Donuts tastes like plain cake donuts with a light cocoa flavor to them.

Overall, Tastykake's Red Velvet Mini Donuts are nice if you want a red-colored plain cake donut with a brief touch of cocoa but I prefer the deeper, slightly richer chocolate notes of a chocolate or devil's food cake donut. I think a cream cheese icing would be necessary to make these stand out, but I think some would be pretty pleased by the red color alone.

Of the two new, limited time flavors, I much prefer Salted Caramel.

Nutritional Info - Tastykake Red Velvet Mini Donuts
Serving Size - 4 donuts (57g / 2 oz)
Calories - 220 (Calories from Fat - 80)
Fat - 9g (Saturated Fat - 4g)
Sodium - 260mg
Carbs - 32g (Sugar - 14g)
Protein - 3g