Uncle Dood’s Donuts Teases Controversial Cricket Topping

One of my very favorite Jersey Shore eateries is experimenting with something that's totally polarizing...

You've probably never seen a donut like this:

Yep, that's a bug covered donut from Uncle Dood's Donuts in Toms River, and to no one's surprise, the reaction was mixed at best.

I asked Uncle Dood, a.k.a. Dominic Livolsi, about the inspiration behind this ...atypical... flavor. He said, "I've always wanted to play with the idea of putting bugs on a donut. I was having a pretty candid conversation with an employee about this, and he came bearing gifts today: a snack size bag of roasted crickets."

This isn't a completely radical idea, crickets are actually part of many cuisines from around the globe. Yes, they are food-grade -- this isn't like some roach you scoop up from behind the stove in a nasty kitchen.

Crickets are (very slowly) becoming more popular here in the U.S. because the little buggers are a great source of lean protein...if, of course, you can get past the whole concept of eating a bug.

Naturally I was dying to know what kind of icing you pair with insect.

Dood tells me, "We did one with chocolate which was very tasty but didn't photograph well, so we also tried them with the honey cashew butter icing."

So what do they taste like?

"Kind of like the bottom of a bag of roasted peanuts," he says. (It's really stuff like this that make me love chatting with him so much on the regular.)

Unfortunately, even you open-minded eaters won't be able to give this creation a try, at least not yet, as this was more just something he wanted to test out. He tells me, "I don't believe it will be a new menu item for the foreseeable future."

I love the creativity, but my general fear and disgust of all bugs would keep me far away from this bad boy. I did, however, suggest grinding up the crickets, using it almost like finely chopped peanuts or like a straight up protein powder-style topping?

"I'm sold. Pair it with chocolate..."

And since every Dood donut has an awesome name?

"Call it 'Grillo,' Spanish for 'cricket.'