The Doughnut Maker

Author: Denise Quinalty
Issue: 2008 March

Ken Branson remembers making his first doughnut. He can even name the date—January 31, 2006. Just a few days later, on February 6, Branson and his family opened for business. Ken, his wife Cindy, their three children—15-year-old Ken Jr. and 18-year-old twins, Cara and Sara—and three more employees have been busy ever since.

“I know what a doughnut is supposed to taste like, or what I think it should taste like,” Branson said and apparently his customers agree.

After working as a machinist for 20 years, Branson decided a change of pace would be nice. He hoped to start his own business, one that would allow him to be out the door and fishing before noon. He soon learned, however, that running his own business would take more of a commitment and more of his time than expected.

“It takes more work to keep the quality,” he explained.

The original business plan called for something on a grand scale, a place that would be a hangout spot for kids, an alternative to “cruising the ‘poo,’” a reference to Shawnee’s Kickapoo Street, a popular place for teens on Friday and Saturday nights.

Two years later, his business concept is one Branson approaches with a personal touch and friendly flair that includes greeting customers himself, and opening the door for many of them on their way out.
When asked how early he has to wake up each morning, Branson explained that some days he feels as if he never goes to sleep. On weekdays, he gets to the shop at 1 a.m. On Saturdays, he starts working at 10 p.m. the night before.

Although he doesn’t open the drive through until 5:30 a.m. or its interior seating area until 6 a.m., Branson already has deliveries to make. He sells his doughnuts to four other stores, mostly quick stops and convenience stores, in surrounding towns including Bethel Acres and Jacktown.

Branson said, on average, he makes about 50 to 60 dozen doughnuts every day, each one rolled and individually hand-cut. No frozen and shipped doughnuts here! When an RV club visited the Shawnee area last year, Branson said he sold the group 315 dozen in four days. In other words, every day varies according to who wants what each morning.
Branson said he doesn’t use a lot of special equipment or machinery to create his glazed and gooey treats. While he jokingly calls himself a “cheapskate,” he is really more of a traditionalist. For example, some customers request jelly-filled doughnuts, a product he doesn’t carry. Instead, they use real fruit like raspberries and blueberries to create their fillings.

To fill their Bismark doughnuts, Branson said they use a handheld device one of his friends referred to as an “overgrown chopstick.” The tool is used to make room inside the pastry before the filling is squeezed in—again, by hand. While the technique may not seem very high-tech, it gets the job done just as well, if not better than any high dollar machine.

Branson has received a great deal of praise for his apple fritters (made with real apples) and cinnamon rolls. While he could not name just one particular specialty doughnut, Branson did say that patrons brag on different items, “but it’s not bragging if it’s true.”

Branson said another difference hand cutting the doughnuts makes is that they end up larger than those cut by machine. The reason is scientific. Unless there is interference from the environment and the yeast does not rise completely, it takes more than one box to hold a dozen doughnuts.

“I can fit about one-and-a-half dozen in a two dozen-size box,” he said. “I’m proud of my junk.”
Plans for expansion include opening another shop or two in the future. Branson said he is stubborn and will continue to grow the business.

“Every time I eat a doughnut I expand a little more,” he joked.

Visit KC’s Donuts and More, located at 6320 N Harrison, from 5:30 a.m. till 11 a.m. Monday through Saturday. Just look for the red building on the west side of the road. The atmosphere is relaxed, friendly and welcoming… and the doughnuts aren’t bad either! For more information, call (405) 275-0605.

Shawnee Outlook