Doughnuts used to be simple: glazed or cake, rainbow sprinkles or chocolate frosting. The treat, thanks to the wacky ways of Voodoo Doughnut and the genius of the Cronut, is now a dessert class all its own. That degree of spontaneity and creativity is exactly what the owners of Fractured Prune Doughnuts hope to tap when the Maryland chain opens its first shop in the Denver area.

But first, the name: The chain first opened on the boardwalk of Ocean City, Maryland, to honor a local icon known as Fractured Prunella.

Prunella Shriek was a woman of the 1800s who was definitely ahead of her time. Determined to break her era’s gender stereotypes, Shriek competed in sports traditionally reserved for men until she was well into her 70s. In the process, she repeatedly fractured bone after bone, thus earning the descriptive nickname and a place in Ocean City’s local lore. In 1976, a tiny doughnut shop on the boardwalk decided to honor her individualism by encouraging people to create their own doughnuts that were as unique as Shriek was. Wildly popular on the East Coast, the Fractured Prune franchise is now bringing its hot-out-of-the-fryer concept to Colorado Boulevard.

Company spokesperson Heather Gearhart describes Fractured Prune’s schtick as “tapping into consumers’ inner doughnut genius. Customers choose from a selection of glazes and 18 toppings (channel French toast with a cake doughnut coated in warm maple glaze, cinnamon-sugar topping, and freshly crumbled bacon; or go for mocha glaze and cookie crumbles; or keep it simple with blueberry or raspberry glazes made with fresh berries). The idea is to be an individual and, as the shop’s motto goes, “there’s no wrong way to make yours right.”

Stay Tuned: The opening is pegged for March, but keep updated by liking the Fractured Prune on Facebook.

1104 S. Colorado Blvd., Glendale