In this whole detox diet we’re doing this month, there’s lots I could be missing. But cakes and pastries are coming top of the list. I almost cried over a brownie I couldn’t eat on Sunday! And going into this straight from New York where I made it my mission to hunt out delicious sweet treats, the break feels even harder…
First on my list of sweet destinations was Baked by Melissa. She runs four little cupcake stores in different spots in Manhattan but the twist is that these are all mini cupcakes. Really tiny. They all have their cake base, a wee bit of filling, the frosting and a topping. All in one little mouthful of deliciousness!
We bought six to try, all different. My favourite is tied between the mint choc chip and the smores cupcakes…
The next day after our brunch at Katz we kept walking south and found another bakery I had bookmarked weeks before: The Doughnut Plant. In case you hadn’t heard, doughnuts are the new pie, which was the new cupcake. Or something like that! (I’ve also heard that ice lollies are taking over again but I tend to think that was just a short summer reign – doughnuts will be back top with the autumn coolness).
The excitement on my face is almost scary.
We bought a pistachio glazed doughnut and a raspberry glazed doughnut, and ate half each. They were delicious! Light and fresh and just the right amount of chewy. They had another flavour called Creme Brulee, which happens to be my favourite dessert. I didn’t get that one though because it looked so small, but since then I’ve read reviews where everyone adores the creme brulee flavour, so maybe I need to make a return trip…
On our last morning in the city, we had brunch a few doors up from our guest house in Harlem, at Il Caffe Latte, and afterwards got a big slice of their red velvet cake to go. I love red velvet cake. It is very American, so I had never had it until a few years ago, when an American girl I new a little here in Brussels posted a recipe for red velvet cupcakes on her blog, and I had to try them. I made them for a Valentine’s Day event we did at an asylum seeker’s residential centre in our neighbourhood and they were a hit, and I’ve loved red velvet cake ever since!
We took our slice of deliciousness into the north part of Central Park, found a rock to sit on (they are plentiful there) and spent a wonderful last hour debriefing our wonderful summer, planning the weeks and months ahead and eating red velvet cake. It was the perfect way to end a very sweet trip.
What about you? Do you have favourite bakeries that you just have to visit when you’re in town?
