Sort of Ridiculous

This behemoth speaks for itself:

And what it says is, “Hi! I’m the apple walnut scone from Bakeri and I’m about the size of your head, if not larger!”

With a crunchy top and soft, moist interior, held together by apple and walnut and just enough salt to bring out the best of the sweetness, this guy is an honest winner. Reminiscent of City Bakery‘s Baker’s muffin, no?

Even when viewed next to a (smallish) coffee cup, this is one enormous scone. Bring your appetite, or otherwise your friends, so that they can at least get you into a stroller for post-scone-naptime.

Rose’s Donut

While I was traveling last month in a land far removed from such refined, confectionery goodness, my dear friend was able to sample a treat for her breakfast stateside.

Here is the donut that Rose so enjoyed, purchased at Culture:

Out of jealousy I demanded further details, but, true to form, she stated only that it was, “really, really good.”

Judging by the photo I describe this specimen (most likely made by Dough) to be light and airy as a cloud which is tethered oh-so-delicately to earth by the subtle crunch of its sugar coating.

Simple, satisfying, and demanding to be tried; Rose and I will be back to split this soon.

Pi(e)

Guess what tomorrow is? Only the best of all days, in March at least. Okay, maybe the second best, behind the 17th…

If you are looking to celebrate here is a cute idea, complete with a recipe for what sounds like quite the blueberry pie:

Happy Pi day, in advance.

Eli’s Redux

I really cannot believe I had yet to try the breakfasts at Eli’s Bread before this week. This babka “muffin” just made my life so much sweeter:

The bread could not have been more fresh, its interior impeccably airy and light while the outer edges held a necessary crunch. Like the best, most indulgent cinnamon toast rolled up and dusted with powdered sugar, each bite revealed tiny layers of babka held together by a pervasive cinnamon-raisin swirl.

There’s a reason (and in this case, a perfectly plump and flavorful raisin) for Zabar’s impeccable reputation. Eli, please make me breakfast anytime.

Eli’s

So I finally purchased something from the new(ish) Eli’s Bread in Grand Central Market:

Banana chocolate chip muffin.

When something has “chocolate chip” in it’s title I tend to assume the chocolate exists throughout instead of simply resting on top of the item in five (yes, I had already eaten one before taking a photo) solitary chunks.

Alas, this really was a banana muffin wearing dainty chocolate accessories. While I never quite got over my initial disappointment at this chocolate-chip letdown, the light, airy, and extremely banana-y muffin still won me over. What a nice change from my usual suspects and perhaps one of the more virtuous breakfast choices that still contains chocolate.

Mini Medley

Our cafeteria has some pretty decent mini muffins, an assortment of which I have been able to sample over the past year:

 

 

Clockwise from top left: Corn, blueberry, and two “mystery” flavors (one might be raspberry?)

Perfect for those mornings when I’m just a tad hungry yet can’t seem to commit to a particular breakfast, one or two of these guys hit the spot. While I think I have tried almost all by this point there are a few varieties whose tastes still prove illusive. I might have to become more scientific in my attempt to nail down these flavors, but for the meantime I’m going to keep eating them in the hopes that my taste buds will evolve. The things we must do for research.

Montrose Pumpkins

Last week I ended up on the same corner two mornings in a row, leaving both times from two separate stores with a coffee and pumpkin muffin in hand. You might say I was going through a phase; you might also say I conducted an ad-hoc neighborhood survey.

The first was from Cup: decent if not a little bland and uniform in texture:

The second, from Boulevard, was definitely my favorite.

This guy had more punch, more flavor, and just the slightest bit more contrast between crisp outer edge and moist interior. It tasted like real pumpkin, a little earthy and not too sweet.

A combination of Boulevard’s muffin and Cup’s coffee and service would make any decadent Bushwick Ave. breakfast complete.

On rolls

While bursts of sugar can provide some much-needed early morning energy, lately I’ve been leaning in a decidedly more savory breakfast direction. Behold, probably the most conservative of choices along my saccharine scale:

A walnut-raisin roll and English breakfast tea.

Since they are free in our cafeteria I have long gone for these rolls as part of a lunch, snack or dinner. But only last week, after I was told I needed to consume more iron in order to be a blood donor, did I consider trying this for breakfast. (Fun facts: Raisins are an excellent source of iron! Coffee prohibits its absorption! I learned a lot from my blood drive nurse).

And I have to say, I’ve felt great on the mornings when I opted for this bread: energetic, spirited, yet also calm and focused. Maybe it’s time to leave the coffee and sugar duo behind? But then, I must confess: my good mood could also be attributed to the sizable amount of sugar I added to my tea. While savory does have its benefits, I’m always going to need a little sweetness to balance. It’s in my (now, hopefully less iron-deficient) blood.

All Yesterday’s Parties

Memories of potlucks generally revolve around the food and company, flavored by goodwill and generosity that comes as everyone joins in sharing each others’ culinary creations. But when the eating is over and the parties move elsewhere we are sometimes left with a beguiling graveyard of morsels. Take, for instance, my friend’s kitchen this past fall:

 

Vegetal carcasses.

 

Dead bread.

 

Bare bones.

Distasteful? Unappetizing? Perhaps. Intriguing? Revealing? I would say so.

Rum Baba

Last week Ben and Sarah refused to let me leave their apartment without trying some rum cake:

(Alright so you never have to make me eat dessert, but still)– I loved it.

Nothing fancy here; plain yellow cake gets doused in copious amounts of butter and rum, the glaze concentrating along its outer edges to produce that intoxicating play between moist and crunchy achieved only after numerous baths of melted sugar coating.

So sweet and more than a tad boozy: just the way I like ’em.