Tag: cinnamon

Greek Doughnuts at Mr. Puffs

Published on by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Mr. Puffs
Location: 1425 Dundas Street East, Mississauga
Website: https://mrpuffs.com/

Mr. Puffs is a chain that specializes in fried doughnut holes — they’re basically Greek-style loukoumades, though the menu and website never uses that word, referring to them only as puffs.

The puffs come topped with various sauces and flavours; the woman behind the counter said that honey cinnamon and sugar cinnamon are the two most popular, so I got six of each (an order of 12, which comes out to about eight bucks, is the smallest you can get).

Mr. Puffs

This location has just opened, so I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt and say that they’re still working out the kinks.  This style of doughnut is generally soaked in syrup, but the syrup was just drizzled on here, resulting in a final product that was just barely sweet (and the sugar cinnamon variety had the same issue).  The doughnuts mostly tasted of the oil they were fried in.

Mr. Puffs

I also think that the oil might have been a bit too hot, because the exterior was aggressively crispy (I could barely put a fork through it) and the interior was soft and gummy.

Mr. Puffs

Still, despite the issues, it’s a fun concept — assuming they work out the kinks, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Cinnamon Roll Centres Blizzard at Dairy Queen

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Cinnamon Roll Centres Blizzard
Location: 325 Central Parkway West, Mississauga
Website: https://www.dairyqueen.com/

Dairy Queen is currently serving their Fall menu of Blizzards, which means the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard (a.k.a. the king of Blizzards) is back.  I probably should have ordered that, but how could I resist something called a Cinnamon Roll Centres Blizzard??  You’re going to take the best part of a cinnamon roll and mix it with ice cream???  Yes please, give me a million of those please.

Dairy Queen describes this as “soft cinnamon roll pieces and brown butter cinnamon topping blended with our world-famous vanilla soft serve,” and alas, it’s not nearly as great as you’d hope.

They mix some cinnamon flavour right in with the soft serve, which is nice, but the “soft” cinnamon roll pieces are actually not soft at all (they have more of a chewy cookie consistency), and taste absolutely nothing like the sweet, gooey, delicious middle of a cinnamon roll.  They’re just kinda dry and chewy, and while they’re cinnamony, they also have an odd flavour that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

I didn’t hate eating it, I guess, but the notion that this has anything to do with a cinnamon roll honestly feels like false advertising.  Can we sue Dairy Queen?  I feel like we should sue Dairy Queen.

Quick Bites: Churnt Up, Nord Lyon, Canada’s Wonderland

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Churnt Up
Cinnamon Toast Crunch ice cream at Churnt Up

I decided recently that if I eat something I don’t particularly enjoy, I’m not going to write all that much about it — I think there’s enough negativity in the world, and I’d rather spend my energy focusing on stuff I like rather than stuff I don’t.  That being said, I’ll say that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is a great flavour for ice cream, and I’ll leave it at that.

Nord Lyon
Strawberry croissant at Nord Lyon

The strawberry croissant at Nord Lyon is named after the bakery; it’s always a safe bet to order a restaurant’s namesake dish, and in this case, the croissant has a nice buttery flavour and a healthy amount of sweet strawberry jam.  It was pretty stale when I tried it, but maybe you’ll have better luck?

Funnel cake at Canada's Wonderland
Funnel cake at Canada’s Wonderland

It turns out that Canada’s Wonderland is actually pretty boring for food — at least half of the eateries are locations of Pizza Pizza or Subway, and the rest all serve stuff like burgers and chicken strips, with almost none of the over-the-top carnival-style fun you might expect.  But!  They still serve funnel cakes — topped with soft serve and a chunky strawberry sauce — and they’re just as good as you remember.  No… better.  If there’s a better combo than fresh fried dough, creamy ice cream, and sweet strawberry sauce, I’d like to hear about it.

Amazing Sticky Buns at Ambrosia Corner Bakery

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Ambrosia Corner BakeryLocation: 324 Frederick Street, Kitchener
Website: https://ambrosiacornerbakery.com/

Though I was really hoping to try the kouign-amann at Ambrosia Corner Bakery, it turns out I visited on the wrong day — they’re only served from Thursday to Saturday.  My disappointment was short-lived, however.  As soon as I saw their Pecan Cinnamon Sticky Buns, I knew that I needed to put one in my belly ASAP.

Ambrosia Corner Bakery

Step aside, kouign-amann; that sticky bun has an urgent appointment with my face.

Yes.  It’s as good as it looks.  It’s sticky, sweet, and incredible.  It looks like it might be too sweet, but it’s actually remarkably well balanced.  The caramel on top has a very rich, deep flavour, and the buttery, amazing pastry is substantial enough to hold up to the generous amount of sauce.  That’s not to mention the underlying cinnamon flavour, which is delightful.

Ambrosia Corner Bakery

But then do I even need to be writing this?  You have eyeballs.  Again: it’s as good as it looks.

An Interesting Cinnamon Bun at Fika Cafe

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Fika CafeLocation: 28 Kensington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.fika.ca/

I’ve tried to get the cinnamon bun from Fika Cafe a few times, and it’s been sold out every time.

I finally got one.  It was worth the wait.

Fika Cafe

Fika Cafe is a Swedish bakery and coffee shop in Kensington Market; they sell a Swedish-style cinnamon bun, and it’s fantastic.

It’s basically like a cross between a Swedish cardamom bun and a more traditional cinnamon roll, and it’s so damn good.  It tastes more strongly of cinnamon than cardamom, but that slightly floral cardamom taste is definitely there; it’s a delightful balance.

Fika Cafe

Everything else about it is pretty much perfect — it has the perfect amount of sweetness, with a light sugary glaze and additional pops of sweetness and texture from the  pearl sugar on top.  It’s pretty restrained, however, so if you’re expecting a Cinnabon-esque sugar-bomb, look elsewhere.

The pastry itself is dense but not too dense, with a nice chewy texture and just the right amount of fluffiness.  And of course, the aforementioned cinnamon/cardamom balance is just right.  It’s one of the best pastries I’ve had in a while.