sweet – Page 11 – Michael Eats

A Great Cake at Oompa Bakery

Published on September 29, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 71 Underhill Drive, North York
Website: https://oompabakery.com/

Oompa Bakery is a delightful little bakery in North York; they were mostly cleared out when I visited on a Saturday afternoon (they clearly do well!), but they did have dacquoise cakes in a variety of flavours.

The one I tried featured pistachio- and raspberry-flavoured buttercream sandwiched between two little cakes. I really enjoyed it.

The buttercream was perfect; super creamy, not overly buttery, and with a great contrast between the pistachio and raspberry flavours.

The cake in a dacquoise is kinda like a macaron, but with the addition of ground almonds, which gives it a more substantial texture and a slightly nutty flavour. It was quite tasty, with a delicately crispy exterior and a chewy interior that complemented the smooth buttercream perfectly. It’s a great dessert.

Tasty Buns at Saint Germain Bakery

Published on September 1, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 100 City Centre Drive, Mississauga (inside Square One)
Website: https://www.saintgermainbakery.com/

Saint Germain Bakery is an Asian bakery chain that started in Vancouver, and that’s been expanding around the GTA for the last few years. Their most recent location is in Square One in Mississauga, and it features a tempting assortment of sweet and savoury pastries (mostly cakes, croissants, and Asian-style buns).

It’s set up in a typical Asian bakery style, with everything (outside of the cakes) in self-serve displays, and trays for you to load up and take to the register.

My go-to at a bakery like this is typically something with red bean in it (I have a very hard time saying no to a red bean dessert), but I noticed they had something called a “Germain bun.” I had no idea what to expect with this, but I feel like it’s always a safe bet to order whatever pastry has the name of the bakery in it.

It’s not the most photogenic dessert in the world, but it’s very tasty. It basically tastes like a custard bun, but with the custard interspersed throughout — like a cinnamon roll, but with custard instead of cinnamon. It also has a crispy, sugary topping that does a great job of adding some texture to the soft, chewy bun. The topping might have amped up the sweetness level a bit too much, but the rest of the bun is more restrained, so it’s just right.

I liked it quite a lot, though I will say that it’s a deceptively hefty bun, so it’s probably a good idea to either share it, or eat half and save the rest for later. I ate it after having a heavy meal, and let me tell you: my stomach did not appreciate it. I think the term “food coma” applies.

Also: I came back another day and tried the red bean bun, and yeah, that’s good stuff. The red bean is maybe slightly too sweet and not quite as chunky as I’d like, but it’s still quite tasty and the bun is fluffy and fresh.

Tasty Cake Doughnuts at Maverick’s Donut Company

Published on August 28, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1618 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://mavericksdonuts.com/

Maverick’s is an Ottawa-based doughnut chain that opened their first location in Toronto last year. You might be thinking that we have enough doughnut joints in the city, but you’re wrong and here’s why: Maverick’s specializes in cake-based doughnuts. Most doughnut places will have a cake doughnut or two on the menu, but here it’s pretty much all of them.

I tried six: cherry glazed, pecan pie, maple bacon, double chocolate, lemon ricotta, and chocolate coconut.

They were all quite delightful. The cake is dense but not too dense, they’re not overly sweet (aside from maybe the maple bacon, which I still quite enjoyed), and they have a light crispiness on their exterior. They’re top quality doughnuts.

And the flavours were all great, though if I had to pick a favourite, it might be the nutty pecan pie. Or the double chocolate, which had a really satisfying chocolate flavour. Or the cherry glazed, which tasted like a doughnut and a maraschino cherry had a baby. Or the lemon ricotta, which had a nice tartness and a satisfying creaminess. Or the maple bacon, which had satisfying pops of saltiness from the bacon to offset the sweetness of the maple. Or the chocolate coconut, which is always a tasty combo.

Oh, I just named all the doughnuts, didn’t I. Well you know what? I liked all of them. They’re all my favourite. Deal with it.

Delicious Butter Tarts at Circles and Squares

Published on August 23, 2024August 23, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 197 Bartley Drive, North York
Website: https://www.circlesandsquares.ca/

After hearing that Circles and Squares had been awarded first prize at Ontario’s Best Butter Tart Festival last year, my first thought was — wait, there’s a butter tart festival? My second thought was that I’ve gotta try those tarts.

Circles and Squares actually won two awards: first place in the best traditional butter tart category, and second place in the best “wild-style” butter tart category (for their Snickers butter tart, which features chocolate and peanut butter).

I tried the traditional butter tart both with and without pecans, the Snickers butter tart, and the double chocolate butter tart.

They were all very good, but the traditional ones were the clear winners. I can see why they won first place — they’re gooey but not too gooey, the flavour is rich and sweet without being cloying, and the crust is fantastic. It’s a top notch butter tart.

The other two were tasty, but all the stuff took away from their butter tartiness. They tasted more like little chocolate pies that were slightly too sweet. They were still delicious, mind you, but they couldn’t help but be a bit disappointing next to the amazing traditional tarts.

Tasty Vegan Doughnuts at Bloomer’s

Published on August 19, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1510 Drew Road, Mississauga
Website: https://www.bloomersto.com/

Every time I go to a vegan bakery, or a vegan ice cream shop, or a vegan [insert dessert that absolutely should not be vegan here], I think, well, this is going to be bad. And then, more often than not, it’s not bad!

(Though nothing will ever surprise me more than the deliciousness of the the vegan ice cream at Honey’s. It’s ice cream. Ice cream. How is a vegan version that creamy?? It’s sorcery.)

I just tried the rose pistachio doughnut at Bloomer’s, a popular vegan doughnut shop with several locations around the GTA, and I was surprised by how good it was. You’d never guess it was vegan if someone gave it to you blind.

It’s maybe a touch too sweet, but the pistachio/rosewater combination is thoroughly delicious (and the rosewater flavour is more pronounced than you’d think).

The doughnut itself is top notch — it’s not too airy or too dense, with a nice chewiness that doesn’t overwhelm. I wish it had a bit more of a yeasty flavour, but that’s a relatively minor complaint.