sweet – Page 18 – Michael Eats

Delicious Pastries at Cannoli Crunch

Published on August 21, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: I was at the Taste of Little Italy festival, but their permanent location is at 850 King Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.cannolicrunch.ca/

There was a whole bunch of interesting food at the recent Taste of Little Italy street festival, though Cannoli Crunch — who make various flavours of cannoli and then fill them fresh to order — was one that I couldn’t resist.

(Also: after a couple of years of their absence thanks to you-know-what, it was quite delightful to be back at a street festival.)

Though some of the other flavours sounded interesting, I went with the classic ricotta-filled cannoli dipped in pistachio. Hey, it’s a classic for a reason.

It was so good. It was filled to order, so the shell remained abundantly crispy, as it should. And the filling was actually quite unique; cannoli filling generally has that slightly grainy texture that you get from ricotta, but the version here was smooth like custard while still retaining its delightful ricotta flavour.

The contrast between the crispy shell and the ultra-creamy filling was really nice, and the whole thing had a perfect level of sweetness — sweet, but not in-your-face sweet. It was a great dessert.

Sticky Bun Perfection at Sticky Bakery

Published on August 10, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 621 Saint Clair Avenue West, Toronto
Website: https://stickybuns.ca/

I was thinking recently about how much I miss the Prairie Girl Bakery, which served the best cupcakes in town for years, and then became a tragic victim of the pandemic. A quick googling revealed that the owner has subsequently opened a new place which, as you might surmise from its name, specializes in sticky buns.

I’m not sure why it’s not getting more hype, because it’s seriously, seriously good.

They serve a stellar sticky bun. It’s sweet, saucy, and perfectly moist. The pastry itself is ultra-fluffy and delightful, and the cinnamon/caramel flavour is right where you want it to be.

I just checked their website and apparently the default version has pecans, which I either didn’t see or they didn’t have when I visited. Clearly, I’m going to have to go back, because it seems pretty clear that pecans would enhance this thing.

I also tried the version topped with cream cheese frosting, which was very good, though I have to admit that I preferred the plain. The frosting was tasty, but the sticky bun was already so incredibly delicious on its own that the cream cheese kind of just got in the way.

Seriously though, pecans?? I need to go back ASAP.

The Fritter Co. at St. Jacobs Market

Published on November 14, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 856 Weber Street North, Waterloo
Website: https://fritterco.ca/

The apple fritters at The Fritter Co. in St. Jacobs Market are popular. I’ve been hearing about them for years, so when I recently found myself in St. Jacobs, checking them out was a must.

The first challenge: actually finding the place in the surprisingly massive St. Jacobs Market compound, which encompasses several enormous buildings and a seemingly endless outdoor market. I’m not sure where the largest farmers’ market in the world is, but I have to imagine this one is in the top 10.

The second challenge: mustering up the patience to stand in the gigantic, slow-moving line, which wound up taking about half an hour.

Maybe after all of that, no fritter could have lived up to my sky-high expectations, but the apple fritter here was… not very good? This place is universally beloved, and sorry everybody, but I don’t get it.

The fritter is interesting, I’ll give it that — each one features a full apple ring that’s the approximate thickness of a finger. And I did enjoy the contrast between the very tart apple slice and the sweetness of the sugary exterior. But the crisp apple slice also seems to impact the pastry itself, which was slightly undercooked around the middle in both of the fritters I tried.

Otherwise, the very pancake-like pastry was fine, I guess? And the whole thing was certainly not unpleasant to eat (the fact that they serve them piping hot from the fryer helps), but was it worth the epic half hour line-up? Absolutely not. If you’re coming from Toronto, save yourself the time and just go to San Remo or Dipped Donuts. You’re welcome.

Tasty Treats at Bonne Nouvelle Patisserie

Published on October 24, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 655 College Street, Toronto
Website: https://www.bonne-nouvelle.ca/

Bonne Nouvelle is a delightful French/Korean patisserie with a whole bunch of seriously tasty looking treats. Though they have a tempting assortment of cakes and croissants, I just wanted something small to try, so I went with the strawberry rhubarb madeleine.

I regretted it as soon as I took a bite and realized how delicious it was. Another visit to better sample their wares is definitely in order.

With its tasty glaze and injection of strawberry rhubarb filling, it’s pretty far from a standard madeleine, but it’s so good. The cake itself is seriously tasty, and the tartness of the filling does an amazing job of offsetting the pastry’s sweetness. It might be the best madeleine I’ve ever had?

Jalapeno Popper Fried Chicken Sandwich from Chica’s Chicken

Published on October 3, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 2853 Dundas Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.chicaschicken.net/

I’ve written about Chica’s Chicken many, many times on this blog. I’ve mentioned that I think they serve the best fried chicken in the city, and that’s still probably true — even if I wasn’t crazy about this particular sandwich.

The Jalapeno Popper Sando, as per their menu: “boneless fried chicken topped with chipotle aioli and pickled jalapeños, served on a toasted brioche bun.”

The fried chicken is as delicious as ever; it’s the perfect combo of crispy (but not overbearing) exterior and juicy interior. It’s so damn good.

I’m not quite as sold on the rest of the sandwich, however. It’s that chipotle aioli. It’s sweet. I like the sweet/salty combo as much as the next guy, but holy moly the level of intense sugariness here is a bit intense. It overpowers the other flavours of the sandwich. I find the Sweet Heat sandwich at Chica’s to be a bit on the sweet side, and this one is even sweeter, somehow. Between the sweet sauce and the sweet brioche bun, the flavour is extremely one note.

It also tastes absolutely nothing like a jalapeno popper, which is odd. The whole point of a jalepeno popper is the contrast between the tangy cream cheese and the spicy bite of the jalapeno, and I don’t think there was any cream cheese here?? Or if there was, I couldn’t taste it over the aggressive sweetness.

Also, I don’t think I’ve ever had a jalapeno popper that was even remotely sweet. Am I the weird one, or is Chica’s?

Oh well. Everything else on the menu is so good that I don’t particularly care, but this is still an odd misstep from an otherwise great restaurant.