Pastry Profiles: the Montmartre from The French Pastry Shop and Creperie, Santa Fe

Now here's a pastry that makes me want to start singing "Isn't she lovely?". 

Beautiful red strawberries standing proudly at attention, gleaming under an apricot glaze. Thick whipped cream. Spongey cake. A rich layer of pastry cream. More cake to keep it all in place. That, my friends, is the Montmartre, a totally sweet pastry named after a Parisian neighborhood which I scored at The French Pastry Shop and Creperie in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 

How did I choose this pastry above all the others in their delectably filled cases? Easy: I asked the employee working the counter what the very best thing was in the case. He kind of blushed, said of course everything was good, but that his personal favorite was this bad boy. And so I went with it.

I wasn't disappointed. The Montmartre was kind of like strawberry shortcake's more glamorous French cousin, with a little more sophistication and je ne sais quoi. But when it came down to it, the strawberries n cream was down-home delicious, to the very last bite. 

A sweet find indeed! 

The French Pastry Shop & Creperie, 100 E. San Francisco Street, Santa Fe NM; online here.

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!

Master-piece of cake: cakes that look like famous works of art.

OMG: Peekaboo shamrock cake tutorial.

Because it's almost St. Patrick's Day: SpyMom's Irish Soda Bread.

Once upon a time, I got really gross with Irish Soda Bread. Enjoy!

A different way to be green for St. Patrick's Day: avocado pie!

I love every sweet (not to eat) thing in this etsy store!

Can't miss this post: what to do with leftover pancakes!

Restore the shore: Chocolate Bar opens a new location in Manasquan, NJ!

Yum: discover Doberge cake.

Cadbury Egg Cookie Cake Bars: thank you, world, for permitting these to exist. (via Kim--thanks!)

I want to eat: Cinnamon Raisin Brioche Loaf.

Important: How to make cookies with a waffle iron.

Behind the baking blog: a sweet video by Best Friends for Frosting!

Five Things to Do With Leftover Pancakes

When it comes to Important Worldwide Problems, the issue of leftover pancakes is really not one of them.

But if in your family you have a designated Pancake Maker who doesn't believe in moderation and must make about 48 at a time (that would be SpyDad, in my family), you might occasionally find yourself in an excess pancake situation. The idea of throwing out the extra pancakes is just awful, but then again, sometimes you get tired of just eating them straight.

And for those times, I have designed several fun uses for those leftover tasty cakes. And yes, in advance, I am very proud of myself.

Pancake French Toast: Taking a cue from leftover toast, make some pancakes perdu! Following the same steps you would use to make French Toast, get your griddle nice and toasty and fry up some egg-and-sugar-and-milk coated 'cakes for a tasty and decadent morning treat.

See? Easy.

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Doughnut Fake-Out: Nope. Those aren't doughnuts. They're Faux-nuts! Simply pop out the center of a pancake (use an apple corer for a perfect circle, or just hack it out like I did with a knife) and frost it in your favorite doughnut icing colors. Easy, sweet, and fun! 

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Petite Pancake Layer Cake: Now, to say that I am proud of this mini cake would be a vast understatement. I kind of think I'm a genius. All you have to do is layer pancakes with frosting, and you've got yourself what could pass as a gourmet torte (or at least a mini Smith Island Cake!). Since I believe in moderation, I made mine 6 layers, but seriously, the sky's the limit.

Look, here I even put a macaron on top to show you the full scope of its mini adorableness!

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Pancake Black and White Cookie: While frosting that pancake torte, I realized that these pancakes were the perfect palette to create mini black and white cookies. So I whipped up some vanilla and chocolate frosting (a recipe can be found here, if you look for the icing) and made some black and whites. This was a no-brainer--I mean, these drop cakes are already practically pancakes. The texture is a little different, but they're pleasantly passable.

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Pancake Mini Dessert Tacos: Inspired by the choco taco, this totally sweet treat is a pleasure to make and a pleasure to eat. Wow friends with your total cleverness as you bend the pancake gently to mold to a taco shape, fill it with a little chocolate ice cream (I used Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream, in the Roxbury Road flavor--jealous?), and top it with some tinted coconut. If desired, add some easter candy to really bring the seasonal aspect home. 

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Of course, you don't have to stop here. There are so many things that you could do with leftover pancakes. Make them into pancake fries (like these pie fries!). Sandwich frosting in between two for a delicious snack! Crush them and mix them with frosting instead of cake, for pancake pops! Mash em with ice cream in your blender for a Pancake Shake! Use them as your carbohydrate base for bread pudding! Seriously, the world is your pancake oyster. Live your leftover pancake life deliciously!

CakeSpy Undercover: Springtime at What's For Dessert, Spring Lake Heights NJ

I feel as though I would be remiss if I did not tell you that this is a most wonderful time of year to visit What's For Dessert, a bakery in Spring Lake Heights, New Jersey.

Why at this time of year, you ask? Well, because of their stellar springtime offerings. I feel very qualified to tell you about them, because I grew up with this bakery. Although it has changed locations since my youth, their offerings have remained just as I remember.

First up, the Frog Cupcakes. A Jersey Shore (and, if I'm honest, mid-atlantic) phenomenon, theirs are especially cute. You can read more about the frog cupcake here, but rest assured, this is where SpyFamily buys theirs.

Next up, the hot cross buns. Only available on the weekends, and only at this time of year, these brioche-like buns, studded with raisins and x-marks-the-spotted with thick icing, these are an ideal treat with tea: lightly sweet, and so good with butter. Simple but perfect.

Now. These are the primary reasons why you must go to this bakery right now. But there are plenty of reasons to go at other times of the year, too. For one, they have highly respectable old-fashioned doughnuts. 

And nice, golden, spongy cupcakes with a generous piping of frosting. Note that these are more old-school bakery style than fancy cupcakery style, but you're not necessarily looking at a fussy cupcake here. 

Though not pictured, What's for Dessert also makes a very fine crumb cake, with fat pearls of brown sugar crumb perched atop a buttery cake base, and very nice sugar cookies, which they'll decorate according to season.

Everything is super-affordable in the bakery (lots of things under a dollar!), too. I should tell you it's not a place to hang out--no seating, inside or out--but overall, we're here for the sweets, not comfy seats and wi-fi, right? I think that What's for Dessert is a charming little spot, and I think you will, too!

What's for Dessert, 1901 Highway 71, Spring Lake Heights, NJ. On Facebook.

Sweet Art: Donut Stop Believin'

Just to make you smile, sweet readers, I thought I would post some pictures of donut artwork I've been working on.

Donut stop believin! Smile every day.

This art is part of a project I am working on for this site, chronicling your favorite donuts from all 50 US States. 

So, enjoy the art, and feel free to chime in: what state are you in (or from, or have knowledge of), and where can the best donuts be found? Leave a comment on this post, email me, or weigh in on Facebook!

CakeSpy Undercover: Banana-Coconut Cream Pie, Jambo Cafe, Santa Fe

Totally sweet! This week will bring 3/14, otherwise known as "the other pie day". But rather than get involved in an argument over whether 1/23 (the day the American Pie Council deems National Pie Day) or 3/14 is the true Pie Day, I'd rather spend this valuable online word real estate to tell you about the best pie I've eaten recently: the Banana-Coconut Cream Pie from Jambo Cafe in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Now. A little briefing on Jambo Cafe. Their menu merges aspects of Jamaican, African, and Middle Eastern cuisine, and every single thing is delicious. While not dessert, their cinnamon-sugar dusted plantains as an appetizer are a great lightly sweet beginning, and it will definitely set the tone for a meal that must end with dessert.

You must get dessert here, because other than their baklava, which is made by an outside vendor, it's all baked in-house. I was pretty excited to try more of their sweets, as I had already tried their rum pecan pie at an event.

When I recently went there, I ordered the Banana-Coconut Cream Pie, and my dining companion got the Flourless Chocolate Cake. When they both arrived, we were so excited. We each took a respective bite of our own desserts, then politely offered each other a bite.

After taking a bite of that flourless chocolate cake, I smiled and whispered in my companion's ear, "Mine's better". 

There was nothing wrong with the cake, of course. But the banana-coconut cream pie was just so good. Since I know my low-light photos don't quite do it justice, I'll tell you about it from the bottom up. 

First up, a nice, sturdy crust. It wasn't soggy under the weight of all the custardy stuff. It was nice and crispy and had just slightly absorbed the flavors of the pie filling, making for a delightful cookie-esque backdrop.

Next, the filling. Oh, the filling! If you imagine the best version of a rich, thick banana cream pudding (you know, the kind with real bananas), you're on the right track...but now, add an extra element of delight by putting in some coconut. Got the idea? This pie is just that: a mashup of the tastiest banana cream pudding and coconut cream pie you've ever tasted. 

But don't stop there. Top it with freshly made whipped cream and then dust it with cocoa and cinnamon sugar. Isn't your mouth happy just imagining this?

If you don't like banana, or you don't like coconut, please, for the love of all things tasty, just click away from this page now. But if you do love these flavors, then please, consider taking a road trip or airplane right, right this very minute, to try some of this pie. I don't think you'll regret it. 

Jambo Cafe, 2011 Cerillos Road, Santa Fe NM; online here.

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!

Guess what? I'm spending 2 months in Santa Fe. I plan on eating here every day.

Follow your frog--cupcake, that is. A NY Metro area phenomenon!

This cake with hearts carved in the center is alarmingly adorable.

Best German buns in Philadelphia? Hit up Fritz's!

Love this: carrot cake ice cream sandwiches!

At Columbia University, a Nutella craze.

So simple, so sweet: Golden Pound Cake.

Not frozen, but very sweet: Sno-cone cupcakes!

Not literally sweet, but TOTALLY sweet at the same time: Unicorn Slippers for Adults! (Thanks, PW!)

Love it: bubblegum sugar cookies!

Artisinal doughnuts: on trend!

Curious about what it would be like to go to a bakery in Sioux Falls, SD? Here's what it's like.

Did you know the Oreo turned 101 this week? Here are 50 uses for them you may not have considered.

My new book, The Secret Lives of Baked Goods: Sweet Stories & Recipes for America's Favorite Desserts, is available for pre-order. How exciting!

The Curious Case of the St. Patrick's Day Frog Cupcake

It's a funny thing about regional baked goods. Sometimes, you don't realize they're regional until you move away from an area. And for me, one such baked good is the St. Patrick's Day Frog Cupcake.

I grew up in a magical part of the world known as the Jersey Shore. And every year around the first of March through St. Patrick's day, local bakeries such as Freedman's Bakery would bake up a very interesting confection: the frog cupcake.

Let me explain a bit further, though. A frog cupcake is NOT simply a cupcake decorated with a frog face. Its construction is like so:

When assembled, it looks like this:

Now, chances are, if you aren't a local in the NY metro area, you may never have seen this glorious confection. For me, it wasn't until I relocated to Seattle for a time that I realized that this wasn't an everywhere treat. So what gives?

Well, I have to say, this is a moment where I want to say "Bless the Internet", because, as it turns out, there's an entire website dedicated to the subject  (and preservation of) these delightful frogs. It's called Follow Your Frog. It even has a page dedicated to the evolution of the frog. The research isn't scientific, but references that the frog pheneomenon could date back to the 1920s, in Australia:

A place called Balfours, which evidently still has them today. These Froggies are quite different than their American cousins (well, OK, we haven’t tasted met them yet, but from what we've read). These are tea cakes, originally just green, then also pink and chocolate coated (yes, chocolate!). Were these the frogs that came to America and were supersized? Or are the Frogs that settled in the New York metro area instead from Europe? Frog historians (ok, there really is no such thing...crazy people obsessed with Frogs) are attempting to trace their path…

But then the page goes on to say, 

Next sighting - bakeries in the NY Metro area in the 1960s-70s. These are the frogs of our childhood, and all the local bakeries (Coquelle’s, New Garden) in the Newark NJ area had them for St. Patrick’s Day (and ONLY then).

Newark area bakeries disappear over time, with Coquelle’s ending in the 90s, and we thought they were extinct. Uncontrollable sobbing continued every St. Patty’s Day. Until…

Frogs found in Central Jersey! In fact they were there all along, probably as long as the Northern NJ frogs – we just didn’t know. Vaccaro’s in Clark NJ saves St. Patty’s Day!

Frogs go mainstream with the Wegmans supermarket variety – although for the last 2 years in NJ they were MIA… so hopefully they have not gone the way of the dinosaur…

An internet search leads to the discovery of La Delice in NYC – another older bakery which has had them for a long time. And these frogs don’t hibernate – they proudly show their googly eyes every day of the year.

The fantastic creators of the Follow Your Frog site have even started something called FrogFest, which pits frog cupcake makers from NY, NJ, and PA against one another to see whose frogs are the finest. My goodness, why haven't I been to one of these?

As the site notes, and as I can attest, the frog is a dying breed. When I visited Freedman's in Belmar recently, which is under new ownership since my childhood, the employee had no idea what I was talking about when I inquired about frog cupcakes. A longtime employee's face, however, lit up as she said "Oh my god! I remember the frogs. They were like sugar bombs! So good!". 

However, in nearby Spring Lake Heights, the frogs are available at a bakery called What's For Dessert. Their specimen is a fine one, with a decadent edge owing to a butter cookie leprechaun hat (adhered with a birthday candle!). And by a "fine" specimen I mean a true and complete sugar bomb of a delight. It's not fancy eating but it sure is fun. Here is my nephew about to dig into one:

It is humane to remove the eyes before eating, but that's not to say you can't have a little torturous fun with your frog. Sensitive readers may want to skip the next few photos.

OK, OK. I hope I've expanded your sweet horizons by offering you the fable of the Jersey Shore frog today. If you're curious, I highly suggest visiting the Follow Your Frog website, where you can find frogs and report sightings!

It may not be easy being green for these frogs, but life is certainly sweet for the eaters of these treats. 

Sweet Times in Lewes, Delaware

Recently, I had the sweet good fortune of spending nearly a week in Lewes (pronounced "Lewis"), Delaware. I was there to paint a mural for three very lucky little girls in their home. 

I already shared some process shots with you, but here are a few photos of the finished mural. 

But guess what, my friends? Muraling wasn't all I did in Lewes. I also ate some totally sweet treats.

First up was a breakfast of baked oatmeal at Café Azafrán. This does, I realize, veer slightly toward health food, but it was sweetened, and it was so freaking good that it needs to be mentioned. Somehow, the geniuses at this cafe have turned oatmeal into a baked brick of lightly sweetened deliciousness. It had the texture of crumb cake, and remained cohesive enough to handle, but had the taste of oatmeal. It was a splendid breakfast, and they will serve it with milk or yogurt (or just plain). Unfortunately the photos don't do it much justice, so you'll just have to trust me: it's well worth a try.

Although it is not food related, I should tell you that Lewes has a dutch history museum, and over the entryway...well...that looks a lot like a unicorn to me! Clearly, I was meant to mural here.

Back to the sweet stuff. Lewes also has a bakery. It's called Notting Hill Coffee Company, but it has a big sign above the store that says Lewes Bake Shop.

Now, instead of asking what I tried here, you should ask "what didn't you try?". Because it is the primary bake shop in town, and I was there for DAYS. So I got to try a lot. 

Including...the "Ooey Gooey", a treat all their own which is described as "not a twist, a danish, a biscuit, or a sticky bun...it's all of the above!".

Visually, they look like a twisted cruller.

But taste-wise, they defy one definition. They're definitely ooey gooey. More solid than a doughnut. Not quite as sturdy as a biscuit. COVERED in gooey caramel icing stuff. Oh goodness are they good. It's possible that more than three were consumed during the muraling time.

This bakery featured a lot of sweets made with pastry dough rolled into sticks--including the "gorilla stick", which included a chocolatey nut mixture...

As well as the "Lewes Creation" which had a cinnamon-sugar-apple mixture smeared in the middle.

In both cases the pastries are surprisingly light and shatter when bitten, but are very pleasant in the mouth, indeed.

For breakfast treats, the croissants could not be beat. Here's the "Swiss Almond" one, made with a mixture of almond paste inside and almonds and chocolate on the outside. Yum.

Similarly delicious, though quite different than the croissant, was a sticky bun. Served in generous slabs and rich with caramelly topping and nuts, these yeasty rolls made mornings happy in this wintry seaside town.

The bakery also does coffee in several flavors (they are beyond happy to let you try all of them) and they do all sorts of flavored hot chocolates. My favorite was the one where they double the chocolate (no, really). It sounds like it might be too much, but trust me, it's not. 

Oh, what a delicious trip! Thank you, Lewes, for the sweet memories.

Places mentioned:

• Notting Hill Coffee, 124 2nd Street, Lewes, DE; online here.
• Café Azafrán, 109 Market Street, Lewes, DE; online here.
• Zwaanendael Museum, 102 Kings Highway, Lewes, DE; more info here.

Interested in your own CakeSpy mural? E-mail jessieoleson@gmail.com.

CakeSpy Undercover: Potito's Italian American Pastries, Philadelphia

Where once, on Walnut Street, was the Philly Chocolate Company, now there is Potito's.

The chocolate company has moved, and Potito's has opened a center city outpost of their bakery, which is based in South Philadelphia.

And of course CakeSpy has visited. How could you NOT visit a place that offers a huge cannoli filled with millions of baby-cannoli?

Photo: ThrillistDudes, I know. I know. It's like witnessing the miracle of cannoli birth.

At the bakery, you'll be greeted with a generous display of baked goods, ranging from Italian classics (cookies by the pound, cannoli, lobster tails, etc) to American sweets (cupcakes, pies, etc). Because the bakery prides itself on being Italian-American, I decided to stick with an Italian roster of sweets to sample.

First up, the cannoli. At $3.95 each, I consider them fairly heftily priced, but obviously made with love and care. I've been told that in Chicago, there is a place that sells them for $9.00 per, though, so maybe I shouldn't focus so much on the cost, but rather tell you that the filling was dreamy?

Photo: Potito'sA rainbow cookie was highly satisfactory, a solid version of the Italian bakery staple.

Next up, an Italian ricotta tart. It's that lovely featured at the top of the post.  Clearly they know their ricotta filling, which was a very nice texture and flavor. Lightly sweet and nicely complemented by a cocoa topping and strawberry on top. The crust was lightly sweet, making for a pleasant backdrop for the tart.

Potito's Bakery, two locations (Center City and South Philadelphia); online here.