The CRONUT

189 Spring St.  New York, NY
www.dominiqueansel.com

Price: $$ ($5 per cronut)

   Cronuts seem to have become the latest trend in food, and I constantly heard about and seen the donut-croissant hybrid creation all over the internet.  The cronut was created by renowned pastry chef Dominique Ansel, of the Dominique Ansel Bakery, which I visited and blogged about last summer, long before the cronut was announced and became such a hit.  The cronut has caught the attention of many New Yorkers and beyond, and being the foodie that I am, I absolutely made it my mission to try out the delicacy before the end of my summer in NYC.
I arrived at the bakery at around 6:30 a.m. on a Friday morning.  I was expecting there to be a line formed, but I was not expecting a line that spanned down the block and around the corner! It was good I arrived when I did, as the line got much longer in the hour following my arrival.  The bakery opened its doors at 8 a.m., and I was let inside the bakery at about 9:30.  I was out by 10, making this at least a 3 hour process.  Despite the long line, the cronut was COMPLETELY worth it.

[the line in front of me around the corner at 6:30 a.m.]  

[the line behind me at around 7:15 a.m.]

Apparently, I am not the only crazy one who would wake up at the crack of dawn for a fried sugary pastry.  The bakery lets in around 10 customers at a time to purchase their cronuts.  Once I got inside, the smell of the bakery was incredibly mouthwatering.  I ordered two cronuts (you don't wait that whole time and only order one…), and they looked and smelled just as good as they sounded.

The flavor of the month for July is blackberry.  When I first found out the flavor, I wasn't completely thrilled about it, but after the first bite, I just could't get enough.

The cronuts looked and tasted exactly how it sounds like it would.  It had rich and flaky thin layers of dough they well resembled a croissant, but also had the delectable fried and sugary taste that resembled a very fresh donut.  Between the layers of the cronut was an unexpected cream filling.  The cream was light and not too sweet, but a perfect addition to the flavors of the cronut.  It was also filled with a blackberry jam, which was a surprisingly nice addition to all of the flavors.  It was topped with a blackberry icing, which I ended up removing, as I personally thought it was sweet enough, and tasted just good enough on its own.  When cutting into the cronut, the layers could easily be pulled apart, just like you could do with a croissant.  It was unbelievably delicate and delicious.

After trying the delicacy firsthand, I can honestly say that the cronut is not all hype.  It truly was worth every calorie and every lost minute of sleep waiting in line.  The cronuts continue to get more and more popular, and the lines have been getting longer in the mornings as time passes.  I am extremely happy I got the opportunity to try the cronut, and I would definitely wake up and do it again in a heartbeat.  Basically.. everyone should make time to go and get your own cronut!!


XOXO,
Danielle

Rice to Riches

37 Spring St.  New York, NY

www.ricetoriches.com

I have been waiting sOOO long to write this post. Since I've been in NYC, I've been sitting, waiting, wishing for when I would find time to go to Rice to Riches. Being an avid lover of all things rice and pudding, Rice to Riches creates the ultimate and absolutely perfect rice pudding for those who crave a unique and incredibly tasty treat. Rice to Riches serves their rice pudding frozen yogurt style, giving customers a huge selection of different fun flavors, like "Cinnamon Sling," "Coconut Coma," 'Fluent in French Toast," and "Hazelnut Chocolate Bear Hug." Then you can select toppings, or as they call them, Jesus Droppings, to top your rice pudding. There is literally nothing better than this.

In addition to the fun and witty flavors and names, the shop's signs and sayings are another factor that helps attract as many customers as they do.  A few of my favorites:

WORD.

Clearly my new motto: "Never diet on an empty stomach."

So true.

At least they're honest!

Ya! Seriously!

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

yuuuuuum

Flavors on flavors on flavors on flavors on flavors.

My favorite. Simple, creamy, original vanilla.

Here's what we shared:

Here it is. Our masterpiece. Looks too good to eat, right? WRONG. Obviously I dug right into this baby. We got the Understanding Vanilla topped with oven roasted strawberries. Um seriously, hello heaven. The rice pudding was so thick and rich and creamy and absolutely scrumptious I couldn't get enough. Even though we got the small to share amongst all of us, it was still plenty to get my fix. 

Toppings galore!! 

I've come to the conclusion that if you think you don't like rice pudding, you're wrong. Everyone likes pudding. That's basically it. There is absolutely nothing not to like about this genius of a snack/dessert. If you have never tried it, you must. Even if lumpy rice pudding sounds a tad unappealing, you'd be surprised how unbelievable it can taste. You MUST see for yourself.

This pretty much says it all.

XOXO,
Danielle

Molly's Cupcakes

228 Bleecker St.  New York, NY
www.mollyscupcakes.com

Price: $$
Favorite cupcake: Peach cobbler

If there is one person who is a true lover of cupcakes, it is me. They have to be one of the best desserts ever brilliantly created, and there is certainly no better place than New York to get the ultimate cupcake.   As I was walking around after I first moved here, I happened to pass by Molly's Cupcakes, a Chicago-based bakery located conveniently in Greenwich village. The first thing I noticed on the window was that Molly's was not only on Cupcake Wars, but they WON. Um…..what? Being an obsessive cupcake freak, I made it my mission to make it back there, and I finally found time to visit and try out some of their cupcakes tonight. Well…step aside Crumbs and Magnolia, because there really is no comparison. Molly's features many different creative and fun flavor combinations, and best of all, they're really really extremely super tasty.

Because I made this visit alone, I got a few cupcakes to sample, and maybe to save for a little later…
Here's what I tried:

CUPCAKE WARS WINNER !!! How can these NOT be good??

A few of the more simple flavors...

I decided to sample 3 of their flavors, and narrowing it down to 3 was seriously tough. 

The first cupcake that had me tempted immediately was the creme brûlée cupcake. It was a vanilla cake, FILLED with actual creme brûlée, topped with sugar and torched, and finished off with a few berries. Yes…it was as good as it looks/sounds. It was incredible. It tasted exactly like creme brûlée, plus an extremely soft and delicious cake to go with it. 

The next cupcake that I felt obligated to try was the peach cobbler cupcake, which is a vanilla cake, with a cinnamon peach puree filling, brown sugar streusel, homemade whipped cream, and a sliced peach on top. This being the winning cupcake on Cupcake Wars, it was bound to be amazing. OOOMMMGGG it was. No words to describe this cupcake except, well, perfect. The cake was so moist, and the whipped cream was super fluffy and creamy. This cupcake got it down to the brown sugar streusel, really making it as close to a peach cobbler as a cupcake can get. It was honestly the best cupcake I've ever had.

The last cupcake I decided to try was the cookee monster cupcake, which is a vanilla chocolate chip cake, with a raw cookie dough center, buttercream, and topped with a mini chocolate chip cookie. Cooie dough is always a deciding factor for me, and so this one seemed great. The cookie dough was tasted like actual raw cookie dough, just how I like it. The cake was really really good, but the cookie dough center did make it a little bit overly soft and sticky. Nevertheless it was still delish and memorable.

The Cookee Monster cupcake with the cookie dough center. NOM NOM NOM

I can only imagine how mouthwatering it is to read about these cupcakes, being that my mouth is watering just writing about them. Despite the fact that Molly's Cupcakes is only a few blocks away from the renowned Magnolia Bakery, they still give Magnolia a run for their money. I would want to eat a cupcake from Molly's over other top NYC cupcake bakeries any day, from what I have tasted so far.
A portion of their profits is donated directly to schools in the local community, which makes cupcake-eating not only an indulgence, but also an act for a good cause.
I strongly suggest satisfying your next cupcake craving at Molly's, but warning…it is dangerous.

XOXO,
Danielle

Forbidden Fruit NYC

106 MacDougal St.  New York, NY
www.forbiddenfruitnyc.com

Price: $$--For one piece of dipped fruit, the price can go up to over $3, plus toppings.
Favorite dipped fruit (so far): Chocolate dipped strawberry with walnuts

It's not until recently that I finally fully realized that my dorm is literally in the best location ever. If I walk out the doors and down one block, I am bombarded with dozens and dozens of restaurants right there. The other night, Sara, my fellow NYU dormer, and I thought it would be a good idea to use our meal plan for dinner, so we ate in my dorm's dining hall. I can surely say it doesn't quite compare with what is right outside those doors. Sara and I also both agree that after eating anywhere in the city, we always feel the need for something sweet. After we finished dinner, we chose to venture out of the dorm and try something small and new to satisfy our sweet teeth. We found Forbidden Fruit NYC, a relatively new shop in the Washington Square area. The store features chocolate dipped fruit. Brilliant.

At first glance I was overwhelmed with options. Did I want a strawberry or a banana? Dark or milk chocolate? Toppings or no toppings? Forbidden Fruit gives you the option of strawberry, pineapple, banana, or apple wedges dipped in chocolate, and you can opt to add toppings, such as coconut, walnuts, or sprinkles, for $0.50 extra.  Another option is getting an assorted fruit stick, berry or clementine boat, or fruit cup, to then be drizzled with chocolate.

After long and hard contemplation, I decided to get my favorite: a dark chocolate dipped strawberry, coated with chopped walnuts. They dipped it fresh for me, and it was divine. The walnuts added such a great flavor addition to the chocolate.

Fruit cups pre-chocolate.

Assortments of chocolate dipped strawberries

White, milk, and dark chocolate dipped bananas, with various toppings (coconut, walnuts, sprinkles). 

MmMmMmmm chocolate dipped pineapples.

Here I go...

Another perk of Forbidden Fruit NYC: they deliver [miminum delivery charge of $15]! (Seriously do any places in New York NOT deliver?) Chocolate dipped fruit offers a slightly healthier alternative to most other desserts, with size and portion control fairly easy to monitor. Although each treat is a bit pricey individually, the ingredients and freshness are sure to be of great quality.

XOXO,
Danielle

Dominique Ansel Bakery

189 Spring St.  New York, NY
www.dominiqueansel.com

Price: $$--some of the pastries are a bit pricey in contrast to their size (but it's worth it…)
Favorite Pastry (so far): Cotton-soft Cheesecake (but soon to try more!)

Yesterday, I had a day off from my internship, so I decided to walk around and explore the city (because why not..) I ended up making my way to the Soho area, and stumbled upon Dominique Ansel Bakery, a cute little bakery on Spring Street, right outside the major crowded Soho areas.
Dominique Ansel Bakery is a neighborhood cafe, that has both indoor and outdoor seating. They have a "garden" in the back, with additional outdoor seating, which stays open year-round because of a glass enclosed greenhouse. How nice!
The chef, Dominique Ansel, was named one of the "Top 10 Pastry Chefs in the United States" by Dessert Professional Magazine in 2009, and was recently chosen by Time Out New York as one of New York City's "Top Ten Pastry Chefs You Need to Know." Ok, so like all of his pastries were mouthwatering…I see where these amazing reviews would come from.

Since I came by at lunch time, I decided to try out one of their menu options. Lunch is served from until 4 pm daily, so I made it just in time. I decided to try the Tuscan "Panzanella" Salad. This salad was made with toasted croutons, frisée, salami, roasted bell pepper, artichokes, white beans, and basil dressing. Right when I saw this on the menu, I decided this salad contains literally all of my favorite things to put in a salad, so I absolutely had to try it. It was perfection.

Panzanella salad… from now on, we'll call it the DANIELLE SALAD.

Being in a bakery with so many amazing looking pastries, how could I NOT try one of them? I decided to try what they call their mini cotton-soft cheesecake. There was only one left, so I had a feeling this would be a winner. And OMG, it was. The cheesecake literally did feel as soft as cotton, and it had a nice sweet brûlée topping. I could tell the cheesecake was made with Ricotta, which also didn't make it ridiculously sweet, and it was super light, and absolutely delish. 

Rows and rows of unique pastries. Some of my favorites, and ones I MUST try soon include the salted caramel eclair, and the Paris-New York, (a twist on the Paris-Brest), made with Pâte à Choux (cream puff) and filled with caramel, peanut, and chocolate. Heavenly!

More pastries to ponder...

Ok, so anyone who has been with me recently would know that my latest obsession is MACARONS. Yes…they are what I consider heaven on earth. I mean seriously…these look scrumptious Agree?

The bakery's interior is bright and welcoming, with a clean and tasteful look.  There is a "garden" area out in the back, filled with tables and an open roof--a perfect place to eat on a beautiful city day.
I am literally so excited to go back and try another delectable pastry from Dominique Ansel. (Anyone wanna come with)?  I couldn't have been happier with what I decided to try on my first visit!
BEYOND satisfied. Yummmmm….

XOXO,
Danielle

Baked by Melissa

109 E. 42nd St.  New York, NY
**there are several locations**
www.bakedbymelissa.com

Price: $-- $3 for 3 cupcakes, and $5.50 for 6 cupcakes…100 cupcakes for $70.
Favorite cupcake: Tied between cookie dough and red velvet

Because cupcake shops in NYC are very easy to find, and because the cupcakes in the city are always ginormous, Baked by Melissa mini cupcakes are always a great little treat to help satisfy my HUGE sweet tooth. I have loved Baked by Melissa cupcakes for so long, which would explain why the second Arleigh, Sara, and I spotted the shop across the street yesterday, we couldn't help but run right over.
As we walked in to the store right outside Grand Central Station, we are instantly greeted by an array of hundreds of bite sized cupcakes. There are so many wonderful flavors to choose from, and frankly, they just never get old.

The current Baked by Melissa flavor lineup includes:
-mint chocolate chip
-tie-dye
-cookies & cream
-cookie dough
-peanut butter cup
-cinnamon
-chocolate chip pancake
-peanut butter and jelly
-red velvet
-*flavor of the month* - this month: wedding cupcake!

The flavors I decided to try this time were: Tie-Dye, Cookie Dough, Chocolate Chip Pancake, S'Mores, and their flavor of the month, Wedding cupcake (white vanilla cake with bavarian cream stuffing, white vanilla icing, and white chocolate shavings).

Sara and Arleigh all too excited to start eating.

Wedding cupcake. The cake was soooooo fluffy, and it tasted super sweet.

The tie-dye cupcake…such a classic Baked by Melissa flavor.

Cupcakes being one of my favorite desserts in the world, I definitely can't complain about these! Actually…my one complain might be the fact that they're so small. I mean come on…after one bite, I just want more!


XOXO,
Danielle