About 10 or 12 years ago a colleague came back from a trip to New York and gave me a full rundown on everything she ate, from the expensive restaurants to the bagels. But the one treat she couldn’t stop talking about was the cupcake she waited in line for at Magnolia Bakery. My reaction was, “A cupcake? Really?” I couldn’t imagine why anyone outside of a third grade class party would wait in line for a cupcake.
But soon enough I was doing just that, reporting on the profusion of cupcake bakeries that Magnolia inspired. After a while I and every other food writer in the country began looking for the next cupcake, and we were all soon stuffing ourselves full of doughnuts, whoopie pies and fried pies, and making endless predictions about what sweet treat would strike America’s fancy next.
Remember last year’s craze? Even though there is only one cronut — a doughnut/croissant hybrid created by the James Beard Award-winning pastry chef Dominique Ansel at his New York bakery — there are many, many imitators. I’ve yet to try one. Are they good?
Throughout this decade of faddish pastry indulgence, we seem to have all forgotten pleasures of a different kind of treat. There was a time when an afternoon slice of cake or a cookie was a kind of companion pastry — a thing that you ate to keep your coffee or tea from getting too lonely. Instead of lining up for cupcakes, people used to sit down with hot drinks and dry, little cakes that would slide off the plate if you didn’t balance them right while carrying them to the table. These were also delicious, more so in a way because the mildly bitter hot beverage and mildly sweet pastry made both taste better.
Here are two treats I really enjoy with a good, strong cup of tea or coffee. Their flavors don’t shout, and they don’t leave frosting on the tip of your nose. But I can’t think of anything else I’d rather have for an afternoon break.
Raw Espresso-Date Truffles
Total time: 30 minutes
Hands on: 30 minutes
Makes: 4 dozen
- 15 large medjool dates, pitted
- 1/3 cup of espresso or strong coffee
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla powder
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- Scant 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 ½ cups almond flour
- ½ cup shredded coconut
- 3 tablespoons coconut flour
In a food processor combine dates and coffee and mix until smooth. Add the salt, vanilla powder, syrup, scant ½ cup cocoa powder, and almond flour, and pulse to combine. Roll dough into balls, about two tablespoons each, dip in cacao mixed with rolled coconut flour and set in the fridge for an hour or until firm, best served chilled.
Kazumi’s Sesame Cookies
Total time: 45 minutes
Hands on: 20 minutes
Makes: 4 to 4 1/2 dozen
- 3/4 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar (or 3/4 cup regular sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of Blackstrap Molasses)
- 1 egg
- 1 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour
- 3 tablespoons flax seeds, ground
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup roasted sesame seeds
Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer, add the egg and beat until smooth Add the dry ingredients and combine until just blended. Place rounded teaspoons on buttered cookie sheet and flatten them with the back of the spoon until they are about 2-inch rounds. Bake 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.
