People like to knock the Cronut, probably due to the mass hysteria and massive lines that have consistently surrounded this hybrid-concoction since it's release in 2012. "It's just a pastry" cry out the hoards of non-believers, the too-cool-for-tourist-food city dwellers who chastise the direction of pop-food culture. But at the end of the day, no matter how little you want to buy into the Cronut craze, if you've tried one, you straight-up can't talk down on it. Why? Because it is delicious.
I remember having high expectations before trying a Cronut for the first time, thinking, yeah, I'm sure it's all hype. And then I remember biting into my Cronut. And in that moment of butter-fueled bliss, I lost it. The last time I had one of those moments was at Poilane in France when I bit into an apple tart. And excuse my french, but Cronuts are f!cking awesome.
Sweet, creamy, flaky, rich, moist, crunchy -- ever flavor and texture profile is summoned in the almighty creation. The reason people went crazy for the Cronut isn't just because it's some wacky hybrid of two awesome foods-- it's because the execution is damn good. And that is because Dominique Ansel himself is really quite amazing.
As the head pastry chef at Daniel for six years, Ansel opened his namesake bakery back in 2011. His mass success stems from a certain authenticity, integrating timeless French technique with creativity, and turning pastries into a big fat "I love you" ode to New York City. New York loves Donuts. Dominique Ansel knows the croissant [no matter what haters say, cause it just is not true]. The world loves creativity, change, innovation. A perfect storm for an amazing pastry party in your mouth.
Ansel's just recently opened his second city outpost, Dominique Ansel Kitchen, on Wednesday, April 29th in the West Village. You may have seen his hashtag "#TimeIsAnIngredient" around social media, as the Kitchen creates pastries as-ordered, integrating a freshness that is game-changing. I haven't made a trip there yet, but I actually cannot wait. What am I most excited for? Could it be the twice baked Marcona Almond croissant with Lavendar and Gin Fragipine? Or maybe the deep brown sugar Kouigan Amann? Or the Smoked Sage Dark Chocolate Brownies? How about everything. In a city filled with mass-produced croissants sold at a markup, Ansel is going a step further to create not just a new product, but an experience. His innovation and dedication is evident -- the last three times I've been in the original bakery, he's been there. Once he held the door for me, and I got freakishly startstruck and kept saying "hi" over again (because most normal people have that reaction when they see a pastry chef, right)?
Sorry for all the words, but basically, this guy is rad and I can't wait to see what he does next. In celebration of butter and Dominique Ansel's newest venture, I wanted to count down the Top 5 Cronut's I've had the glorious tastebudalicious pleasure of sinking my teeth into.
5. Strawberry Rhubarb with Thyme Ganache and Citrus Sugar (April 2015)
For all of those who haven't yet had a Cronut, you should know that it's not just a sugar bomb. I repeat, it's not just a sugar bomb. This is perhaps most evident in the Strawberry Rhubarb creation. Rhubarb has that natural bitter bite, and the strawberry jam is so sweet and delicious. It's kind of like a strawberry rhubarb pie that was baked in South Carolina, and then went on a gap year to France and came back and was all fancy and sophisticated but still remembered it's roots.
4. Matcha and Golden Pineapple (March 2015)
The colors freaked me out at first, I'm not going to lie. Anything that is neon green and neon yellow is probably meant to alarm us and say "don't eat this!" as a vestigal remnant for humans to not devour grass or something weird. But I bit into this and was wowed beyond belief. Something about the sweetness of the pineapple, matched with the smoothness of match tea, turned me into a believe of all things that resemble the Irish flag. I really cannot explain how out of this world the Matcha creme was. It was like eating tea clouds. Yes, clouds made of joy and tea. On instagram, he released a pic of the Matcha Beignets he'll be serving up at Dominique Ansel Kitchen. Cannot wait, as the man knows how to do matcha and donuts right.
3. Pumpkin Chai Tea (October 2014)
Once I was at a Hall and Oates concert (last year... late to the party? nope.) and Daryl Hall said "when I play this song, it feels like the first time, everytime." Well that's kind of how I feel about Cronuts, and this was my first time, and hot damn, was it amazing. I'm not one of those pumpkin spice lunatics, but I can mess with a good chai, and this was out of control. As I said before, something about these tea flavors is so subtley sweet and balance, ahhhh. It reminded me of sitting on a pumpkin patch and drinking a Chai Latte that's spiked. Why spiked? Because why not -- Cronuts are all about indulging, so you do you.
2. Sweet Clementine and Ricotta (May 2015)
Weirdly enough, I am the one human on earth who doesn't like cheese (plz don't stop reading - thank you). Anyways, my childhood was filled with cannolis (lots of cognitive dissonance here, I get that) and rightfully so, I wasn't sure if I was going to love this flavor or be like cheesus, I can't get this down. Well, it was amazing. And guess what? It's still the flavor for more than a week, so you too can try it! The clementine is bursting with bright, fresh citrus notes, and the ricotta is so subtle and used perfectly sparingly. I can't get over how much I actually loved this one and am considering black-(foodie)market purchasing one so I can get my fix again before it's gone foreva.
1. Caribbean Rum Raisin with Sultanas and Tahitian Vanilla Sugar (November 2014)
This is the one Cronut I was like "eh, I probably won't like this flavor" and almost didn't pick it up. I also said that I didn't like Theology (and that's what I majored in) and that I never wanted to go to Australia (sup, studied abroad there, best 4 months ever), so in the natural progression of my life comes this flavor as the top of my list. I picked one up for my roommate and accidentally ate it (and now she's finding out about it this way... awkward). Vanilla is such a beautiful flavor when done correctly, and this was perfect. The rum gave it a certain hint, and the savory-sweetness of the golden raisins complimented the deepness of the rum and the lightness of the vanilla. No joke, this is where it's at. If three flavors could join together to make an unsuspectingly amazing group -- it's these. These are like The Beatles (minus Ringo, sorry Ringo).
So that's my list. Honorable mention goes to the Valrhona Dark Chocolate with Raspberry Chambord (December 2014) - everyone else loves this one, but I just don't dig raspberry so yeah, that one's on me. Agree? Disagree? Don't know what I'm talking about? Let me know.
Lately I've been feeling like a muffin manda. Maybe it's the fact that it's warm and summer and berry season, or maybe it's my undying love of breakfast foods (aka breakfast breads), but I have been trying every muffin under the sun. Until now. I've finally filled the muffin recipe void in my life.