October 4, 2009

Almonds, cashews, walnuts and pecans came together this weekend in Somerville at Bloc 11 Café on Bow Street for a quaint five table feast. The goal was two-fold; to both showcase the talents of local bakeries and to raise money for the Juniper Fund. The Juniper Fund is a recently developed scholarship fund in memory of a John S. Hall, a bass player for the Addison Groove Project who passed away in 2004.

As mentioned in previous posts, I have an issue with an insatiable sweet tooth, so after making a Juniper donation and entering the terrace filled with baked goods, all hell (or heaven) broke loose. It began with the Flour Bakery and Café table. As pictured above they boasted a hazelnut truffle of sorts with layers of chocolate, creamy vanilla mouse, crunchy cookie center all topped with hazelnuts and almond slivers.

Next stop, How2Hero’s.  

I went for them because there were apples on the table and I was trying to make myself feel better, but before I could go healthy, six trays of different cookie and muffin platters got in my way. Who could have predicted that pumpkin shaped sugar cookies with cinnamon spice and sweet vanilla frosting or cranberry walnut muffins, or pecan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies would be more satisfying than a granny smith apple? What’s unique about How2Heroes is that they are a new web based company devoted solely to delivering free baking recipes to the masses so that everyone can “cook, eat. and be merry” as they’re slogan says. From oatmeal pecan maple thins to sunrise fruit and nut cookies, the recipes are all available for free at how2heroes.com.

I finished my tasting orgy with the Kickass Cupcakes table, where a tower of miniature chocolate morsels beckoned me. Each one was a rich buttery dark chocolate cupcake with a hidden cashew nougat center, topped with all natural chocolate cream frosting.

My sugar coma was officially taking hold and I made for the exit where I may or may not have been forced to grab a ridiculous looking pecan almond canoli from Channel Café, for the T-ride home. When in Somerville, eat nuts and be merry, for tomorrow food is not necessarily free.

Berklee Jazz Festival

September 26, 2009

I’ve always had a soft spot for jazz. I was the flautist who wished she played saxophone so that she could jam out with the “cool kids” in the jazz quartet. That didn’t happen but I did try to find the jazz heart of every city I’ve lived in.  That gets expensive after a bit though, so you can imagine my euphoria when I found out there would be a free jazz festival on Columbus Avenue.

Before I even parked my bike, I could hear a saxophone ringing clear into the warm Saturday air. It was Donald Harrison on the Dunkin Donut’s Stage; his fingers moved so quickly up and down the keys that I almost didn’t notice the ridiculous aromas rising from the street vendors.

Some staple Boston fooderies had pitched tents for the event and were pumping their goods out to the masses like clockwork. From Thai Cuisines with a line at least 70 strong, to Wally’s Café offering baked goods and coffee, great local food was in abundance throughout the festival.

Two more stages sponsored by Berklee and Target added flavor to the air with artists like Ashanti Munir and the Defenders of Groove. I fell asleep in the grassy field as the musical stylings of Joe Lois Walker washed over the crowd. I awoke to some guy’s shiatsu puppy licking my face, and quickly made my way over to where the Vietnamese tent was giving out free samples. Not a bad way to spend a bean town afternoon, and definitely something to look forward to next summer.

Boston Meets Italy in the Map Room Café

The best kept secret of Copley Square is without a doubt the Map Room Café of the Boston Public Library. While the library is one of Boston’s more famous pieces of architecture, knowledge, and class, few people have made their way into the Map Room Café, a hidden wonder of the library’s first floor.

The café’s inner walls are appropriately adorned with ancient maps that Magellan would have swooned over and topped by a ceiling of red brick and lantern lighting. Look past the barista for sandwiches like the McKim. This masterpiece packed with fresh avocado, crisp sprouts and zesty aioli herb dressing would bring any baystater back for seconds.

But what really blew my taste buds away were the baked goods, and one jaw dropping blueberry muffin to be exact. While I usually steer clear of café muffins anytime after ten o’clock, this blueberry heaven officially proved me wrong. Its size was matched only by its gigantic flavor; fresh, and bursting with juicy blueberry. It tasted as if it has been made minutes ago especially for skeptics like me.

Beyond the pallet and the inner walls of the café lies a truly authentic courtyard, modeled in style, size, and beauty after an Italian piazza. I stepped outside still entranced by my blueberry muffin madness to a marble stoned terrace complete with white statues encompassed by crystal clear fountains, and lush green shrubs hugging every spare inch of ground space.

To forget where you are for a few minutes make your way to the Map Room Café and stroll about its back yard terrace with a blueberry muffin or two, Italy never tasted so close.

JP Licks

Few people would argue that JP Licks is a staple of quality when it comes to Boston deserting. But what impresses me most about it, is its ability to turn even an ardent ice cream hater like myself into a dairy craving fiend.

I’m the girl that automatically reaches for a cookie or a brownie when offered dessert, something with some substance behind it that I can bite into and fill my stomach with. That was before I discovered the oatmeal cookie flavored amazingness of JP Licks. This creamy cup of perfection is the sweet dairy version of America’s classic oatmeal cookie that literally melts in your mouth, leaving you excited for the sweet aftertaste of oats and sugar.

And if that doesn’t get you salivating than the Oreo cookie dough or cappuccino crunch will. Or if you’re feeling really adventurous there’s actually a fresh basil and sundried tomato flavor. I did try this, not my cup of tea, but surprisingly not totally awful.

The brick stone café styled venue is brimming with ice cream lovers, families, writers blogging their little hearts away by the large glass windows, and friends sitting on thick brown leather couches churning thoughts over cappuccinos and cupcakes. Made fresh daily in eight locations throughout the greater Boston area, JP Licks can turn even the most devoted cookie lover over to the milky side of dessert.

What could Modern Pastry possibly have that Mike’s Pasty did not? I found it had more of a toy store element to it. Not only were there fresh cannolis but there were latte makers, gourmet syrups, and a multifarious assortment of candies and small sweets. I felt the experience more personal as I stood in a single line surrounded by café tables of small families and couples enjoying cappuccinos and cookies.

The shop was not busting with the crowds that I had encountered at Mike’s but it was definitely not lacking customers. Needless to say, I did not mind waiting, enamored by the brightly lit cases of cannoli’s and velvety cakes. In the name of research, I ordered and watched as the short sweetly rotund woman stuffed a pre-made cannoli shell with fresh ricotta cream filling and sprinkled a delicate layer of powdered sugar on top before placing it neatly in a Modern Pasty box and literally sealing it with a red and white bow.

The experience seemed classic and the taste of the cannoli matched the style of the bakery.  Mike’s may be famous and the larger money maker of the North End, but this girl’s hooked on the family feel of Modern Pastry.

Mirror mirror on the wall, which is the most delectable Boston Bakery of them all. Is it the infamous Mike’s Pastry on Hanover Street or a few doors down at Modern Pastry? Magic mirrors can’t produce samples to help you decide but the North End of Boston certainly can and that is where my quest for Boston’s best bakery began.

From day one of my Massachusetts rebirth I heard the cries for Mike’s Pasty loud and clear all the way in Brookline. Six months later, the time has come to step into the promised land of Mike’s Pastry and see what all the hype is about. Upon first glance and first feel (as my sides are elbowed and my toes are crushed by the masses trying to satisfy their sweet teeth), Mike’s seems like the hot spot of the North End.

I am a kid in a pastry shop, Augustus Gloop in Willy Wonka’s land of edible delight, only one hundred people, some small children, and a few glass cases stand between me and my pastry prizes. After twenty minutes of deep thought, I decide to narrow my “research” to cannolis.  Mike’s has a plethora of options, chocolate covered, eminem filled, cherry dipped, a limitless bounty of flaky delight. Naturally I choose the aged old, classic cannoli, with creamy filling and sweet chocolate chips, I am quite impressed but curious to see what Modern Pasty, the North End’s “other” famous bakery has to offer.

What better way to dive back into Hungry?City action after a holiday hiatus than by injecting some class into my Hungry repertoire with The Squealing Pig in Mission Hill. After a few hours at the Museum of Fine Arts my date and I were looking to unwind and this local watering hole was the perfect solution.

We started the night with some Belgian white ales from The Squealing Pig’s vast beer selection of well over 60 beers. Between gulps we munched on veggie quesadillas filled with sizzling black beans, sour cream, fresh spinach and spicy picante sauce. Four beers later we were ready for our main course, a loaded Mission Burger, and a finely stacked veggie sandwich both paired with crispy satisfying French fries.

By and away though, the most memorable part of the evening occurred around our fifth round of exotic brews when Michael Barret, the famed folk singer of the Squeaky Pig took the stage. His outrageous Irish medleys had the entire bar in stitches and left some with bruised thighs as the intense knee slapping nature of his music made it easy to get carried away by the beat. Moral of the story, get to The Squealing Pig on Thursday nights, you might not remember all of the evening but if Michael Barret is there you’ll know it was epic.