currently snacking on...

...this Boston Cream Crodo from The Crisp Cannoli:

delicious deep-fried, flaky croissant donut rolled in sugar, filled
with vanilla custard and topped with a giant swirl of chocolate frosting.

Sweet Sue's

The brunch fairies have smiled down upon us again. A trip to Sweet Sue's was a bit of a redemption trip for J and I. We once stopped by for a cupcake and macarons but the texture of the treats were a bit off. Every place has an off day, we get it. But the more I looked on Facebook, the more I was tempted by the playful menu and brunch combos. I convinced J to check out brunch at Sweet Sue's in Troy and we couldn't have been more blown away. 

Sweet Sue's plays around with lots of global flavors, even Vietnamese pho and banh xeo from what I've seen. The day's soup of the day was a Thai Tom Kha and we had to start our meals with a taste. It was a light red curry broth that wasn't the usual blow your head off spicy . For once I didn't miss the heat and enjoyed the balance of sweet and sour flavors. It wasn't too heavy on the coconut milk either and fragrant aromas of lemongrass balanced the sweetness well. It was the perfect soup to start off a beautiful spring day meal.

Get there early because brunch specials run out fast. I had my eye on the arepas from an earlier Facebook post but since they ran out, I opted for a breakfast sandwich with homefries. It wasn't just an ordinary breakfast sandwich. This one was made with Heritage Farms hickory smoked bacon, scrambled eggs, brie, and a schmear of fig jam on an Our Daily Bread croissant.

I loved the salty and sweet combo; the fig jam paired very well with the creaminess of brie and of course everything is better with bacon, especially thick-cut quality bacon. I also love when places opt for the peppery bite of arugula instead of lettuce on their sandwiches. The side of homefries were perfectly crispy but needed a bit more seasoning; just ask for ketchup and sriracha and you'll be all set. Sandwich aside, I was actually just as impressed with the side salad of arugula and house-grown organic sprouts. The greens were brightly dressed with a light vinaigrette and something so simple tasted so fresh and delicious. Locally-sourced and quality, fresh ingredients really do make a difference.
J was just as impressed with his Sooie Sandwich: Heritage Farm pork confit with slaw, pickled onions, and horseradish cream on ciabatta. The pork confit was packed with flavor but not greasy at all. The meat was heavy on cumin which was unexpected but in a good way. The slaw added a good, fresh crunch and horseradish added a good kick. J wolfed down this sandwich in no time. 

Of course a trip to Sweet Sue's wouldn't be complete without a cupcake or two, plus one more for the road. We chose a duo of Lemon Chai and Triple Chocolate cupcakes. This tasted much better than our first time around. Although the frosting was still hard from the fridge case, we didn't mind it all since it was so flavorful. It's a very buttery frosting, richer than your typical cupcake. It's butter alright. The cake part was fluffy and J couldn't get enough of the pudding filling in the chai cupcake. Plus it was so refreshing to see and taste real lemon zest in the cake. As for the chocolate cupcake, definitely plenty of chocolate flavor. What a sweet ending to an awesome brunch. It pays to have a leap of faith and give a place another go. 

TC Paris Bakery Preview

J and I have been avid fans of TC Paris Bakery since their early days inside The Chocolate Gecko in Albany. We would stop by every other weekend for fresh flaky and buttery chocolate croissants and boxes of french macarons, not to mention the best creme brulee (torched to order!) and lemon tarts too. Safe to say we were regulars but how could we resist all made from scratch treats. Being in walking distance was dangerously delicious. It would be an understatement to say that we were devastated to find out that TC Paris was losing their space back in March and had to relocate. We were in withdrawals throughout the summer and while TC temporarily found a home at Fluffalicious, it just wasn't the same not being greeted by Chef Paul and crew. 

We're so happy to report that TC Paris has found a permanent new home in Saratoga on Henry Street. It's a bit more of a hike for us to get our fill of treats, but it's one we're happy to make. We were honored to be invited to a preview of the new shoppe and every morsel we sampled was just as good as we remembered, if not better. TC takes pride in quality from ingredients to execution. The stars of TC Paris are the French macarons: delicate almond meringue cookies filled with light buttercream or chocolate ganache. These macarons have a light and crisp shell yet chewy center as you bite into the cookie and filling. They are delightful fun little morsels of textures and flavors ranging from chocolate made with Valrhona chocolate, salted caramel, and lemon to unique flavors like chocolate earl grey, chocolate rose, and ube purple yam. 

Did we mention how good Valrhona chocolate is? TC uses the same quality chocolate in their croissants and no other croissants have lived up to TC's since. We're also happy to report that TC started making chocolate-dipped pretzels with the same Valrhona chocolate. If you need more of a chocolate fix, TC is now carrying a line of Neuhaus Belgian chocolates and truffles, and we can vouch for those too but the in-house scratch-made confections are what you really want to go for. Duchilly hazelnut pralines are also back and we can't wait to see the return of our old favorites and new favorites to come! Congrats TC Paris Bakery! The new space and renovations are beautiful. It's great to see TC in their own space. We'll be back in two weeks for the official opening! - J&R

The Crisp Cannoli

All Over Albany's blog post inspired me to try the cronut craze that has plagued NYC. Fans wait hours in line for the original version at Dominique Ansel's in the city. I was overjoyed to find this half-doughnut, half-croissant concoction at The Crisp Cannoli in East Greenbush, and no crazy long lines around the block...yet. I forget whose Twittter feed I saw this amazing news on but once you bite into one of these puppies, you'll understand the hype.  

It took us three drive-bys to finally locate The Crisp Cannoli. It's located on the corner of a very unassuming building but inside are cases of wonderful pastries and sweets including the coveted cronuts. J and I hold very high standards when it comes to a good croissant. We use to get these amazing chocolate ones from TC Bakery when they were on Colvin Ave (now relocated to Saratoga) and haven't had a great croissant since until now. I can't compare this cronut to other cronuts, or crodo as it's called here since "cronut" seems to have been trademarked, but the magic is in the croissant dough. It's got to be buttery, flaky, and crispy on the outside yet chewy on the inside and this crodo hits all the above. It's as much fun taking a whole bite out of a crodo as

it is to pick apart those beautiful layers of sugared dough. It's no dainty pastry, be ready to be covered in lots of sugar. The Crisp Cannoli makes three wonderful versions of the crodo: glazed, vanilla custard-filled, and nutella filled. Try all three, you won't be disappointed; but I gotta say my favorite was the nutella filled one. 

The filled-to-order cannolis looked pretty damn good too but the lovely woman at the counter talked us into trying their other croissant invention: The Crodoli. Made to order, we were sold at freshly fried croissant dough filled with their homemade cannoli cream, dusted with sugar and drizzled with chocolate for good measure. This was best enjoyed right out of the fryer and boy did we enjoy it. I was expecting the crodo and crodoli to be heavy and greasy, but both versions were surprising light and crispy. With a name like Crisp Cannoli, the cannoli cream in the crodoli definitely lived up to its name; not too sweet and melt in your mouth creamy. We can't wait to come back for more crodos, crodolis, and of course cannolis. -R