Chocolate is a subject that makes food writers grope, with sweating fingers, for their thesauri. There’s much fanning of the neck in descriptions of chocolate’s earth and spice, its power to seduce. Chocolate melts at body heat; it doesn’t coat an object, it enrobes it. I don’t think anyone would be surprised if there were 50 shades of cocoa beans.
Chocolate is, frankly, a tart. There’s a world of sweet pleasures in other, less obvious flavor palettes. Cream and fruit, brown sugar and pumpkin—these are the wallflowers, often ignored while chocolate splays across the plate in a lurid ganache.
In tribute to them, here are five exceptional, non-chocolate standouts from some of the best pastry chefs in town.
Happy Endings
A chocolate-free trawl through some of the city’s outstanding desserts.
By Andrew Rimas Sept. 26, 2014
Chocolate is a subject that makes food writers grope, with sweating fingers, for their thesauri. There’s much fanning of the neck in descriptions of chocolate’s earth and spice, its power to seduce. Chocolate melts at body heat; it doesn’t coat an object, it enrobes it. I don’t think anyone would be surprised if there were 50 shades of cocoa beans.
Chocolate is, frankly, a tart. There’s a world of sweet pleasures in other, less obvious flavor palettes. Cream and fruit, brown sugar and pumpkin—these are the wallflowers, often ignored while chocolate splays across the plate in a lurid ganache.
In tribute to them, here are five exceptional, non-chocolate standouts from some of the best pastry chefs in town.
By Andrew Rimas | Photo Credit: Jillian Medugno
Rosemary-cranberry kouign-amann at Harvest
A classic French dish of layered, laminated dough and butter, the kouign-amann is a grander relative of the Danish or elephant ear. Brian Mercury’s version is an homage to early fall. “I’m ready for the weather, but not the flavors,” he says. “So it’s not heavy on cinnamon or nutmeg. I’m still enjoying the fresh fruit of the summer.” Caramelized on the crust, the pastry’s velvet inside is complemented by homemade buttermilk ice cream and enlivened with a pear and cranberry compote. A touch of rosemary in the dough lends freshness, while the cranberry is rounded out with notes of red wine and orange. “It’s perfect to eat with coffee,” observes Mercury. “It’s not tooth-hurting, and is very approachable.”
44 Brattle St., Cambridge (617-868-2255) harvestcambridge.com
By Andrew Rimas | Photo Credit: Jillian Medugno
Baked Alaska at Catalyst
“Ice cream is my favorite thing, hands down,” Nicole Harrington says. “Because you can get weird with flavors.” And ice cream, more than the torched meringue shell or the soft cake underbelly, is the cold, delicious heart of this, the dessert menu’s answer to the armadillo. Harrington uses brown sugar and cinnamon ice cream on top of spongy pumpkin cake. Many Alaskas suffer from a crystalline freeze, but this one is timed perfectly for texture, so the elements remain cleanly separate until their flavors meld on the palate. The cinnamon lends a nip of heat to the mellow pumpkin and brown sugar, and a salted caramel drizzle enlivens the airy meringue. It’s an exquisite, seasonal reinterpretation of a classic.
300 Technology Square, Cambridge (617-576-3000) catalystrestaurant.com
By Andrew Rimas | Photo Credit: Jillian Medugno
Rhubarb consommé with sheep’s milk yogurt panna cotta at Legal Harborside
“This is not for someone looking for something too sweet,” says Kristin Wilson, a veteran of Hamersley’s Bistro, Grill 23 & Bar, the Boston Harbor Hotel and other famous kitchens. She prepares the fruit soup by steeping rhubarb stalks in water and sugar, then boils them to release the pectin “so it’s not jiggly in the bowl.” After it’s strained, she cools it and pours it around a panna cotta made with Old Chatham sheep’s milk yogurt from the Hudson Valley. “A lot of people use Greek, but this gives it more tang,” she says. The result is a vibrant dish, lightly touched with honey. And it’s gluten free.
270 Northern Ave., Boston (617-477-2900) legalseafoods.com
By Andrew Rimas | Photo Credit: Jillian Medugno
Blueberry pistachio coupe at Bar Boulud
The city’s newest celebrity restaurant aspires to be a hot spot for locals as much as for guests at the Mandarin Oriental. Hence this elevated sundae, which dabbles in regional flavors through a Continental prism. “You begin by breaking through the crisp tuile at the top, diving deeper into the softness of the ice cream,” says Robert Differ. Served in a round, stemless glass, it’s composed of layers of blueberry ice cream and light lemon curd rooted in an intense blueberry compote. Fruit is dominant—the adorning blueberries are as juicy as grapes—while cubes of cornmeal biscuit give it texture, anchoring the dish in New England.
Mandarin Oriental, 776 Boylston St., Boston (617-535-8800) barboulud.com/boston
By Andrew Rimas | Photo Credit: Jillian Medugno
Breakfast for dessert at Bergamot
Deconstructed desserts have been in vogue for some time, but the concept reaches new heights of wit in Kelcey Rusch’s version of a complete breakfast. The dish lacks bacon, sadly, but it’s a clever play on fruit and oatmeal. “I built the plate around the honeydew sorbet,” Rusch says. Dollops of blueberry yogurt and coconut meringue accent the cool melon, while hibiscus-raspberry jelly adds a stripe of color. The flavors are grounded by crunchy ginger-maple granola (slightly salted for counterpoint) and a soft swathe of blended honey and cream oatmeal. “It’s light and bright,” Rusch says. “I’m not a fan of heavy, dark desserts.” Indeed, the combined tastes skirt the line of wholesomeness, but the result is a masterwork in texture and balance.
118 Beacon St., Somerville (617-576-7700) bergamotrestaurant.com
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