Matsukaze

Matsukaze

¥970 / box of 10 pieces 

On my first morning in Kyoto and I headed out early enough to see tiny school children delightedly greeting their classmates and elderly joggers charging up miniature Mt. Funaoka. As I wandered east past the Daitokuji complex, I spotted a building across the street with all the classic indicators (weatherbeaten wooden sign, sliding doors, minimalist display window, verdigris lamp) that something inside is both edible and old-fashioned. 

Approaching the window I saw a hanging scroll, a single peony, and a plate with two slices of cake and a hand-painted label. Among the jumble of kanji were two that I could make out: “pine” and “wind.” And just then, through the fabric of my mask, I caught a whiff of something rich, sweet, and a little funky! 

The 250-year-old confectionery Matsuya Tobei is famed for matsukaze (“wind in the pines”) an unusually savory cake made from flour, sugar, malt, white miso, salted soybeans, and sesame seeds. The miso already nudges this moist, dense cake in a distinctly umami direction, but then it’s topped with fermented, salted black soybeans called Daitokuji natto (a “dry” natto, so no slime in sight). As an emotional eater, I am not unfamiliar with the taste of tear-soaked cake, and that’s the closest comparison I can offer. 

Matsukaze is used in autumn for tea ceremony but is very nice with coffee at any time of the year—and thank goodness! As it’s only sold by the box, I had a little more than I could handle and was able to distribute the excess at breakfast at my guest house. People from 5 different countries agreed: matsukaze was unlike any cake they’d ever had before. 

Matsuya Tobei 

Daitokuji Kitaoji, Kita-ku (in front of Daitokuji-mae bus stop) 

075-492-2850

Bienenstich II

Bienenstich
Das Bratwurst Haus, $4.99

Opened about 3 years ago by a former American GI and his German wife, Das Bratwursthaus is Yuma's one-stop shop for Bavarian specialties--whether edible or collectible.  When the Haus closes down for summer, the owners head back to Germany to stock up on wine, beer, decorative nutcrackers, and souvenir tea towels. 
 
The umlaut-heavy menu offers full meals as well as a roster of schmankerl or Bavarian snacks.  Desserts include both daily specials and old standbys such as strudel, schwarzwalder kirschtorte (black forest cake), cheesecake, and karrotten kuchen.  I had my eye on the unfamiliar donauwelle (yellow cake topped with chocolate cake and cherries, covered with German butter cream and chocolate glaze) but sadly, this labor-intensive torte only appears on special occasions.  Instead, I opted for bienenstich (a 15th century "bee sting" cake with layers of yeasted pastry, cream, and sliced almonds) and followed the dirndl-clad waitress' suggestion that I enjoy my dessert in the Bavarian manner:  warm and washed down with beer. 

Das Bratwurst Haus
204 S Madison Ave
Yuma AZ
928 / 329-4777

Back in Time Pecan Pie

Pecan Pie
Back in Time Pie Shoppe, $4

Starting in 1864, Yuma's Quartermaster Depot played a vital role in the operation of US Army posts throughout the southwest.  Located on a bluff over the river, the Depot's warehouses were both secure and accessible, an ideal place to store necessities such as clothing, food, and ammunition; the goods were delivered by river, then distributed as needed via mule-drawn wagons.  With the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad in the late 1870s, the Depot had outlived its original use, but it continued to to house tenants such as the Signal Corps, Weather Bureau, and Customs Service, until eventually becoming a state park. 

With the state facing severe budget cutbacks in 2009, the city took over the operation of the Depot's Heritage Area, five original buildings housing exhibits on everything from military insignia to irrigation.  Searching for ways to simultaneously attract new visitors and enhance those visitors' experience of the park, someone came up with a genius idea:  pie. 

Since late 2012, the Back in Time Pie Shoppe has offered a wide variety of pies, baked on site, sold from glass stands on a crowded counter, and served on doily-covered tables by women in long skirts and aprons.  You can borrow your favorite teacup from an assortment on the wall, or find a keeper among the many antiques and trinkets for sale in the tearoom and adjacent shop.  You can hold a tea party, play "teago" (the Shoppe's version of bingo), and pick up a loyalty card that allows you to come in for pie without having to pay for park admission. 

Sure, it's a little on the kitsch side, but the Shoppe offers a sensory experience straight out of the Depot's glory days, when pie was an everyday food, often made with and ingredients at hand (like the local nuts in the pecan pie above)--and sometimes served by charming waitresses like those found at 19th century Harvey House restaurants at rail stations throughout the southwest. 

Like attractions in many tourist towns, the Back in Time Pie Shoppe is closed during the off-season--in this case, summer. 

 

Yuma Quartermaster Depot
Corral Building
Yuma AZ 
928 / 323-2034

Buttermilk Pie

  
Mini Buttermilk Pie
Emerald City Fish and Chips, $2

At Emerald City Fish and Chips, the emphasis on Southern style and family recipes extends from the entrees to the desserts.  An in-law bakes the four-bite mini pies, filled with either sweet potato or a rich, sweet, golden custard that the name "buttermilk" doesn't quite do justice to.

Emerald City Fish and Chips
3756 Rainier Ave S
Seattle WA
206 / 760-3474

Chocolate Ganache Pie

 
Chocolate Ganache Pie
Better Living Through Coffee, $3.95 

Each return trip to Port Townsend brings me a little closer to my goal of eating my way through the menu at Better Living Through Coffee, home of "Organic Fair-Trade Coffee & Nutrient Dense Food."  As always, I was curious to see how that nutritional mission applies to sweets and delighted to find that in the case of the housemade pies (blackberry, chocolate, or fig and walnut), it applies deliciously.  My server was a little sparing with the details, but my understanding is that the hefty, hearty crust involves both yogurt and flour ground from sprouted whole wheat; the creamy-chewy dark chocolate ganache is sweetened with minimally-processed succanat and topped with an optional dollop of real whipped cream. 

Better Living Through Coffee
100 Tyler Street  
Port Townsend, WA
360/385-3388

Little Bake Shop

Pear Tart

Little Bake Shop, Johnson Orchards 

Alfred Johnson emigrated from Sweden in 1889 and was eventually lured to central Washington by a railroad initiative offering free transportation to prospective buyers of rail-owned land in the Yakima Valley.  In 1904 Johnson and his brothers founded their orchard on 60 acres of irrigated valley floor.  In the early years, much of the orchard's produce was packed into barrels and shipped to Sweden via Seattle, but as the area's population grew, more and more of the fruit was consumed locally.    

Now surrounded by sprawling subdivisions, Johnson Orchards continues to operate under a banner of continuity ("Same Family, Same Location - Quality Fruit since 1904") but a few things have certainly changed.  The orchard now offers cherries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, pears, plums, apples, and pluots, some available through a u-pick program, others sold by the pound, box, or bin in a refurbished 1916 fruit packing warehouse.  In 2011, the family added a commercial kitchen, where they bake cakes, bars, and pies during the growing season, selling them from "Little Bake Shop" cases inside the warehouse--on Fridays and Saturdays only.   

Johnson Orchards

4906 Summitview Avenue

Yakima WA

509/966-7479 

 

El Zocalo Tortas and Bakery

 

El Zocalo

The nice young woman behind the counter warned us that the tortas might be bigger than we were used to, but I was skeptical.  Minutes later, I learned my lesson: biggest Mexican sandwich ever = no room for dessert.  

It hurt even to look at the racks of fresh cakes, cookies, and breads surrounding the dining room.  And I'm not the first to feel that way, judging by the fact that El Zocalo pre-packages to-go cups of its tres leches, diced cake soaked in evaporated and condensed milk, mixed with pineapple chunks and strawberry gel, topped with whipped cream, sprinkles, and a strawberry:  dessert for the road.

El Zocalo Tortas and Bakery

701 S 38th St
Tacoma WA 

253/474-9000 

Budapest Bistro and Schnitzel House

 
















Cheese Pocket and Almond Cookie (top)
Cheese Strudel (below)
Budapest Bistro and Schnitzel House

Growing up in Hungary in her grandparents' home taught Elizabeth Muszka a particular kind of self-reliance.  Since there wasn't much money to spare on restaurants or fancy ingredients, Elizabeth learned young that in order to eat well, they had to cook well. 

Today the owner of Mukilteo's Budapest Bistro and Schnitzel House specializes in Hungarian, German, and Gypsy dishes--and in cooking well.  Starting with traditional recipes and simple ingredients, Elizabeth lavishes attention on each item. 

The pastry case stuffed with fresh zserbo (apricot-walnut-chocolate pastry), dobos torte (layered sponge with chocolate and caramel), sour cherry cake, German chocolate cake, strudels (below), and cookies (above) is even more of a marvel when you consider that the strudel dough alone takes three hours to make.  

 
















But for ex-pats who hunger for something other than home cooking, Elizabeth also stocks a large selection of packaged European candies and treats (below).   

Budapest Bistro and Schnitzel House
12926 Mukilteo Speedway
Lynwood WA
425/513-9846

Cle Elum Bakery

Torchetti
Cle Elum Bakery, $.90/each

Founded in 1906, the Cle Elum Bakery still relies on its original brick bread oven and several of the recipes the original brought with him when he came over from Italy.  Among these, the popular torchetti cookie:  "Italian Pastry made with Butter, Yeast, and Spices.  Enjoy with Coffee, Tea or dipped in Red Wine."

The Osmanovich family bought the bakery in 1947 and it is still run by their descendants.  They were probably responsible for introducing the "divinity" cookie ($.75/each), a meltaway cloud of shortening, powdered sugar, and nuts similar to cookies found in Russia, Greece, and Mexico.  

Cle Elum Bakery 
501 E 1st St 
Cle Elum, WA
509/674-2233
 

Cakes of Paradise

Rainbow Cake
Cakes of Paradise, $3.95/slice

Sink your fork into a little Aloha at either of Cakes of Paradise's two area locations.  Hawaiian baker Mary Buza-Sims' personal recipes were the starting point for this family business now run by her nephew and two sons.  The light, flavorful cakes feature tropical flavors like pineapple, passion fruit, and coconut.  Three-layer Rainbow Cake combines strawberry, lime, and orange cake, with guava, lime, and passion fruit topping.  You can pick up a slice or order a full sheet, which comes decorated with a fresh orchid. 

Cakes of Paradise 
Georgetown
6322 6th Ave S
Seattle, WA
206/763-1151

East Valley Business Park
281 SW 41st Street
Bldg # 13 East
Renton, WA
425/282-4972

Pippa's Real Tea

Scone and clotted cream
Pippa's Real Tea, $2

In the ranks of things that taste better than they sound, clotted cream is right up there with fish fingers.  Thick and insanely rich, this luxurious spread is a staple treat in Britain's dairy-farming regions. 

There are a couple of ways of making clotted cream, the easiest being to slowly reduce cream until it's as thick as spackle.  A friend's grandmother used to make a new batch nightly, setting the saucepan of cream in a bain marie over low heat before going to bed; she woke each morning to find the perfectly thickened cream topped with a golden crust of crystallized milkfat--as cheerful and more reliable than the morning sun!

There are even more ways of enjoying clotted cream, in or on baked goods or ice cream, in fudge, on fruit...An Afghan version is mixed with tea and aerated to yield a fuschia beverage enjoyed on special occasions. 

At Pippa's Real Tea in Port Townsend, a container of clotted cream accompanies small, fresh scones and strawberry jam.  You can also order a pot of one of Pippa's dozens of loose-leaf teas to create the classic mid-afternoon snack known in England as a "cream tea."   The farther you get from Devon and Cornwall, the greater your risk that the "cream" component of a cream tea will whipped rather than clotted--but Pippa's doesn't disappoint!

Pippa's Real Tea
636 Water St
Port Townsend, WA
360/385-6060

Pastry by Anca

Shortbread
Pastry Design by Anca, $4.75/bag

Anca Hasson has been making Port Townsend a sweeter place since first starting to sell her pastries at the local farmers market in 2007.   As a child in Romania, Anca entertained herself by making desserts out of the limited ingredients available under rationing; as a young adult she was studying nursing in Alaska when a part-time job at a bakery reignited her childhood passion. 

Today Anca's products are available from many Olympic Peninsula outlets, including the Chimacum Corner Farmstand, Port Townsend's Co-op and Farmers Market, and the Tyler Street Cafe, a downtown PT restaurant owned by Anca's husband, John.

Her massive, tender shortbread cookies (above) come in a range of flavors, including espresso-pecan, and lemon with cornmeal. 

 The chocolate ganache cookie ($2.50 at Tyler Street) has a delicate crust, a gooey chocolate core, and a belt of buttery chopped pistachios. 

The pine nut cookies ($5.25/bag at Chimacum Corner) are perfumed pillows of egg white and almond flour studded with extravagant quantities of toasted kernels. 

Pastry Design by Anca
40-C Seton Rd
Port Townsend, WA

(360) 440-7534

Crumb Grabbers Birthday Cupcake

Birthday Cupcake
Crumb Grabbers Bakery, free (!)

Crumb Grabbers Bakery is a popular spot for light meals and treats located in a friendly-looking house on a side street just off Sequim's main drag.   I had to elbow through the lunch crowd to reach the bakery counter, but that effort quickly paid off.

"It's our one-year anniversary," said the woman behind the counter, "Would you like a free birthday cupcake?"

Giddy with good fortune, I rushed out to the less-crowded parking lot to enjoy my freebie.  The chocolate-on-chocolate cupcake was moist and not too sweet, with a good balance of frosting to cake--even factoring in the frosting that mysteriously ended up on my face and shirt.
 
Crumb Grabbers Bakery 

492 W Cedar St

Sequim WA

360/504-2031

Calico Cupboard

Cream Puff
Calico Cupboard, $6.49

I learned about Calico Cupboard from a rabid fan of their apple cake who was loudly talking smack in a rival bakery.  Visiting lovely little La Conner on a day trip, I reckoned I'd judge that apple cake for myself--but it turns out only to be available "in season".  So instead I had (part of) a cream puff the size of a kickball but much more toothsome:  flaky pastry, glassy chocolate, rich custard, and airy whipped cream. 

And I added "apple cake" to my fall calendar.

Calico Cupboard
720 S 1st St 
La Conner WA
360/466-4451 

Almond Horn

Almond Horn
P.S. Suisse, $2.85

Langley, Washington is not so much small as concentrated:  you could drive in one end and out the other in about 45 seconds, or you could pull over and spend all day exploring bookshops, cafes, spas, boutiques, the world's best-organized thrift store, and, at the far end of a tiny pedestrian mall, the P.S. Suisse bakery.  

Originally from Ligerz in western Switzerland, Peter Boden served a 3-year apprenticeship in Davos then worked as a confectioner and pastry chef in hotels and restaurants around Europe.  After moving to America, he first worked in Illinois, then Michigan, then relocated again to Colorado--as much for the skiing as for the kitchens.  Some of the framed memorabilia on the walls at P.S. Suisse comes from this period, including a feature story on the Vail Grand Marnier Chef's ski race, with a picture of Peter schussing down a slopes in apron and toque.   

After several years as the co-owner of Vail's Alpenrose restaurant (est. 1975), Peter took some time off to concentrate on producing his sought-after chocolate sculptures and paintings...and somehow ended up in Langley, WA, in a tiny shop at the end of a small mall.  I would've liked to ask about that, but the lunch rush crowding the bakery's few tables put a damper on investigation.  

Peter's wife Sandra covers the front of the house, hustling plates and extracting pastries from the crowded cases.  The cookie choices include spitzbuben (or "rascals," two-layer sandwiches with jam filling peeking out through holes in the upper cookie), linzer (similar to spitzbuben but made with hazelnut dough), shortbread Orcas painted with milk or dark chocolate, and almond horns (above) wrought from mildly sweet marzipan dough, dark chocolate, and a glassy sugar-egg-almond glaze.  There are also strudels, tarts, danishes, Napoleons, croissants, and a shelf full of breads.  

As the shop's sole baker and cook, Peter has plenty to do in back.  In addition to keeping the cases and bread rack full and whipping up lunch plates, there are the seasonal specials.  During my visit Peter was hard at work filling orders for Engadin nusstorte, a shortcrust pastry stuffed with walnuts, honey, and cream. A traditional holiday-time treat, the Engadin is named for the valley surrounding St. Moritz and is a soft-spoken reminder of the poverty endured by generations of Swiss villagers; the Engadin recipe probably spread as bakers went further and further afield in search of work.  
 
P.S. Suisse
221 2nd St #12A
Langley, WA
360-221-9434 

 

Tarte Nouveau

 
Cherry Almond Tart
Tarte Nouvean, $4.50

No wheat?  So what!  Shelley Baumgarten whips up combinations of tapioca, rice and other flours for crusts so toothsome you won't even miss the old amber waves.  Her Tarte Nouveau baked goods are certified gluten-free and celiac safe.  The rotating menu features seasonal specials like this cherry almond tart and luxurious year-round favorite flavors such as chocolate, marzipan and mousse.  Order online for free delivery within Seattle or find Tarte Nouveau in booth 23 at the Fremont Street Market, Sundays 10am-5pm.

Blackberry Cafe

 
















Wild Blackberry Crumble
Blackberry Cafe, $6.95

Joyce is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it highway town with one attraction that tempts travelers to pull over:  the deliciously invasivore Blackberry Cafe. 
 
Although Washington state does have indigenous blackberries, those timid natives faded into the background with the introduction of Himalayan and Evergreen varieties in the late 19th century.  The aggressive interlopers were first grown as food crops, but quickly jumped the fence to spread unchecked across the state.  

There are ongoing efforts to eradicate invasive blackberries, but in the meantime they're a dependable source of fat, juicy fruit for the Blackberry Cafe.  The Cafe buys blackberries from the local foragers throughout the summer, stockpiling enough to make it through the winter. 

This 4-year-old establishment isn't shy about its specialty.  The menu features blackberry BBQ sauce, blackberry salad, blackberry vinagrette, blackberry shakes, blackberry lemonade,  and blackberry creme crepes (reminding me of that scene in "Better Off Dead" when the host mother reels of the menu for her French-themed feast:  "French fries, French toast, French dressing...").  The "Fresh from the Oven" baked goods aren't even on the menu; look instead for an up-to-the-minute white board. 

With summer edging into fall, the blackberry crumble is a perfect match for the transitional weather:  warm berries oozing juice as if they'd just come in from the sun, blanketed with comfortingly crispy, buttery oats. 



Blackberry Cafe
50530 Hwy 112 W
Joyce, WA
360 / 928-0141

Seabell Bakery

Seabell Roll
Seabell Bakery, $2

Seabell is a small strip-mall bakery specializing in "Japanese style" breads.  While the Japanese make and enjoy many types of bread, "Japanese style" usually indicates a matrix so light and fluffy that just looking at it makes you want to take a nap.  

Seabell's eponymous roll is an exemplar of its type:  the freshest, finest-grained hot dog bun imaginable, coiled around a core of real whipped cream and lightly sweetened red bean paste.   Astringent matcha tea sprinkled on top and stirred into the cream gives the Seabell a little bite and backbone. 

Seabell Bakery
12816 SE 38th St Ste F
Bellevue, WA 
425 / 644-2616 

George's Bakery

 

Chocolate Thumbprint Cookie

George's Bakery, $1

A disc of buttery shortbread and a dollop of fudgy icing:  sweet, simple, and satisfying out of all proportion to its size.  The same could be said for just about anything from George's Bakery.  

Founder George Marcis was born in Greece in 1933 and immigrated to the US as a teenager; he learned English while studying at Seattle's Broadway Technical School.  In 1964 Macris and his wife Jean opened their bakery on the main street in North Bend, a small mountain town in the Olympic mountains east of Seattle.  

Until the 1978 bypass, Interstate 90 ran past the front door, delivering hungry skiers and hikers to and from the mountains.  Macris' work day started at 3am, and one North Bend resident described seeing him work "like a buzzard" to keep his cases stocked with fresh baked goods:  cracked wheat, cinnamon nut, and rye bread, danishes, doughnuts, cinnamon twists, peaked "Mount Si" loaves, and boozy rum balls.  When there weren't enough chairs to go around, patrons would happily sit on the floor with their pastries and coffee.

The Macrises commuted into Seattle to attend the St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, and George's Bakery played an active role in producing goods for the annual fundraiser bazaars; in the days before an event, the bakery would host a revolving army of volunteer bakers, trying their best to meet the public's lucrative demand for specialty breads and pastries.  

Macris retired in 1993, selling the business to Greg and Cornelia Cordova.  In 2008 the business passed to current owners Kathleen Stokesbury and Joe McKeown, a third-generation baker from Pittsburgh who had previously run Seattle's Greenwood Bakery.  By all accounts, they've done little to change the formula that made George's Bakery a neighborhood hub:  the decor is still comfortably kitschy, the cases are still filled with familiar favorites. 

Macris passed away in 2008 at the age of 70; North Bend's mayor honored him with a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award, citing his unwavering support for community members and events. 

George's Bakery

127 W North Bend Way  

North Bend, WA
425/888-0632

 

Other North Bend sources of notable sweets include Twedes's (below left), home of the "damn fine" cherry pie immortalized in David Lynch's Twin Peaks, and Scott's Dairy Freeze (below right), home of some damn sweet signage.