Sweets & Treats

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Sugarush Truck

Homemade sweets are on the move via the Sugarush Truck.

Last night, I ate the last of the half dozen homemade “ring dings” my friend brought me from Roasting Plant in New York — quite literally, a bittersweet moment.

But I’m happy to report that today I found a worthwhile substitute.

Classic coconut cupcake

Perhaps it’s my childhood memories of the ice cream man, but there’s something I love about ordering something sweet from a truck.  Of course, these days my standards are a bit higher than a Hood Chocolate Eclair or a Fun Dip (although I’m still known to eat either when the occasion presents itself). However, I’ve met my match with the Sugarush Truck, which has arrived to make its rounds serving up perfectly delicious homemade cupcakes and other sweets.

Today, we checked the truck’s whereabouts on Twitter and found them parked at Providence’s Lippitt Park. The menu consisted of three cupcake choices — classic coconut, chocolate with salted caramel, and a vegan meyer lemon with lavender — as well as homemade whoopie pies. I tried the classic coconut — a soft, moist cupcake with the right balance of icing topped with shredded coconut — and a whoopie pie — a perfectly fluffy chocolate cake surrounding a sweet cream frosting, which could have used a bit less sugar in my unprofessional opinion, but nonetheless delicious.  Mmm.  Some things are even better as an adult.

You can be sure to find me following them around town.

Whoopie pie

Sugarush Truck
www.sugarushtruck.com
Find out where they are on Twitter: www.twitter.com/sugarushtruck
On Facebook at www.facebook.com/sugarushtruck

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Apple Picking at Jaswell’s Farm

A shiny apple picked from the tree

Madeline proudly displays her conquest.

There’s nothing quite like biting an apple taken directly from the tree — so crisp, a little bit tart, and absolutely delicious.  On the advice of a friend, we decided to drive to Smithfield’s “Apple Valley” to Jaswell’s Farm. A fourth generation family farm, they have acres of apple trees you can wander through to fill up bags of apples for $1.50 per pound. Right now, cortland and macintosh apples were ripe for the picking. They also have a field to pick-your-own pumpkins and another to pick flowers. Jaswell’s is famous for their handmade candy apples and their fresh cider which is milled and pasteurized on the premises. Their daily farm stand offers a selection of locally grown and homemade baked goods, jams and produce.

Madeline loved hunting among the low branches to find the reddest apples. Needless to say, we came home with three big bags filled with 17 pounds of apples. Now, someone needs to bake some pies…

Jaswell’s Farm
pick-your-own apples and pumpkins continues through most of October
50 Swan Rd
Smithfield, RI
www.jaswellsfarm.com

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Rhode Island Summer: Beaches and Ice Cream

This little ice cream shop on Succotash Road is the perfect post-beach stop.

Basically in my opinion any day is a “10” if it involves swimming and ice cream.  Happily this weekend consisted of quite a lot of both.  (Note: I’m not opposed to more than one ice cream in a day if there’s also more than one swim in a day).  But the most pleasant surprise was the soft serve at the new ice cream shop at Lockwoods Marina where we stopped after a few hours at the East Matunuck State Beach in South Kingston.

Of course, it’s hard to imagine a soft serve that tops Frosty Freez in Middletown, RI, and this one certainly doesn’t. Still most soft serve is simply terrible, tasting more like dyed ice than something deserving of the name ice cream.  But the soft serve at this new little shop, located on Succotash Road next to Capt’n Jack’s, had a surprisingly creamy, smooth consistency with good flavor.  If you’re not into soft serve, they also serve up homemade hard ice cream and yogurt, many with cryptic names like Mushy’s Monsta Mix and Mo’s Moose Tracks, but the cheerful staff can offer an explanation or even a taste.  They also have a man-made fish pond outside over which the kids love to dangle their dripping cones.  It’s the perfect treat, and if you’ve just come from a swim at the beach, you’ll have earned the calories.

Scarborough State Beach drew crowds as early as Memorial Day this year.

Rhode Island State Beaches

In 2010, the annual parking pass inclusive for all seven of the RI state beaches costs $30 for residents.  Day rates for residents run $6-7/day.

East Matunuck State Beach (mentioned above)
The walk into the water is a tad rocky and the sand isn’t as soft as some of the other state beaches, but it’s quite popular with families and is an easy walk to the beach from the parking lot.
950 Succotash Road
South Kingston, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/eastmatunuck.htm

Burlingame State Park & Beach
Sanctuary RD. (Route 1)
Charlestown, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/burlingastatepark.htm

Charlestown Beach & Camp
Charlestown, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/charlesbreach.htm

Fort Adams State Park & Beach
I guess this is technically a beach but it’s so tiny it doesn’t really feel like one. Most of Fort Adams State Park, which is gorgeous, dangles over rocky cliffs. You can also rent a boat from Sail Newport here. As for the beach part, there’s a small roped off area that has calm water for swimming. It’s definitely popular with families.
Harrison Avenue
Newport, RI, 02840
www.riparks.com/fortadams.htm

Goddard Memorial State Park & Beach
1095 Ives Road
Warwick, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/goddard.htm

Misquamicut State Beach
Arguably, Westerly boasts some of the best beaches in the state. This one has over a half mile of coast. Hence, it’s one of the most popular and tends to fill up on nice weekends.
257 Atlantic Avenue
Westerly, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/misquamicut.htm

Roger Wheeler State Beach
This beach (known to locals as Sand Hill Cove Beach) has calmer waves due to the breakwaters that protect it from the open ocean. Not surprisingly, it’s more popular with families or anyone looking for a more relaxed ocean swim. You certainly won’t see any surfers here, although there are still a few eager boogie-boarders.
100 Sand Hill Cove Road
Narragansett, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/wheeler.htm

Salty Brine State Beach
On the same strip of land as Roger Wheeler, the Salty Brine is also protected by the breakwaters. The downsides: it’s a smaller beach than Roger Wheeler and is closer to the boats at Galilee (and thus any oil or other substances that might come with them). The upside: the town of Galilee is only a few steps away, which means a much tastier lunch or dinner than the typical greasy beach stand.
254 Great Road
Narragansett, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/saltybrine.htm

Scarborough State Beach – North & South
This is a picture-perfect beach with soft sand across a wide beach and clear water. It definitely gets crowded and is quite popular with the youts (i.e. teenagers) so it’s a bit harder to keep track of kids especially when you nod off. On one visit, we heard three announcements for lost kids in a two-hour period. There is abundant parking at these beaches, so on a crowded day you’ll still find a spot in the auxiliary lot but it’s quite a hike.
870 and 970 Ocean Road
Narragansett, Rhode Island
www.riparks.com/scarborough.htm

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Moondust Macarons

Crispy outside and soft inside, these macarons deserve their name.

I often wonder why so many of the tasty treats I’ve discovered in France seem to be either nowhere to be found back home or even worse, simply not so tasty.

That can no longer be said to be true of the macaron thanks to 2009 Bryant University graduate Stephen Fitch. He discovered the cookie during his study abroad in Paris and returned obsessed with the task of recreating what he calls this “culinary phenomena” in Rhode Island. His countless hours of baking and tasting have resulted in the Moondust Macarons collection of flavors (pistachio, lemon, coffee, chocolate, raspberry, and vanilla). Taste for yourself this Saturday at Providence Open Market at Lippitt Park. They are also sold at Eastside Market and through their website.

Moondust Macarons has a stand at Providence Open Market.

Moondust Macarons
www.moondustmacarons.com

Providence Open Market
Lippitt Park
Hope Street
Providence, RI
on Saturday, June 19, 2010
www.providenceopenmarket.com

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Gray’s Ice Cream: Coffee Chip

A cup of coffee chip at Gray's Ice Cream.

After last fall’s botched attempt to try Gray’s Ice Cream, I decided to give it another try this spring. Their Bristol location officially opened for the season on May 8, and I arrived the next day despite the cold and windy weather. I had to sit in my car waiting for them to open for the day, since apparently they don’t expect people to want ice cream before noon.

I tried their chocolate, which was quite tasty — more of a light malt chocolate than a rich dark flavor. But I ultimately opted for their coffee chip since the coffee is their specialty, along with a scoop of regular chocolate chip for comparison. The woman working there told me they had just brought in the batch of coffee chip that day, and you could tell — the texture was perfectly soft and creamy. I guess ice cream is more like bagels than I thought — the fresher, the better. The chocolate chip was fine, but nothing special. Overall, it’s no Handel’s, but it’s a much shorter drive to Bristol than Ohio, and that’s not to be overlooked.

Gray’s Ice Cream
16 East Road
Tiverton, RI 02878

259 Thames Street
Bristol, RI 02809

www.graysicecream.com

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A Maple Sugaring Tour: Parker Woodland Wildlife Refuge & Chepachet Farms

The "Sugar House" at Chepachet Farms.

It didn’t start off well — it was raining, and we were late.  It got even worse when we arrived at the Audubon Society in Bristol only to realize that we had misread — the maple sugaring tour took place at the Parker Woodland Wildlife Refuge in Coventry, which was on the other side of the state.  Luckily Rhode Island isn’t that big, and luckily, the Audubon Society made space for us on the tour later in the morning.

We arrived at their house tucked in the woods to a breakfast spread of Dunkin’ Donuts muffins and doughnuts slathered with their homemade maple glaze and some pancakes to taste their maple syrup.  Then we followed our tour guide outside in the rain to learn about the Native American’s discovery of maple syrup and its rise to the sweet necessity we now know and love.   The program also demystified how to discern a sugar maple tree (forked branches, twin buds, color and shape of the leaves) and how to tap trees and produce your own syrup.

Inside the "Sugar House" at Chepachet Farms, the tree sap boils down into maple syrup.

Our tour ended back inside where we could taste test the real thing against Aunt Jemima’s.  As a pancake connoisseur, this happens to be one of my areas of expertise — the phony stuff has a stickier, stringier consistency and, in fact, has little maple flavor.  Also inside, Chepachet Farms had setup a stand for visitors to sample and purchase their homemade goods — a sweet maple salad dressing, a crunchy maple peanut brittle, maple-flavored popcorn, and, of course, maple syrup.  Learning a bit about the Chepachet Farms operation, we decided to drive there immediately.  After a bit of hunting around in the rain, we came across their “Sugar House” which is open to the public for a view of the sap boiling furiously in a wood-burning metal tub at a temperature of over 200 degrees.  In their farm operation, they gather up to 500 gallons of sap daily which they boil down to 12 gallons of maple syrup.  If you come during the season, you can literally buy syrup that’s been bottled that morning and is still warm, but if you can’t make it out, you can also order their syrup online.

See a list of Rhode Island farms that produce maple syrup at Farm Fresh RI. Or, go ahead, try this at home.  Here’s a handy guide on How to Tap Maple Trees and Make Maple Syrup.

Chepachet Farms
Their “Sugar House” is open to the public — call ahead for times.
226 Tourtellot Hill Road
Chepachet, RI 02814
www.chepachetfarms.com

Audubon Society of Rhode Island
Locations throughout RI
Annual Maple Sugaring at Parker Woodland Wildlife Refuge
Maple Valley Road, Coventry, RI
www.asri.org

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The Duck & Bunny: A Snuggery

The Duck and Bunny posts their cupcake menu daily.

When I spotted the silhouette sign of The Duck & Bunny hanging along Wickenden Street, I decided to stop in as soon as I could.  Today, I discovered the dollhouse charm that lay within — gray and white striped walls, glass chandeliers, white tufted seats.  They serve a selection of tea sandwiches (cucumber with herb butter, turkey with dried cranberry, tuna with apple, sundried tomato cream, and smoked salmon with dill cream) along with mini cupcakes on a tiered cake stand. Even the list of beers on tap (which includes Dogfish Head) rests within a little white Victorian frame.  The husband-and-wife proprietors, Daniel and Jessica Becker call their café/teahouse/bar/restaurant a “snuggery.” And thanks to Jessica Becker’s elegant design, it works — whether you sit at their Parisian marble tables or a few chairs by the fire or some stools along the bar.

A carrot cupcake.

Since we had already eaten (delicious) Cambodian soup at Angkor across the street, we had to save the savory dishes for another day. Instead we ordered a few cupcakes to try — Carrot, Peanut Butter Chocolate Truffle, and Date-Nut Spice, along with some teas, a “drinking chocolate” for Madeline, and an espresso for Geoff. The soft cakes pack some rich flavor and come in both mini and regular sizes.

Although The Duck & Bunny only opened five weeks ago, nearly every seat was filled when we arrived. The earnest waitstaff struggled to keep up with the clearly unexpected demand, but they had a sense of humor about it — and I’m certainly willing to give them a few extra weeks to smooth out the service. Especially since I need to try those tea sandwiches…

Duck & Bunny
312 Wickenden Street
Providence, RI
www.theduckandbunny.com

A tea service steeps behind the almond poundcakes.

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Juniper Frozen Yogurt

July 2014 Update:I am sad to report that Juniper has closed.

Pure white — you can’t beat a small original with nothing on it.

No, it’s not Pinkberry. Still, Juniper Frozen Yogurt whips up some tasty, tangy frozen yogurt in two flavors — original and blueberry — satisfying that urge (which I seem to get quite often) for soft serve. (See my related obsession with Frosty Freez).

Madeline likes it. Although, to be fair, she’s not very picky.

If you somehow missed the tangy frozen yogurt craze, I do believe you are missing out. Obviously, I consider myself an expert having tried Pinkberry, Red Mango, and any imitators. If you don’t believe me, see Madeline and me pictured at BoYo’s debut last year in The Boston Globe (photo number three). Long gone are the days when frozen yogurt tries to guise as ice cream; now it embraces its tartness.

As for Juniper, I do wish they’d alternate flavors the way Boston’s Berryline does since I’ve long since tired of their blueberry. But I’m content enough with a small original with no toppings to keep coming back. And with it being organic and nonfat, it’s guilt-free, as long as you don’t mind the damage to your wallet once you’re addicted.

Juniper Frozen Yogurt
229 Thayer Street
Providence, RI

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Delekta Pharmacy’s Coffee Cabinet

The interior of Delekta is a throwback to an old-time pharmacy.

After rediscovering KidoInfo’s list of 100 Things to Do with Your Kids in RI, we honed in on what appeared to be the most urgent, number 90: Order a cabinet at Delekta Pharmacy in Warren.

The coffee cabinet -- it tastes even better than it looks.

I wasn’t even sure what a cabinet was, but I knew a coffee cabinet comprised of some combination of sugar, dairy and coffee, which was enough to convince me of its worthiness. So upon arrival, Geoff and I requested a coffee cabinet each while ordering a chocolate chip ice cream cone for Madeline, the latter clearly a mistake since the cabinet was far superior and Madeline is no fool. As for the cabinet, it was a hit all around — wonderful coffee flavor without the bitterness, perfectly smooth and sweet, and thicker than milk but thinner than most shakes.

Since I noticed their menu also listed milk shakes, I decided to ask an employee: exactly how is a coffee cabinet different than a coffee milk shake? She explained that to Rhode Islanders a “milk shake” is just that: milk (with syrup) shaken. But a cabinet is what everyone outside RI actually calls a milk shake — ice cream and syrup, shaken. The coffee syrup used in their cabinets is an old-world family recipe made fresh daily by the owner himself. No wonder it’s so tasty.

Delekta Pharmacy
496 Main Street
Warren, RI, 02885
(no website but they have a Facebook page)

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Kafe’ Lila

Kafe' Lila's entrance in the Grant Building lets you

When you call your ice cream “Really Good Vanilla,” you’d better mean it. Luckily at Kafe’ Lila, they do. I first discovered their small batch, homemade ice cream at the weekly Winter Farmers’ Market (and yes, ice cream in the winter makes perfect sense to me). Their Bittersweet Chocolate is absolute perfection — rich, dark, smooth and creamy. They have a variety of fruit flavors like Local Plum, Local Peach and Local Blueberry — all made (obviously) with local fruit. They also have a flavor sweetened solely with honey (quite good) and a variety of vegan flavors (never tried them).

It actually is "Really Good Vanilla."

I decided to go check out their Pawtucket ‘headquarters’ last week and found they have a wonderfully charming little café — the well-worn chairs and retro coffee tables create a warm atmosphere and fit in well with the rough-around-the-edges atmosphere of downtown Pawtucket (a.k.a. Downbucket).

For people not obsessed with ice cream, they also sell coffee, teas and a variety of sandwiches, salads and pastries.

Kafe’ Lila
The Grant Building
250 Main Street
Pawtucket, RI
www.kafelila.org

Their ice cream is also available at other locations. See their list for details.