Pastry Road Trip: Wisconsin-Style Black and White Cookies at Ella's Deli, Madison WI

When I recently passed through Madison, Wisconsin, I hadn't intended on stopping by Ella's Deli. Full disclosure? I didn't even know it existed.

But the moment I drove by and witnessed its awesomeness firsthand--there's a carousel outside, for crying out loud--wild horses couldn't have kept me away.

Advertised as Madison's "finest and first deli", this eatery serves up sandwiches and diner-style fare, but I zeroed right in on the bakery case. Their dessert menu is ice cream-heavy, with all sorts of delectable shakes, sundaes--including grilled pound cake sundaes. But something decidedly more modest intrigued me: the black and white cookie in their bakery case.

Now, this cookie may look like the New York-area style cookie, but it is actually quite different. Where the kind I grew up with in New Jersey were soft, cakey drop cookies with a fondant-type icing, Ella's version appears to be a rolled butter cookie, very dense and topped with a light vanilla and chocolate icing. But I am not stating this difference as a complaint: while it may not be the same type of black and white cookie as the ones in the NY metro area, it is certainly a delicious version. The cookie was crunchy on the outside, slightly chewy on the inside, and with the sweetness of the frosting on top, a completely decadent treat. After devouring it, I found that I didn't have an appetite for "real" lunch--and I didn't care.

Ella's Deli was a serendipitous find indeed, leading me not only to sing the praises of Madison, but also to lead to perhaps the most perplexing question of all: why don't more eateries have carousels outside? Surely we could all use a side of magic with our meal more often.

Ella's Deli, 2902 East Washington Ave., Madison, WI (608) 241-5291; online at ellasdeli.com.

Pastry Road Trip: Serious Sweetness at The Cookie Jar, Sioux Falls SD

CakeSpy Note: This month I drove to and from Chicago on a Pastry Road Trip: here's the beginning of several installments detailing the deliciousness I discovered!

I am officially in love with The Cookie Jar in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Why?

It starts, of course, with the decor, which is a strange sort of retro 50's diner look--but I got the distinct impression that this was not executed ironically. It makes the space seem as if it's been there for a very long time--though according to their site, they've only been open since 2002.

But the rest of this love story is all about the sweetness. You can tell right away when you approach the bakery case that this place means business. They have row after row of fat, dense cookies in a variety of flavors, some sandwiched with a generous dollop of frosting; their case also dedicates a notable amount of space to decadent bars, including Seven Layer bars, pumpkin bars, enormous brownies, and Special K bars.

The CakeSpy selections included a chocolate creme sandwich cookie, a Special K bar and an apple-raisin sour cream bar.

The cookie sandwich was rich, with pillowy cookies studded with chocolate chips and a frosting which tasted vaguely like Oreo filling; it was clear immediately that while this was not a refined or sophisticated dessert, it was nonetheless a deeply satisfying, extremely nostalgic treat.

The Special K Bar (which, as I learned, is quite common in Midwestern bakeries) was bar none (get it?) the best one sampled on this trip, rich and chewy and peanut buttery--it even inspired me to try out my own version at home, which I wrote about on Serious Eats!

The sour cream bar, which Mr. CakeSpy tried, was decadent, with the sweet fruit nicely complemented by the tangy sour cream in the filling, with a nice added texture and flavor contrast from a crispy oaty topping.

Now, I hope I'm not coming off as overly dramatic, but I feel as if it is my public duty to tell you that if you happen to find yourself in Sioux Falls, you must visit The Cookie Jar. But don't just take my word for it: Roadfood loves it too!

The Cookie Jar, 125 West 10th St., Sioux Falls, (605) 978-0991; online at cookiejarsd.com.

Pastry Road Trip: Deliciously Dense Donuts at Wall Drug, South Dakota

CakeSpy Note: This month I drove to and from Chicago on a Pastry Road Trip: here's the beginning of several installments detailing the deliciousness I discovered!

Wall Drug is a tourist trap of epic proportions: you've barely entered South Dakota when you start to see billboards proclaiming "Wall Drug--Only 500 Miles!". From that point on, every few miles you'll see another Wall Drug sign or billboard, some advertising products or services, some simply updating you on how much closer you are.

By the time you've actually reached Wall, South Dakota, you'll be so curious that you've basically got to stop.

Of course, I had a reason beyond mere curiosity: I had heard the donuts were fantastic.

I pulled into Wall at about 5 p.m. and unfortunately the "Donut Factory" section of Wall Drug had already closed for the day, but there were still fresh donuts (and ice cream and cookies too) available in their cafe. I picked up two cake donuts: maple frosted and vanilla frosted.

I offered to share with some of the little critters nearby, but it seemed they had no stomach for donuts.

How to describe these donuts? They were extremely dense--none of that light-as-air business here. The cake was very moist and pleasingly greasy, but tastefully so--it didn't leave an oily slick in your mouth. The frosting was rich and flavorful--the maple had a deep, earthy-sweet flavor and the vanilla was surprisingly thick and rich--and it was soft and held together beautifully (nothing is worse, to me, than donut frostings that are hard and flake off!). To put it in a nutshell, these donuts tasted very old school. In a good way.

Wall Drug, 510 Main Street, Wall, SD; 605-279-2175. Online at walldrug.com.

Bonus! Though I couldn't find their donut recipe, the Food Network does have a pie recipe donated by Wall Drug; check it out here!

Pastry Road Trip: Blissful Huckleberry Bars from a Rest Stop in Montana

CakeSpy Note: This month I drove to and from Chicago on a Pastry Road Trip: here's the beginning of several installments detailing the deliciousness I discovered!

A highway rest area isn't generally a spot where one can expect to find delicious baked goods--which made it just that much more delightful to discover these homemade fresh huckleberry crumb bars at a gift shop/rest area off of Interstate 90 in St. Regis, Montana.

The rest area, which was a series of shops connected to the Talking Bird Saloon, had a small bakery case with a selection of cookies and bars which came from wholesalers--but they also had a small section of housemade goods featuring Montana huckleberries (which are serious business in Big Sky Country), including pies and bar cookies.

And I zeroed right in on that Huckleberry Bar.

This bar had the odds stacked in its favor from the beginning, what with the joy of discovery as well as the fact that it was a lot of bar (it must have weighed half a pound--no, really) for a little ($1.95!) investment, and happily it did not disappoint. Exceedingly rich, it had a pleasing moistness which was tempered by a subtle crunch from the crumb topping; the added glaze on the top acted as a pefect foil to the oh-so-slightly tart fruit filling. Of course, if bars aren't your thing, they also had generous homemade huckleberry pie slices for $4.50 each, or entire pies for $25.

This was a delicious find indeed--if you find yourself in the area, why not make it a sweet stop on your journey? 

The St. Regis rest area can be found just off of I-90 exit #33 in Montana; the bakery case is in the retail area next to the Talking Bird Saloon.