One of the trendiest new pastries makes an appearance in our very own caf!
After reading the title, some of you may be asking what exactly is a cronut? I asked the same thing when I first heard about it on the USF campus. A cronut is a new type of pastry that uses dough similar to that of a croissant, but is fried and glazed the same way as a donut. Basically it is a delicious fusion of two classic pastries. Depending on where you go, multiple flavors of glazes are available and sometimes fillings such as custard or jelly.
Chef Dominique Ansel of New York’s Dominique Ansel Bakery is the creator of the cronut. Since its debut in May of this year the cronut has been desired worldwide. The Dominique Ansel Bakery trademarked the idea of the cronut and ever since word got out dupes of the hybrid pastry have been popping up around the world in places like Berlin, Australia, Los Angeles and now right here at USF!
After doing a little research about what exactly cronuts are and hearing about them multiple times around campus, I obviously had to try one for myself. The Market Café on campus has several different types of cronuts to choose from. A few that I spotted were cinnamon and sugar, mixed berry glazed, plain glazed, and maple glazed with bacon bits. I opted for the maple glazed with bacon bits and was not disappointed. The sweetness of the maple glaze along with the saltiness of the bacon bits was the perfect combination. When I took my first bite, I was surprised to find that the consistency was more comparable to that of a croissant, but with the classic taste of a donut. It was a pleasant surprise and I will definitely be back to try all the other flavors.
The cronut really is what it claims to be: half donut, half croissant and delicious. It looks just like a donut but when you bite into it you can see the multiple, thin layers of dough inspired by the croissant. If you love donuts or croissants I guarantee you will like the combination of the two. So next time you are struggling to pick between a croissant or a donut for breakfast in the caf, do not stress, just get a cronut.
