When you want to pamper your palate for breakfast – something sugary will do the trick. Satisfy your sweet tooth with everything from portable to-go breakfasts to elaborate brunch buffets. Doughnuts, pastries, pancakes, crepes, French toast, fruit or a syrup-laced coffee will have you charged for the day. These Plymouth breakfast treats make for sweet beginnings.
CARDAMOM ROLLS
Creekside Café
Want to sweeten up your Sunday brunch? Cardamom rolls are sweet, but not too much. A spicy scent fills your nose. Cardamom rolls are delicious on their own, no butter required. A tender, yeasty fluff hides beneath a more toothsome sugar-glazed crust. Pair with some strong coffee for a real Nordic delight. In Sweden, these special buns are a traditional snack. “Swedish people really love their cardamom rolls. They even have a day, a cardamom roll day,” says head baker Jennifer Olsby. The good news is you can enjoy them right here in Plymouth. Freshly made from scratch, delicate cardamom rolls are a treasure any day. The rolls are part of the restaurant’s buffet, $14.95-$12.95.
NUTELLA STRAWBERRY CREPE
Crêpe and Cake
Take a drizzle of chocolate, a mash of strawberries and a fresh cooked crêpe, and you have a festive breakfast. A large handmade crêpe with Nutella and strawberries has a genuine French accent. Bright sprinkles decorate artistic folds of lightly browned dough. It’s much more than a pancake. The Plymouth-based food truck Crêpe and Cake offers a true taste of France. Owner Florence Aymard has a passion for the cuisine of her family’s native Brittany. It was there that Aymard learned to create proper crêpes from her grandmother. Experience the delight a tender Old World-style crêpe bestows. “It’s not just for the mouth, it’s for the eyes, for the smell, for all the senses,” Aymard explains. $5. Varying locations, including Life Time Fitness Plymouth, farmers markets and special events.
VANILLA ICED NIRVANA
Dunn Brothers Coffee
Coffee marks the beginning of a new day for many a tired and weary soul. Low acid, slow-brewed Infinite Black Cold Press coffee transforms into a chilled beverage as smooth as a carefree morn. A spoonful of flavored sugar syrup and splash of half and half makes it even better. Nirvana’s cold pressed coffee has a boost of caffeine and sugar plus a great vanilla taste. However, you are not limited to vanilla since 27 other syrups and different milk options (skim, two percent, soy, almond) give you loads of options–perhaps more than you want to ponder during the early hours of the day. $3-$5.
CIABATTA FRENCH TOAST
Jake’s City Grille
Artisan-quality ciabatta makes French toast worthy of a Sunday brunch. “The ciabatta bread itself is part of the reason for the success,” says sous chef Nick Ruyter. Airy ciabatta bread, the same used for sandwiches, eagerly absorbs rich egg custard. A quick fry sears a soft, sponge center sealing in a tinge of orange. A dusting of powdered sugar adds to the charm. Douse with maple syrup for more morning sugar. Luckily, with the buffet you can always go back for seconds. $17.99 adults, $8.95 children.
HONEYCRISP APPLES
Cub Foods
An apple a day keeps hunger at bay in a healthy way, so why not have fruit for breakfast? Make it a Honeycrisp for an extra sweet fruit starter. During September, local Honeycrisp apples are in prime season. This much acclaimed fruit does Minnesota proud: The University of Minnesota cultivated Honeycrisp apples. Even with the namesake label, not all apples are the same. The apples featured at Cub Foods are of the premium variety, generally the prettiest in appearance and with the best flavor. The red peel sports a characteristic yellow-green speckle. Extremely sweet yet tart with a juicy pulp, Honeycrisp is an ideal eating apple and the most popular variety today. Pricing varies during the season averaging $2.99 - $ 3.99 pound.
(September means Honeycrisp apples from Cub Foods.)
APPLE PANCAKE
The Original Pancake House
A whiff of cinnamon will entice you and the perfume of fresh baked apples proves irresistible. Big-sized and big-flavored, the apple pancake generates stares in the dining room. No plate can contain the lavishness of this German-style super sweet egg puff. Caramelized apples ooze with fruit juiciness and drips of thick sticky sugar glaze. The sugar level almost pushes the apple pancake into the dessert category and the addition of vanilla ice cream certainly does. “For people in the know, a secret is to add ice cream,” says owner Mark Hunter. Why not have your breakfast a la mode? $10. 95, ice cream or whipped cream, $1.50.
GIANT DOUGHNUT HOLES
Valley Pastries
Delicious doughnuts come with a smile and “good morning” at Valley Pastries. Among the 32 varieties of doughnuts, the doughnut holes place as a perennial favorite. Raised doughnut holes are an ideal grab-and-go breakfast. These racquetball-sized doughnut holes go down like popcorn. It’s easy to eat one, and another, and another until they are all gone. The doughnut holes often sell out before closing time. “People might not want a whole doughnut, but they will end up eating more than one doughnut hole,” says owner Michael Getty. The light moist crumb fades in your mouth but the smack of the sugary glaze lingers. A whisper of lemon sets off the subtle flavor of the fried dough. 60 cents each, $7.20 dozen.
BELLINI COCKTAILS
Rock Elm Tavern
Cheers to something sweet and spirited in the morning. Enter the light, refreshing, festive Bellini cocktail. What better way to cleanse your palate during a leisurely meal? This cleverly curious concoction is a steal at only $5 during Rock Elm’s weekend brunch. Take your pick from classic peach, ginger blueberry, lemony French 75, raspberry-dubbed razz, sangria (with red wine) or pomegranate cherry. Real fruit puree enlivens the champagne cocktail with freshness at no loss to bubbles. Your brunch experience will be all the better with a bellini in hand.
