“It’s like a, ummm, a…well, you know, it’s not ‘Twinkie’ sweet.”
As an American, I measure the sweetness of all things, well, sweet, to that of the Twinkie. It’s not to judge or compare. Oh no, not even close. It’s just that the Twinkie is by far the most disgustingly sweet thing I’ve ever tasted. I’m almost positive that eating even one Twinkie will send me into a diabetic coma….And I don’t even have diabetes. If a person were to think of something grotesquely sweet, they’d think fondly of the Twinkie. The Twinkie goes beyond setting the bar for sweet. It’s in its own realm; a realm which, frankly, I’m glad only has the Twinkie. I’d like to think that when pastry chefs around the world make their delicious desserts, they think: “ok, so the Twinkie….let’s not do that.” So, world, on behalf of America, you’re welcome. For the inspiration. Or the de-inspiration, whatever you want to call it.
We were at the Alexandra Bookstore in Budapest, on a day when the sun finally decided to give it a rest. It rained, instead. The rain was welcome, though, as August proved to be quite the scorcher month in Europe. The Alexandria Bookstore has a cafe at the top. A Hungarian friend suggested the cafe and lawd knows I won’t pass up desserts, especially when those desserts are our breakfast, lunch, or dinner. You’re probably wondering: “well, which one was it?” Who cares, I’m addicted to sugar. Meals just tend to run together.
The bookstore’s cafe is amazing. The ceiling is beautiful and there’s a certain vibe in the cafe that made us not want to leave. If it hadn’t been for the fact that we were on a mission to feed some ducks at the city park, we would have sat there for a few hours to take it all in. But, someone has to feed those ducks (yes, they are going to feed themselves, but ducks are cute, so…).
toffee cake. Nom nom nom A tart. The hot cocoa whip cream in question.Frank ordered a Toffiffee: a slice of toffee cake. I opted for a fruit basket, which is basically a tart. We also ordered a hot chocolate, which was not the typical hot chocolate we’re used to in the States. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s a little more similar to that Abuelita hot chocolate they sell at the Mexican market, it’s made with richer ingredients, like fat (mmmm… Fat!) and possibly something other than cow’s milk. Frank settled for a cappuccino. It was strong, as in “HEY! This is coffee!!” and very unlike the Le Moet cappuccino experience we had in Vienna.
Now here’s where the “Twinkie” part comes in to play. The whip cream atop the hot cocoa was not sweet. I even went as far as to draw a diagram to show my husband just how not sweet the hot chocolate was. So, I said it: “it’s like a, ummm, a…well, you know, it’s not ‘Twinkie’ sweet.”
A diagram of sweets, as illustrated by a number line.“So, it’s still very sweet?” Frank asked.
“No, not at all.” And this whole conversation got me thinking: holy cow, desserts are extremely sweet in the States. For some reason, I thought an extreme sweet taste was the norm for desserts, until my husband introduced me to a Taiwanese candy many years ago that was neither sweet nor sugary, but was still classified as a candy. That was my first taste of the difference in sweets. It made me much more appreciative of the candy and dessert-making process. Sweets are meant to be savored, not cavity-inducing. And all this traveling has just ruined the Twinkie for me. That’s probably a good thing.
Now it’s Your Turn
The Alexandra Book Store is located at Andrassy ut 39, Budapest 1061, Hungary. The ceiling is immaculate. Despite my hang-ups with the Twinkie, I couldn’t help but stop and stare at that ceiling, which is decorated in gold. Try the fruit tart. The bathroom costs money to use.
Do you like the Twinkie? How do you enjoy sweets on your travels?
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