Frozen yogurt changed into the start of the “create your own dessert” fashion, in which customers ought to cross into stores, dispense hefty servings of bloodless stuff into tubs and pinnacle it with any toppings they favored. Then the trend slowly faded, as anybody realized they’d rather simply down a pint of ice cream instead.
So while Memoz Dessert Cafe opened earlier this 12 months, promising clients the danger of building their very own dessert, it changed into truthful to be skeptical. But upon entering the purple-accented, 28-seat cafe, it will become clear this is a much specific revel in. The brainchild of Seattle local Aaron Allina and his spouse, Julie, Memoz, would not emit the homogenous atmosphere of reputedly each other eatery promising a custom-designed revel in. Instead, the distance has a fascinating intimacy and, on our go-to, became full of households eagerly indulging in goodies or ready patiently for their creations over a recreation of Uno.
The customizations begin with the aid of deciding on from a ramification of cookies or pastries, lots of that are gluten-loose or vegan and took handiest mins to bake. From there, tablespoons’ really worth of blend-ins are introduced from a list of over forty options that encompass mint chips, caramel bits, blue cheese, black pepper, and candy corn. Finally, you may finish off your customized concoction with Baked Alaska, ganache, or flat icing at an extra fee. It’s an amusing technique. But getting it proper takes some experimenting. We determined to whip up three strange combinations, to look if we could come across Portland’s subsequent great dessert.
Dessert 1: The Tamale Boy from Bedrock
The first dessert started as a raw scoop of what turned into destined to grow to be a peanut butter oat cookie. It becomes ferried down the counter to the subsequent phase of the operation, where blend-ins are selected. These included M&M’s, Fruity Pebbles, smoked almonds, and Hot Tamale candies, which had been rolled into the dough, forming a vibrant mass that made its way to the oven. After taking the simplest mins to bake, ice cream was brought to the toasted cookie and caramel drizzle made for the final contact, if only because it got here at no similar price.
The Fruity Pebbles had grown tender and chewy in the oven’s warmness, and the M&Ms dissolved to form a sticky confection among the ice cream. Although a contentious choice inside the moment, the Hot Tamales complemented the sweet shape using adding the slightest hint of spice to each chunk. Structurally, the smoked almonds gave the cookie a reassuring basis that ensured it wouldn’t melt into a soggy heap.
Dessert 2: Sarah Palin’s Chocolate Explosion
The second dessert changed into crafted with more foresight, combining M&Ms and peanut butter chips with brownie batter. Poured in a mold and located inside the oven, it became then crowned with Baked Alaska, Memoz’s most popular topping, if simplest because of its ‘Gram-worthy appearance put up-blowtorch.
Unlike the cookie earlier than it, the brownie held its shape and proved to be densely wealthy with chocolate, simply as our servers predicted. A classic dessert of the Gilded Age in its own proper, the Baked Alaska dollop changed into a dessert in itself. The brownie disappeared in a flash.
Dessert 3: The Ice Cream Uni-Corn
Our very last introduction consisted of cinnamon-and-sugar pull-aside bread. Contained inside the bread become an aggregate of sweet corn, black pepper, orange slices, and peaches, and it changed into crowned with vanilla ice cream from local Heartbreaker Neighborhood Kitchen and a coating of coarse sea salt. The combination of orange slices and peaches made for a saccharine taste equally matched by way of the corn and ice cream, while black pepper stood out as a fragrant attribute. The atypical union of flavors proved that, at Memoz, you could not pass incorrect irrespective of what you pick out.
