Hybrid pastries are still holding the spotlight thanks to the Age of the Cronut, and some certainly work better than others (sorry, “cruffins”). One we’re looking forward to sinking a sweet tooth into: the king cake-kolache, available this weekend (through February 6) from pop-up Kolache Saturdays at American Ice Co.
Part Texan tradition, part Mardi Gras celebration, the personal-size pastry is a collaboration between Brian Stanford and Chris Svetlik of Republic Kolache and Bayou Bakery chef David Guas. Fluffly kolache dough is folded around Guas’s cream cheese-cinnamon king cake filling, and topped with festive tricolor sprinkles. The treats go for $3.50 each, unless you’re lucky enough to find a king cake baby hiding inside, which you can trade in for a free “kinglache” during the pop-up from 10 am to 1 pm.
Anyone looking for a party-size king cake can order Guas’s specialty dessert from the Bayou Bakery Mardi Gras headquarters, where the classic round feeds 12 to 14 (orders must be placed by February 6).
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
