Pastry Market @ Logan Square Kitchen

Saturday morning, we met up with Jake and headed out to an early breakfast at Lula Cafe. Afterwards, we walked down Milwaukee to Logan Square Kitchen to attend their weekend pastry market. Having been to a few of these before, we were excited to attend.

Outside LSK.

Immediately on entering, we were greeted with a plate of chocolate. First, we were given something called “kitchen sink” because it had so much stuff in it. We were told it was gluten-free, but there ended up being a bit of pretzel in it (not a huge problem for me and Liz, but Jake is allergic). I will say though that the “kitchen sink” was delicious.

This was some kind of chocolate nougat offering. I held off and wanted to concentrate on photos, but believe me – it was hard refusing.

Boxes of chocolate on sale.

A delicious looking assortment. All of the above images are from Mayana Chocolate.

A small tree full of macarons!

Colorful and delicious looking assortment of macarons from Sweet Spot Macarons. Liz ended up getting us 10 of these guys and I can vouch – they’re really good.

Sweet Spot actually is also a food truck, meaning they’ll drive around Chicago and sell their wares on the street. You can keep an eye on them by following their Twitter account, as they post their truck locations frequently.

A lovely, autumnal table from Celestial Kitchens.

Oak Leaves – made with butternut squash, mushrooms and goat cheese.

Apple Dumplings.

Confession: I was really fixated on taking photos, and held off from buying a lot of pastries. In hindsight, I’m totally kicking myself for not getting these guys. They looked incredible!

An assortment of scones. I can’t recall specifically which ones these were, but Celestial Kitchens creates the following flavors: gorgonzola-pear, fennel, walnut and golden raisin, bacon-cheddar, apricot and cranberry-orange.

A view of the space, looking towards Milwaukee Ave.

We had an early start, and noted the bar wasn’t open until noon. There were to be two bartenders, one from Longman & Eagle (they get around) and one from Lula Cafe.

I think Katherine Anne Confections has been at all the previous pastry markets. This is the designer nerd in me, but they have awesome packaging and their business cards are slick. I’m a sucker for good font ligatures.

Free samples: honey vanilla caramel, grapefruit truffle and pomegranate truffle.

Lots of great stuff on display from Bot Bakery (website, Facebook). All their stuff has local ingredients, and is organic, vegan and gluten-free.

Kuri Squash Cinnamon Rolls with Cranberry Orange Icing.

Blueberry Brownies.

Pomegranate Cheesecake. I was really tempted by these, but ended up getting some brownies on my way out.

I first saw Puffs of Doom at the Vintage Bazaar in September, at the Congress.

I believe they’re also doing a food truck (or bike), so make sure to follow them on Twitter for updates.

Earl Grey and Pumpkin Ginger Snap cream puffs.

Assortment of puffs.

Some patrons, sipping coffee and eating pastries in the corner.

Some lovely looking pies from First Slice.

Michigan Sour Cherry Hand Pies.

In looking up their information, First Slice looks like a really impressive program. Take a few minutes to look over their brochure and learn a little more about what they do.

Some savory and sweet samples from Salted Caramel.

I love the packaging and typography – Bacon Bourbon Caramel Corn.

Salted Bourbon Caramels.

It was a little tough to see the actual products, but once I paused and looked – I was in awe of some of their flavors/products. They definitely have a good designer working for them.

In the kitchen area, where a few more vendors were set up.

Lots of samples from Rare Bird Preserves.

A collection of six preserves for $45.

You can learn more about Rare Bird on their website.

Some Raspberry Corn Muffins from Fritz Pastry.

//Edit: Ok, wow. It looks like they have a new website, and though there are only a few posts… there are several videos and what looks like step-by-step directions for how to make an apple tart. If they keep up with this, it’s going to be a killer blog!

The last few times I’ve been here, Fritz Pastry has been set up near the back. I’m starting to think of this as “their spot.”

Some amazing looking Parmesan Croissants. Which they make from scratch.

Ricotta Beignets. Liz got a small batch of these, and they literally melted in my mouth – crispy exterior, and a soft middle. Absolutely amazing.

A view of the kitchen area, looking out towards the main room.

A few patrons, looking over Ipsento Coffee.

Jo Snow Syrups.

I believe that one of the drinks made at the bar used Jo Snow Cola #6 Syrup.

There are several recipes available on their website, including: cocktails, savories and sweets.

In the middle of the table, there were two machines serving up fresh cups of Ipsento Coffee. I asked to step behind the counter, and was waved in so I could take some more photos.

The guy that gave me his card was actually not from Ipsento, but rather from Trifecta.

Coffee is almost always served back here in the kitchen, and it’s usually prepared in an interesting way.

Axel and Ariel from De La Rue Pastisserie.

A lot of fantastic looking bagels.

Very tempting croissants.

I ended up walking back and getting one of the danishes. Axel tried to give me one for free, but I insisted on paying. He only charged me $1, and I’m fairly convinced he undercharged me because he saw me taking photos.

I can say objectively that this was a damn fine danish, and definitely worth well more than $1.

Wedge Pies. I overheard one of the bakers (on the left) talking about how she very recently made the pie sign, so I felt like I needed to photograph it.

Some great looking banana cream and apple cranberry pies.

If you missed out on the Pastry Market, no worries – you place an order with Wedge Pies and they’ll deliver to your door! Check out their website for more details.

Related:
Pastry Market At Logan Square Kitchen, 2011
Logan Square Kitchen: Halloween Pastry Market