{"id":42651,"date":"2016-10-03T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-10-03T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mellzah.com\/?p=42651"},"modified":"2019-06-20T20:52:31","modified_gmt":"2019-06-21T03:52:31","slug":"im-just-a-sweet-chimney-cake-from-traditional-transylvania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mellzah.com\/index.php\/im-just-a-sweet-chimney-cake-from-traditional-transylvania\/","title":{"rendered":"I’m just a sweet chimney cake…from traditional Transylvania"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve done precisely zero research on the matter, but it is my understanding that Transylvania has two main exports: vampires and chimney cakes. I never drink…wine<\/a>. But I do eat cake. Maybe too much cake, but that’s really neither here nor there. So when I happened across a Vancouver bakery specializing in Romanian pastries, including the aforementioned chimney cake (or k<\/em>\u00fcrt\u0151skal\u00e1cs<\/em>), I knew I definitely wanted to incorporate it into my next visit to British Columbia, as a trip to Romania proper is a bit more involved than taking an afternoon jaunt across the border. A chimney cake is made of yeast dough which is wrapped in a spiral around a wooden dowel and baked, similarly to meat on a spit. As it rotates, it’s basted with butter until the sugary outside caramelizes into thin, golden, crackle-y perfection, which can be further augmented by rolling it in other toppings like chopped nuts. When it’s served hot, steam vents out the top like a little chimney and it’s charming as all get out.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are two (one, two, ah ha ha ha<\/a>) bakeries in Vancouver that make chimney cakes: Transylvanian Traditions, and The K\u00fcrt\u0151<\/span>sh Cafe. Of course, I had to go to both. First up was Transylvanian Traditions. Transylvanian Traditions makes a variety of pastries including the chimney cake, and the chimney cake is offered in only one flavor.\u00a0 When I arrived, I got one hot and fresh from the oven, steam merrily venting from the top. The cake is a revelation–soft and chewy toward the center, crisp on the outside, tangy with lemon, and light like a raised doughnut.<\/p>\n