Day 31: Brandy Alexander

A Brandy Alexander is a boooozy drink. I would say it's 75% Brandy, 20% Cognac and 4% cream and 1% nutmeg. That's 100, right? It's apparently an after-dinner drink, and that makes sense because it tastes creamy and sweet. It's not overly sweet, though, and I can appreciate that, because sweet drinks are usually gross. How did Alex like the fair Brandy Alexander?

Pungent is quite accurate. The strong Brandy flavor cuts through the nutmeg and cream, punching you in the face whether you like it or not. It's also quite deceptive. I'm not even halfway done with the drink and I am already tipsy. Wowzers!

Yes, that's an Elvis pinball machine in the background. I wonder if he likes Brandy Alexanders?

Day 30: Croissant

I rarely eat croissants. In fact, I can't even spell croissants. I've been copy/pasting the word in here every time. I'm not kidding. If I was left to my own devises, I probably would have picked up some Pillsbury croissants. It would also be quite likely that I'd wrap it around a hot dog. I'm not living in the 1980's though, so I did an internet search for the best croissants in Portland. I ran across an article in the Willamette Weekly that did all the leg work for me. They stated that the best croissant overall is at Little T's. This was great since it's a block away from my normal bike route home.
What's less great is that when I got there, they were out of croissants. So I headed home to come up with a new plan. I decided to see how far away the #2 croissant place was: Alder Pastry and Dessert.  A bit of a bike ride and with closer inspection I found that the place had closed. Well that's what you get for being number two! It's at this point I decided to screw the list and just find any bakery nearby that had croissants. The most convenient place seemed to be Grand Central Baking Co. I decided to call ahead this time and see if they were in stock. They were, and oddly enough they took my order over the phone. I was a little worried they might deliver.  I said I'd be there in 15 minutes and I headed out the door. On my way to the new bakery I had to pass by the old bakery. I had half a mind to shake my fist at them.
I finally got my croissant.

It was everything I would expect a croissant to be: Crispy and flaky on the outside while soft and chewy on the inside all with a light buttery flavor. Quite tasty! I'm not really sure how Little T's could have been much better. I ate the croissant outside the shop since I didn't bring a bag and I didn't feel like riding and eating.

I should have gotten a second one. Oooh... or gotten one with cream cheese frosting! They don't make that, I'm just craving a Toaster Strudel now.

Okay, that kid is going to kill me someday. I think I'll stick with just the croissant for now.

Day 29: Corn Chips

Here's a great way to eat corn chips (Fritos), courtesy of my former Professor at U of O, Melissa Hart:
Warm up with an irreverant song or two, then dump a can of chili con carne into a saucepan over medium-high heat.  Grate the cheese of your choice–busy actors buy cheddar already shredded.
Open a small can of chopped black olives.  If you’ve saved enough money for your relocation to Hollywood, consider springing for a sprig of cilantro or an avocado.
Cut open a snack-size packet of Fritos along one long edge.  Cup the “boat” in one hand along with your dreams, impossible or otherwise.
Ladle the chili over corn chips, then sprinkle with cheese and olives, diced green onions, cilantro and/or avocado, and attitude.  Grab a fork, and own your Frito Boat.  Style is everything.

The Frito Boat, while delicious, is somewhat of a hazard. The chili makes the bag INCREDIBLY hot, so be careful if you try this recipe. The recipe comes from Melissa's autobiography/memoir, Gringa, which I totally recommend.

Alex was uncertain, but now he is eating his third one. Success!

Day 28: Blueberry Pancake

This is the first food I've done before I've even gotten to work. I made about 3 pancakes and it was a little annoying.

I was getting very impatient with them. Maybe it was the blueberries in them, but I felt like it took forever for them to cook. Then again, maybe it was the fact that I was in a hurry this time instead of casually watching TV. As for the taste, they were okay. I've never been a big fan of fruited pancakes. It puts way too much pow of flavor into every other bite. Plus, I tend to like my fruits cold or tepid rather than warm. It's a bit unsettling.  If this would have been regular pancakes and a side bowl of blueberries, it would have been much better in my opinion.

You may be asking if I always look this frazzled in the morning. I'd tell you, I have no clue. I never turn on the lights in the morning so I never see myself. So chances are I probably do.

Day 27: Chocolate Cake

What would you say to this?
A three layer chocolate buttermilk cake filled with espresso ganache, glazed with milk chocolate.

Mmmm, Papa Haydn, as always, you do not disappoint. After a French meal (Croque Monsieur and Steak Frites), we ordered the Triple Chocolate Cake. That's what we were there for, after all. Alex was pleased, to say the least.

The cake was so light and fluffy, and not too rich. The frosting was perfectly sweet. If you dipped the cake in the raspberry sauce and gave it a hit of the cream, it was magnifique. C'est si bon!

Day 26: Pistachios

We would love to recreate this scene for you, but the video will have to do, poorly spelled title and all. How can someone misspell 'naked' and then spell 'pistachios' correctly? I'll never know and it will bother me for a long time. Alex could certainly eat the amount of pistachios Leslie Nielsen appears to eat in that scene. We got a bag of Woodstock Farms Organic Dry Roasted and Salted Pistachios at, you guessed it, New Seasons Market (dot com!).

I was too slow on the draw, refusing pistachios just after we woke up. So I did not have any and now I think something's wrong with Alex.

Pistachios undergo a trait called dehiscence, which is the "splitting open along a built-in line of weakness at maturity." No pistachios for me, but at least I learned a new word.

Day 25: Irish Coffee

Hahahahahaha. This.

Irish Coffee can be delicious. The combo of Irish whiskey, coffee, sugar and whipped cream has been around since the 1940s, when Irishman Joe Sheridan added whiskey to coffee to warm American passengers of a Pan Am flying boat (!!!) on a stormy winter's evening in West Ireland.
Plus it's really fun to watch the whipped cream fall through the hot coffee and whiskey.

I think the Irish coffee probably tasted so gross to Alex because it was not properly stirred. He must have tasted mostly coffee and some whiskey, which, let's be honest, is not the most pleasant thing. I have stirred the coffee and it is warming the cockles of my heart.
Now that I'm properly schnockered (Irish coffee done!), it's time to go to my brother-in-law's birthday party. Thanks, Bill at the Clubhouse for the delicious drink.

Day 24: Peanut Butter

I occasionally have sliced apple and peanut butter as a snack. I'm not a fan of most apples. In fact it is my least favorite fruit. You might say I like my apples like I like my women, sweet and soft. I'm not even sure of the name of the apple I get. But that doesn't really matter anyway. It's not national apple day. It's national peanut butter day! I used to get the major brands. Now they taste a bit sugary. Odd, I know. Since I'm mainly eating it with apples, I don't need the extra sugar.  Of course, I still need the no stir. That other stuff is disgusting. As for my preference on smooth or crunchy, I tend to got with crunchy.

Peanut butter is also my cure for hiccups. It's never not worked. It's also a lot less hassle than holding my breath while drinking water upside-down in a haunted house.

Day 23: Rhubarb Pie

I was looking forward to this day for awhile. I love rhubarb pie! Or a rhubarb crisp. MMmmmm MMmmm! The only thing is, it's hard to find a good rhubarb pie without it being tainted by that bloody criminal the strawberry. He just needs to try and steal the show. I know that it's thrown in there to cut some of the tartness, but dammit that is what I came here for. Of course after talking to some friends and co-workers I've come to find that the initial reaction most people have to rhubarb pie is "uggugh!"  I was unaware of this widespread disgust. Normally I'd say the more for me, but I guess in this way it technically means the less for me since no one wants to make it.

So where did I get my pie, you might ask. I have my sources. Well, a source. A regular at karaoke nights saw my posts and suggested he could make me a pie. From what he's told me, this isn't his first pie give-away. Well, thank you, Ben (i.e. not brother). Thank you very much. It was De-lish!

Day 22: Blonde Brownie

 Today is Blonde Brownie Day, or Blondie Day, and I wish it were Dagwood Day (mmmm, savory sandwich). I am almost always anti-nuts in baked goods, because I think that an ooey-gooey confection shouldn't be ruined by interlopers- walnuts are the worst! Don't get me wrong, I love nuts on their own, just not in baked goods. Alex does not share this feeling. His philosophy is that sugar is as sugar does, and it's all good. So. Blonde Brownies are brown sugar- based treats that usually contain coconut, toffee, chocolate and frequently pecans and <shudder> walnuts.

We got the Blonde Brownie at New Seasons Market (dot com!), which makes them fresh every day. Considering I never look for such things, I was unaware of this fact. Alex liked it, and did not care about the nuts.

Ain't he cute?

Day 21: New England Clam Chowder

This is a dreaded day for Alex- not only does he dislike soup, he really dislikes seafood. So a steaming bowl of creamy soup littered with clams is pretty much the worst thing ever for him. On the other hand, it’s a banner day for me, because I get to have chowder on a day that’s not a Friday and also a day when I am not at the beach. Bonus!

Out of all the chowders, New England is the creamiest, thickest type, and apparently tomatoes must not be included (Maine even included a bill to the effect in its 1939 legislature). I’m glad of that, because I’ve had Manhattan clam chowder (which features a watery, tomato-based broth) and it is gross. We got our chowder from McGrath’s, purely out of convenience. The boys at the front were quite confused that I wanted to get just one bowl of chowder to go and tried to upsell me some more dinner. Not having it, boys. Just chowder.

We had to secretively eat it at the bowling alley, as there is no outside food allowed. Alex tried a bite.

And then he tried another, saying, "It's not so bad..."

Then he got a clam and it was all mine. Mine! Alex and I have a good thing going: I get all the chowder and alcohol and he gets all the sweets. I can live with that.
The McGrath's chowder was not perfect. It could have been a little bit creamier and a little bit thicker. But the potatoes were a pleasant texture and the clams were not sandy (nothing worse than a sandy, clam, amiright?). I do wish that every bowl of chowder ever was served with a dollop of butter and a sprinkle of paprika, like Mo's.That's where I first came to know and love chowder and nothing ever will quite compare.

Day 20: Granola Bars

We keep our granola bars in the glove compartment of Alex's car, mainly to revive me when I pass the point of no return of hunger. It happens more often than you think. Why, just the other night, the fated Peking Duck night, I had to run to the car and scarf a granola bar before dinner just so I wouldn't pass out (it's true!). In order to make sure we aren't eating a bunch of high fructose corn syrup and such, I usually buy Cascadian Farm Organic granola bars. Alex likes the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip flavor.

Yup. There we are in the car, eating a granola bar. A little poem to make a completely uninspiring day more interesting.

Day 19: Popcorn

!!!!!
First, this:

Popcorn is one of my top foods. I will eat it whenever, wherever, however. It's best with melted butter and plenty of salt, and sometimes nutritional yeast. For national popcorn day, Alex and I ascended on my parents' house, first because my mom has the magical popcorn pot, and second because Comcast is evil and does not want us to watch football at our apartment. Go Seahawks! Oof, a fumble already. Not looking good and we are only 10 seconds into the game. Anyway, my mother's popcorn pot is older than me and makes the absolute best stovetop popcorn EVER. We used Bob's Red Mill yellow popcorn and canola oil, then doused the batch with a stick of melted butter and generous amounts of salt.

My father had a tin of Christmas popcorn left over (notice the bag of caramel popcorn is completely gone) and Alex and I picked up a weird chocolate bar with half-popped popcorn in it from Komforte Chockolates at New Seasons Market (dot com!).
Popcorn party! Go Hawks!

Day 18: Peking Duck

As Peking Duck virgins, Alex and I were quite unsure where to go for this lauded national dish of China. An Internet search turned up a place Alex had been once for dim sum, Wong's King. It's primarily a seafood restaurant, but you wouldn't know it on this particular night, as cart after cart of Peking duck rolled out from the kitchen to the crowded dining room. All we knew about Peking duck was that it was duck- famed for crispy, thin skin served with pancakes, hoisin sauce and scallions. I've gotta say, the first permutation was...slightly unsettling.

I mean, it's the WHOLE duck, withered head and all. All I can say is I am glad we were not in charge of carving the duck. A waitress did it, quite skillfully, I must say.

Much better. But she only carved off the top layer of the duck and quickly whisked the emaciated carcass away. Alex and I looked at each other as to say 'here goes nothing,' and dug in. We expected spice, or sweetness, or something. But as we wrapped piece after piece in pancakes and added scallions and sauce, mainly all we tasted was...blah. Don't get me wrong, the skin was fantastically crispy, but the flavor of the meat was musky and, uh, not so amazing. Not gross, but not good, either. We made quite a dent in the top layer and I asked Alex what he thought happened to the rest of the duck. We settled on the idea that they used it for stock and kept eating. I got up to go to the bathroom and when I came back...

Oh. My. Stars. It was the rest of the duck and Alex was laughing. And then so was I. Because even if it was the most amazing thing in the world, how on earth are two people supposed to eat a whole duck??? And so most of the Peking duck is now in our refrigerator, and I am seriously unsure if it will be eaten as leftovers. As bad as I feel about that, I do appreciate this strange experience. Lesson learned: when going for Peking duck, bring people. Bring lots of people.

Day 17: Hot Buttered Rum

Hot Buttered Rum is gross. Let's just be honest. You don't believe me? Watch this:

After I stopped taping, Alex said "It tastes like I just ate a condom." I am not sure exactly how he knows that, but I have to agree. The butter component of the drink leaves a plasticy layer on the tongue, and nobody knows why rum is supposed to mix well with cider. It is certainly a weird combination, which apparently dates back to colonial times. Maybe they just had nothing else to drink (read:beer)

It certainly was a pretty drink.We got it at our neighborhood bar, The Gladstone Street Pub. At least there was beer to wash away the plastic residue.

Day 16: Fig Newton

Hello! I'm Mr. Fig Newton. Some say you are what you eat. Well, I am what you eat. Hahaha! I love that one.

 

Anyway. I get pretty stuffed up in that self sealing packaging. Sometimes I have to get out and stretch my figs. When I bust out, I pretend I'm and alien birthing from a man's stomach. Reeeeieieiee! Think of how cute that would be. Did you know that I'm named after Newton, Massachusetts? Yer dar' tootin' I am. Generically, I'm really called a fig roll, but that just sounds stupid. A square has an easier time rolling than me. Oh, looks like my time of sacrifice has come. See you on the other siiiiiiide!

Day 15: Strawberry Ice Cream

Considering that we still have the majority of vanilla ice cream left over from Peach Melba day, we decided to go out for our strawberry ice cream- ya know, to prevent binges and such. My boss suggested 3 local places: Cool Moon (no strawberry ice cream today), Cloud City (no answer when I called) and Salt and Straw. Now, if you know anything about me, you know I HATE waiting in lines. Which is why I avoided Salt and Straw up until now. Every time I drove/walked by the NW Portland location, all I could see was a line around the block. Boo! Thankfully, there is a cute little location near us on SE Division. We beat the rush, had many samples, and then settled on 2 scoops of Honey Balsamic Strawberry with Cracked Pepper on a freshly made waffle cone.

Alex was a wee bit leery of the unorthodox flavor combination, but he dug in like a trouper.

The ice cream was so fruity delicious that it almost tasted like a sorbet. The cracked pepper did amazingly well at bringing out the flavor of the strawberries. And the honey made it all so deliciously sweet. Okay, Salt and Straw, you lived up to your rep. But I'll still avoid you when there's a line, just on general principle.

Day 14: Hot Pastrami Sandwich

We got our Hot Pastrami Sandwiches at East Side Delicatessen on Hawthorne. I've gotta say, I have never tried a pastrami sandwich because I was afraid I wouldn't like it. Who wouldn't like this?

Smoky pastrami mingled with pepperoncinis, sauerkraut, onions, swiss cheese, thousand island dressing and juuust a touch of horseradish, nestled between 2 slices of Dave's rye bread is a splendid combination. There was a hint of sweetness to the meat, and the burn of the horseradish was a perfect complement to that.
Look inside!

Alex loves a hot pastrami, so he was in heaven. After he ate his sandwich, he finished my remaining quarter. As we drove to bowling, Alex waxed poetic on the perfect ratio of the horseradish to the rest of the sandwich. "It was just enough so that you couldn't taste the horseradish. Because horseradish tastes terrible." Ha!

Day 13: Peach Melba

Peach Melba was created in the late 1800s by French chef Auguste Escoffier for famed Australian soprano Nellie Melba. The story goes that Melba loved ice cream but wouldn't eat it for fear that it would damage her vocal chords.


Escoffier mixed ice cream with peaches and topped it with spun sugar. His reasoning was that Melba could eat the ice cream with the added ingredients because it would not be as cold. Raspberry sauce was not added to the dish until 1900, when Escoffier redid the dessert for the opening of the Carlton Hotel.
In yet another instance of a national food holiday honoring a food that is not in season, we had to get canned peaches for our melba. But the dessert was delicious.

Sadly, Alex said he could not really taste the peaches- but the storebought raspberry sauce was divine. And I'm not sure the ice cream's temperature was really affected by the other ingredients- if anything, it froze the peaches and raspberries. But I would have the dessert again. When it's PEACH SEASON.
Just so you know, Escoffier also created Melba sauce, Melba Toast and Melba Garniture in honor of soprano Nellie. That must have been some voice (check out the above video and let me know if you agree).

Day 12: Curried Chicken

It was a toss up between Indian and Thai for this one- and since we often have Thai food, we decided to opt for Indian. It was a wise decision.
We went to somewhere we've never been, Bollywood Theater in the Alberta Arts District. There was no actual theater going on there, but the decor and atmosphere was spot on. Spot. On. Right down to the stainless steel dishware and cups. And just to add a touch of Portland, the music was a fine selection of 80s jams- MJ, Milli Vanilli and gems like this:

We had the chicken curry, which came with saffron rice, sambar, dal, raita, paratha and green chutney. 

Everything, and I mean everything, was super bomb. The curry was rich and flavorful with just the right amount of make-your-nose-run spiciness. The vegetables in the sambar were tender and succulent. The dal, which I think was made of mostly chickpeas, was smooth and spicy. The raita was a perfect departure from all the spice, with little shreds of crunchy cucumber to give it texture. The green chutney went with everything but was also delicious by the spoonful. And the paratha (flatbread) was far and away better than any old naan I've tried. It was Alex's favorite part of the meal.

Let's hear it for the stewed meats!

Day 11: Milk

Milk, huh? Kinda boring. Nothing really special about it. I guess I could have gone out and picked up some goat or rat milk, but that seemed like a lot of work for just milk. I probably would have had chocolate milk today if that weren't already a completely different day.

Where'd all the milk go?

I'll probably have some cereal later today with milk, but I'll have to get cereal first. I think I'll get Cap'n Crunch with berries. Anyway, happy milk day, everyone!

Oh! Just in case you were wondering if milk really draws in cats, here's your proof.

Day 10: Bittersweet Chocolate

This day has been responsible for me having the song Bittersweet by Big Head Todd and the Monsters stuck in my head for the past few days. Not too bad, since Liz got Timber by Pitbull ft. Ke$ha stuck in there previous to that. Very odd, since 1: Liz hates most of this genre, especially Pitbull and B: I've barely heard more than 20 seconds of the song.

I make my chocolate feel sexy.

So from the minimum amount of research I did in the Internet, bittersweet chocolate is a type of dark chocolate. It has less sugar than semisweet chocolate which could probably have been determined by name alone. Liz picked up Baker's chocolate. This one happens to be 66% cacao and is pretty damn good. It was nice and crumbly. A serving size is 2 pieces and I had all 16. This is why I shouldn't be left alone with candy in my apartment.

Day 9: Apricots

"It's like a really big raisin that isn't sweet and is covered in dust- with a slight aftertaste of a plastic shower curtain." That was Alex's reaction to the dried Turkish apricots I brought home from the bulk section at New Seasons Market (dot.com!).

This is Alex's 'ewww' look.

Why would I bring home dried apricots on National Apricot Day, you ask? Because apricots are nowhere near in season in Oregon! Except in Turkey, which is the leading grower of apricots in the WORLD. Alex, let's go to Turkey and get fresh apricots, ok?

Fun fact about apricots: They, much like prunes, can be used to treat constipation. It only takes a few, so chew wisely!

Day 8: English Toffee

No Heath bars here- we went for the locally-made goodness that is Twila's Toffee. Apparently, the addition of chocolate and nuts makes regular old toffee English toffee (who knew?). I really like factory videos and was curious how exactly English toffee is made, so please enjoy this snippet of How It's Made: English Toffee edition (also enjoy the narrator- Alex and I certainly do).


How fun would it be to spread all that toffee out? I only wish they had used a toffee hammer (see weird footnote) to break it up, although the roller-slicer looks pretty cool, too.

Cute.

Alex loved the crumbly texture of the toffee but disliked the slightly bitter aftertaste of the toffee side. He remedied this by eating the toffee chocolate side down, which made it sweeter and more palatable.

Alex's toffee tongue

It looks like Twila's is closed at the moment due to a family emergency but you can purchase their English toffee at any New Seasons Market (dot com!).

Weird footnote about toffee hammers: They were used by suffragettes to break windows as a form of protest in the movement for women's equality. That's really sticking it to the man!

Day 7: Tempura

This is the first meal on this endeavor that I've had alone. I had to go on my lunch break, since the bowling alley doesn't serve tempura (we do bowling on Tuesdays, which makes this just a little harder). I asked my coworkers where would be the best place downtown to get tempura. They gave me a few suggestions. I went with Mio Sushi because it was close enough by bike and I was assured from the online menu that I could get what I needed. Had time been available after work I'm sure Liz and I would have gone to a non-chain restaurant.

Of course, the weather decided to be rainy today. Great day to start doing that, Portland! That meant I had to change into some wet weather clothing. It wasn't raining super hard and the place is only about 12 blocks away so I barely got wet, but it took some time to change and change back. Unfortunately, it also meant that I smelled a little like a gym bag at the restaurant.

I ordered Sisters which is a sushi roll with spicy salmon, asparagus tempura, and sweet sauce. I've never had tempura before, yet everything else sounded pretty tasty. I also order some cucumber rolls for a few more veggies and to to make it more of a meal.  The food looked delicious and I must say I loved it.

The crispiness was a great counter to the soft chewy rice. I certainly filled up (at least as much I want to fill up for a lunch time meal), but I wish I could have had 2 or 3 more pieces. I'm definitely getting some more next time I go for sushi.

Day 6: Shortbread

Shortbread is traditionally one part sugar, two parts butter and three parts flour. The shortbread we got at Trader Joe's (I'm still sick) claims to be all butter and it is either mixed with chocolate, raspberry or apricot.

Alex likes it.

It was pretty meh, in my opinion, but fun to watch Alex eat:

Bonus- I wanted to find that Shortnin' Bread song and instead found this very strange cartoon from the 40s. No offense is meant, just so you know.

Day 5: Whipped Cream

Mmmmmm....Fluffy. I am under the weather today so instead of whipping up some cream, we got three different types and had Alex do a taste test:

There you have it. I'll try to keep him from eating all of it tonight.

Day 4: Spaghetti

Okay, we made it spaghetti and meatballs, but we're allowed to take liberties here. With all the Italian restaurants around, it was slightly difficult to decide, so we tried somewhere new.
Gilda's is a cute little place down in Goose Hollow that makes everything on site, which scores big points. We started with Arancini, which is a big cheesy rice ball fried on the outside. Magnifico! (I'm serious. Go get some).

The thing about Gilda's is they're slightly expensive, but the food and service really make it worth it. Because when we got the spaghetti and meatballs, the aroma alone was, well, fantastico.

The pasta was thick and perfectly al dente, swimming in sauce. I usually like a little less sauce, but after I tried it, I didn't care. Sooo good.
The meatballs were perfectly textured and had a tiny bit of spice to them. Alex took out his plate like the champ he is, and I got a to-go box (leftovers tomorrow!). How cute is this?!

They labeled the to-go box. Aw, shucks, Gilda's. We'll come back soon

Day 3: Chocolate Covered Cherries

Bing!
Since it's long past cherry season, Alex found some Bing cherries dipped in 'premium' chocolate at Trader Joe's.
I was glad to see that the company who makes the cherries, Dilettante, is based in Kent, Washington. Upon further investigation, I found that Dilettante makes these cherries in "special revolving kettles using only the finest couverture quality chocolate and premium dried fruits." Oh, la la!

This one's a no-brainer. Anything sweet dipped in chocolate is good in Alex's book. Now if he'd just stop yelling "Bing!" all will be well. 

Day 2: Cream Puffs!

Harder to find than we thought. Pix Patisserie only makes cream puffs on Fridays and Saturdays- Boo!
Most Frenchie bakeries didn't mention them on their menus, so we had to find a for sure source.
Enter An Xuyen Bakery , just up the road from us. It's a Vietnamese bakery (apparently cream puffs are a thing with Vietnamese bakeries- who knew?) that turned out to be super cute.

Here's Alex trying a cream puff:

 At first he was disappointed. "I thought they'd be crispier," he said. But as he ate the fluffy, creamy concoction, he grew less and less disappointed. By the time he finished, he embraced the deliciousness that is the cream puff.