Hey Chicago! Did you get yours this morning? Did your boss stop and bring some to the office like mine did? Did your friend who got up early in the morning save you one? No? Cheryl wasn’t so lucky either so I thought I should pick some up for her.
For all the non-Chicagoans (and non-Polish), Paczki (sounds like PUNCH-kee, where they get that “N” from I have no idea) are the pre-Ash Wednesday treat here in the Windy City. Big Polish doughnuts. Insert your own joke about oversized pastries for oversized noggins here. And yes, a lot of Chicagoans get excited for this Fat Tuesday tradition. Since Chicago’s supposedly the largest Polish city outside of Poland it’s no surprise paczki are a huge (pun intended) favorite!
I scored these from Dinkels Bakery on Lincoln Avenue by the Paulina Brown Line stop. Since I am not of Polish heritage I did not get up at the crack of dawn to wait in line and so ended up with these flavors: lemon, raspberry, strawberry, and a caramel coated custard one. All for $6. They’re pretty damn awesome too (had a chocolate one and a cheese one earlier today). I just hope Cheryl gets home soon as I can’t look at these much longer without biting into one.
The Roaming GastroGnome 