El Dia De Los Reyes Is Tomorrow! Where Will You Be Getting Your King's Bread?

Savoring the Holiday Foods Season To The Last Crumb! Dia De Los Reyes Magos


Its kind of hard to believe that the two best food-tradition days of the year are already over. Well...if you weren't raised hardcore Catholic or are Mexican that is!



Rosca De Reyes: The Forgotten Holiday Treat


I'm just hyping up for it now to be honest. And, its not too late! To be honest, I don't really know much about the actual history (could Wikipedia it and give you the whole blogger-typical spiel but naaaah). I'll just give you my mom's version.

(translated)

"Well, the celebration takes place every 6th of January of the year. Since cute, baby Jesus has already been born. You pray, sing and make a festive dinner of some sort. Colaciones, colorful, sugar candies with an anise-seed center are given to little kids. You then look for a godmother to buy the baby Jesus doll a fancy wardrobe makeover that includes open-feet Mexican Huarachitos and a gold-linked crown."

"In Mexico, you would do it during the late evening before the actual day. So on the offical day of celebration, the baby would wake up surrounded with candies and little gifts. And then, during dinner, we finally get to eat the Rosca de Reyes. There could be up to 4 teeny-tiny baby Jesus's baked right into it so be careful not to eat Jesus! You are to cut it up in small pieces and share the cake. Whoever is blessed with the baby-stuffed piece is the lucky recipient of a Tamale-Atole based dinner on the 2nd of February thrown in their honor. And that is all about the 3 Kings!"

She then continues to add, "and SOMETIMES...there are people who hide the baby doll, or even eat it! All to not have to throw a party!"

Well, there you have it. Straight from the source!

What about the bread?! Well, think of one continual, oversize piece of typical Concha (the most common form of Mexican Pan Dulce. If not a concha, then a piece of Filipino PandeSal braed. Still no? Well, ok...some King's Hawaiian bread then! Except a bit denser and richer, the bread is usually yeasted and made with whole or condensed milk and lotsa butter. There should be some sort of spice flavor to it. Most places use crushed pieces of cinnamon, kind of like the more popular Pan De Muerto? And then topped with the sparse stripes of sweet, crunchy strudel and extra chewy, dried pieces of prettily-colored fruit like figs, cherries and quince!





It's So Pretty When Its All Dolled Up With Egg Wash!


And of course...all in the shape of a huge 2-3 foot oval. With a piping hot cup of thick, Chocolatito Caliente to dunk it in? ...dayuuum.

I know down South during Mardi Gras, they also celebrate with something like this. They call it Kings Bread (direct translation even!) but don't know how they are connected. All I know it is equally bomb to eat. Although, there's of the more fluffy--cinnamon roll like--variety, glazed, sugared, then stuffed with maple, brown-sugar cream cheese filling.



Compare/Contrast: Mardi Gras Kings Cake Overflowing With a Cream Cheese-Maple-Brown Sugar Filling


I had the most exemplary of ones when I joined the SAVEUR Magazine offices for a staff lunch last year.

You can get these bad bready boys at just about any Mexican, South, or Central American bakery anywhere not in West L.A. They usually advertise with huge banners or opaque window drawings so just look for a cartoony king.

My mom has grown fond of the extravagantly buttery ones at La Favorita bakery. They have a couple of locations but I like to go to the one on Whittier Blvd. in front of Salazar Park aka. my old hoood yo! I literally lived in the neighboring storefront for a large part of my adolescence, well at least long enough to not get asked "Where you from!" from the local L.P.V'sters. Well, except one cold, metall-y time, but that is a different story.

But fear not Westsiders, La Monarca Bakery just opened a new Panaderia in Santa Monica a few weeks ago. The Rosca de Reyes will be available here all day tomorrow. you will pay a little more but at least you will get the jizz of it (ha, ha). Although, I will say that my mom went to La Monarca to give them a try and still ended up getting La Favorita. (She even brought back the sample piece they were giving out to rub it in my face!)

Ahhh Raaaaaaza!

La Favorita Bakery
3865 Whittier Blvd.
Los Angeles,
CA 90033
ph: 877-231-8168
(Inside Strip Mall)

http://lafavoritabakery.net/

La Monarca Bakery
1300 Wilshire Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90403
(310) 451-1114

http://www.lamonarcabakery.com/

The Mad Greek: Debauchery-Driven Deliciousness

The O.G Mad Greeks

There is something about eating a freshly baked, flaky Spanakopita in the middle of nowhere to help assuage your passage back to reality after a weekend in Vegas. The clanking sounds of the leftover bottles of alcohol as you speed in the car makes your stomach swish, and all of a sudden...all-you-can-eat crab legs don't sound appetizing anymore.


The Mad Greek: Mirage?

You see faded billboards a few miles before the exit to the The Mad Greek bearing "OPEN 24 HOURS" and you are befuddled--is this really a Greek Restaurant? Well, it is still a long drive back home and only fast food surrounds you...oh what the hell. Let's try it.



It is 1AM, there is only a Filipino family eating a club sandwich and ritz crackers that they brought themselves, uh-oh.


Ambiance: Dead

A barrage of menu items hit you as you approach to order. Things like Dolmades and Zaziki Pita are cloaked with Tuna Melts and Chili Cheese Fries but they are there.


The Greek Goods:

But what's that I see? A Spanakopita could it be? Its late and the consequences of eating heavy could already be felt through the redolent aroma of spit-roasted shawarma. Fuck it...a Spanakopita it is. I'll just take some bites of my friends "Va-gyro" as they called it. They also wanted me ask the cashier if they had any "Cream of Mushroom Tip Soup". Ok, maybe we weren't completely sober still.

A small order of hommos would also aid in detoxing my body and reversing this weekends 'drunken-munchies' debauchery. It was surprisingly chunky actually, not as smooth as I've had before. Also not as heavy with in the bitter, sour Tahini sauce, but still drizzled with super fruity olive oil and a little paprika, that kalamata olive and parsley sprig for greens would would have to do for now.


Another Favorite Triangle Shaped Thing Of Mine

Good thing the homie Angel--or "Gay-ngel" as we referred him in the trip--honored his High School food roots and ordered an order of Fried Zucchini. With a crunchy, breadcrumb batter, it beat the pants of off pita bread as a dipper for the hommos.


Honoring Our High School Diet

As we left, we couldn't help but simply admire some fine Greek Wisdom that sat hanging on the bathroom hallway wall.


Behold Greek Wisdom

Opa Guey!!

The Mad Greek
72112 Baker Blvd
Baker, CA 92309
(760) 733-4354

24 HOURS

$5-12 per person kinda

Beyond Conchas: La Monarca Bakery in East L.A

About three years ago, I remember reading the L.A Times Food Section and feeling proud, surprised and excited.

They had done a front-page article on Ricardo Cervantez and his groundbreaking demographics upon opening La Monarca Bakery in Huntington Park. Finally offering a little more sophisticated Pan Dulce fare to the Latino market...which is often neglected in the eyes of much of the retail food industry. Stepping beyond ultra-traditional Conchas and Cochinitos and supplementing the usual Mexican Bakery arsenal with things like Napoleon's (Mil Hojas), Tiramisu and his very own Goat-Milk Caramel Dulce De Leche Cake. Avant-Gard pastry thought carries out through beverages as well, organic brew in East L.A? Never thought I would live to see the day...











Sticking true to his word, another Monarca Bakery has opened up in East L.A in the Commerce Shopping Center, where just about every Latino East Sider goes to hang, buy socks or even watch a flick. The new location also happens to be just a super-powered stones throw from my house.






Also offering house-made, sorbet-like "Ice's" (Nieves de Agua), including the rare water-based Coco (coconut) with tiny morsels of mature rich, coconut flesh.






Not forgetting his roots, Conchas, a yeast bread with a lard/butter-sugar-crumble topping shaped in the pattern of a sea shell and probably the most traditional of all Pan Dulce--are redefined. Light, spongy with a perfect bread-to-topping ratio, the difference here in quality of ingredients is vastly noticed, the paper bag here will hold up grease-less, unlike the Concha's in just about every bakery in East L.A.







This goes for the plethora of delicate Polvoron style butter cookies too, so tightly packed but gives away elegantly at the bite. Pecan, powdered sugar 'Wedding cookies', Cinnamon, options abound...but all superbly consistent.











East L.A...why not?

5700 E. Whittier Blvd.
Commerce CA.
90022

(323) 869-8800

2 Mother's Day's, 2 Feast's: Cielito Lindo and Doughboys Bakery

Mother's Day, a day of love, appreciation, but most of all...food. This is in fact, one of the busiest day's for the foodservice industry finally giving mother's world wide a break. And since i'm Mexican, it's just not the usual May 13th Mother's Day, it's also the May 8th Dia De Las Madres. So twice the rational feasting!

1st Dia De Las Madres: Cielito Lindo Restaurant

It really is a shame you can't have everything in life. Where you'll have World Class, Grammy-Winning Music (Mariachi Sol De Mexico) reconstructing Mariachi harmonies and unison, you will also have dry, pasty beans, unusually red restaurant rice and a myriad of overcooked proteins. The $10 Guac. and Clove, spiked complimentary salsa will have to suffice. Go for the show, not the food.

Cielito Lindo
1612 Santa Anita Ave
South El Monte, CA
91733-3410
Phone: (626) 442-1254

2nd Mother's Day: Doughboys Bakery

Brunch, on the Westside, on a weekend morning really does showcase what L.A has gotten to be like: hundreds of hung-over, hued hipsters waiting eagerly for a table. This day, Doughboy's was an exception though, unlike Griddle's or Toasts infinite waits, Doughboy's was less than a quarter of that, and that was all 6 of us. Everything is baked on premises and they don't ever mess up on any of their cakes-griddle, pan, red velvet-they're all moist, tender and satisfying. Be it the healthier than thou' Blueberry-Flax-Multigrain Griddle Cakes or those noticeably tangy Buttermilk Pancakes.

Doughboys Bakery
8136 W. 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA
90048
323 651-1844

My Warm, Buttery, Flaky New Year (Europane Bakery)

Having to camp out in near freezing temperatures with my Dysfunctional Family, sleeping on the cold, uneven street, having to get up from sleeping 4 times to go to the port-a-potty that was 2 blocks away!

Of course, i didn't get any sleep. But at least i finally had the chance to finally have a Croissant and a couple of bites of other pastries from the famed Europane Bakery. And when, i was literally sleeping a couple of paces west of the place, i had the chance to have them seconds out of the oven(6:00 AM!), still hot enough to scold your tongue. And believe me when i say that in near freezing temperatures, this crisp, steamy, flaky Croissant seemed unreal.

Flaky, where other croissants were bread like. Not too sweet, or salty. With the perfect density, hollow but not too hollow.
Well worth the calories
With a tall cup some steamed soymilk from this little coffee place across the street....
Was In Heaven?

Oh yeah, and the Rose Parade was pretty cool too.

Europane Bakey
950 E Colorado Blvd,
Pasadena, CA
91106

La Monarca Bakery: Finally Represent'n

I'm still tripping out, the words

East L.A

on the front page of the food section on the L.A times? I couldn't believe it. They were doing an article on bakeries and someone finally shined some light onto the Latino culinary community. Finally, people have appreciated all the hard work that goes into making a decent pastel. Whether it being the balancing act of a Tres Leches Cake or a simple Relleno De Fruta, it's about time!


La Monarca bakery's Ricardo Cervantez said that he wanted to target a Latino market that is often neglected by the retail food industry. Since it was my little sister's B-day, i figured why not support the cause?


Of course i had to order the Dulce De Leche cake. I called to order and was suprised to find out that for a "cuarto de plancha"(25-30 people) only cost $40. Normally the places that are mentioned on the paper tend to be on the pricy side and this was just the average cake price you would find anywhere.


When we went to go pick it up, all the pastry's on display got the best of me. Like always, I couldn't wait for later. I ended up with their Fruit Tart, a couple of "Bolillo's Integrales"(Whole Wheat Rolls), Whiole Wheat Biscuits and some Whole Wheat Cemitas lightly sweetened with Piloncillo(unprocessed brown sugar).


The Fruit Tart was unexpectedly light. Normally Mexican Patisserie tends to have a heavy amount of butter or lard. But this was different. The crust was light and flaky without being greasy. The custard was nice, not overwhelmingly sweet. And the pear on top happended to be in season. And if it wasn't sweet enough, it was all glazed in a simple syrup.


The Dulce De Leche cake looked beautiful enough to be accepted by my little sister, who's poor life is about to be tortured by the problems of "Teenagerness". And yeah, it was also tasted as good as it looked. Moist and airy and not overwhelmingly sweet. Again, this had that light taste that the tart had earlier. They were extremely generous with the whipped cream but that wasn't a bad thing in this case, the custard inside was a different one that i had earlier, also delicate. It was nice to know that they don't use the same one for everything much like other bakeries do.



Score one for us, finally!