Best of NH 2015 Desserts, Ice Cream Stands and Bakeries
We hope that you saved room for dessert. There's something for every sweet tooth here - Cookies, sticky toffee pudding, cakes, apple pie, ice cream and more!
From left: Editor's Pick Sticky Toffee Pudding dessert from the Cork N Keg Grill (photo by Susan Laughlin), Readers' Poll pie winner The Pie Guy, Readers' Poll Monadnock Region favorite ice cream shop winner Kimball Farm (photo by Melissa DiPalma) and cookies Editor's Pick Triolo's Bakery (photo by Susan Laughlin). |
Editor's Picks
Apple Pie: The Saxy Chef in Antrim is not your average bakery. Think apple pie with raspberries, brownies with ginger, peanut butter whoopie pies or blondies with cherry and cardamom. Find their seasonal treats at the Monadnock Food Co-op in Keene or Nature’s Green Grocer in Peterborough. Baker Aubrey Saxton is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and aims to make the best.
Brownie: When owner Neely Cohen of Vicuña Chocolate Factory & Café in Peterborough makes a brownie, she doesn’t start with shaved chocolate. She starts with cocoa beans, roasting and grinding them. Her cocoa nib brownies are just rich enough to be decadent, but not too sweet. Enjoy with her cocoa husk tea or sipping chocolate for a double dose of Andean goodness.
Cookies: Triolo’s Bakery in Bedford is well known for over-the-top cake designs, but their cookies are irresistible too. The world seems to be filled with disappointing chocolate chip cookies. This one won’t fall short of childhood remembrances. It’s a classic, but probably better than Mom’s.
Cream Puffs: We didn’t think anybody made these melt-in-the-mouth pastries anymore, but we found them between the mini Key lime pies and the Italian cream cakes at The French Sisters Bakery, a cozy bakery café on Littleton’s Main Street (603-444-7888). Gluten-free options might include a Royal Viennese Walnut Torte.
Mexican Dessert: The churros at Cava Tapas and Wine Bar in Portsmouth are the perfect ending to a tapas meal. The freshly fried, slightly sweet dough is crispy outside and soft inside while the accompanying chocolate sauce is perfect. Yes, we said perfect.
Sticky Toffee Pudding: Make sure you save room for dessert at the Cork N Keg Grill in Raymond. Baked in-house, served warm with toffee and whipped cream, this decadent dish will more than satisfy your sweet tooth.
Readers' Poll Winners
Bakery Bread
Tuscan Market
Salem
tuscanbrands.com
Cakes
Jacques Fine European Pastries
Suncook
jacquespastries.com
Cakes
(Multi-location Local)
Frederick’s Pastries
Amherst and Bedford
pastry.net
Chocolatier
Van Otis Chocolates
Manchester
vanotischocolates.com
Cupcakes
White Mountain Cupcakery
North Conway
wmcupcakery.com
Pastries
Popovers on the Square
Portsmouth and Epping
popoversonthesquare.com
Pastries
(Multi-location Local)
Frederick’s Pastries
Amherst and Bedford
pastry.net
Bakery Bread
Tuscan Market
Salem
tuscanbrands.com
Cakes
Jacques Fine European Pastries
Suncook
jacquespastries.com
Cakes
(Multi-location Local)
Frederick’s Pastries
Amherst and Bedford
pastry.net
Chocolatier
Van Otis Chocolates
Manchester
vanotischocolates.com
Cupcakes
White Mountain Cupcakery
North Conway
wmcupcakery.com
Pastries
Popovers on the Square
Portsmouth and Epping
popoversonthesquare.com
Pastries
(Multi-location Local)
Frederick’s Pastries
Amherst and Bedford
pastry.net
Pies
The Pie Guy
Manchester
pieguy.com
Regional Favorite Ice Cream Shops
Concord Area Ice Cream
Arnie’s Place
Concord
arniesplace.com
Concord Area Ice Cream
(Multi-location Regional)
Johnson’s Seafood & Steak Dairy Bar
Northwood and New Durham
eatatjohnsons.com
Dartmouth/Lake Sunapee Region Ice Cream
Sanctuary Dairy Farm
Sunapee
icecreamkidbeck.com
Great North Woods Region Ice Cream
Moose Alley Cones
Pittsburg
partridgecabins.com/about-us/moose-alley-cones
Lakes Region Ice Cream
Kellerhaus
Laconia
kellerhaus.com
Manchester Area Ice Cream
Puritan Backroom
Manchester
puritanbackroom.com
Monadnock Region Ice Cream
Kimball Farm
Jaffrey
kimballfarm.com
Nashua Area Ice Cream
Hayward’s Ice Cream Stand
Nashua
haywardsicecream.com
Salem Area Ice Cream
Moo’s Place Homemade Ice Cream
Derry
moosplace.com
Seacoast Region Ice Cream
The Beach Plum
North Hampton and Portsmouth
thebeachplum.net
White Mountains Region Ice Cream
Trails End
North Conway
(603) 356-0470
