Wairarapa catches on to the cronut craze

FRANKEN-PASTRIES: New York chef Dominique Ansel's cronut creation has become the latest food fad.

Move over gourmet cupcakes, the cronut is here.

On a bustling Saturday morning at Moore Wilson's bakery counter, a woman points out one to her daughter.

"Do you want a cronut?"

"A what?" says the girl.

A cronut is a golden, sugar-crusted half-croissant, half-doughnut and is the latest food craze. Sometimes filled with custard or cream, the decadent franken-pastry has become popular all over the world and Wairarapa is now catching on.

The cronut was invented in the oven of French chef Dominique Ansel's bakery in SoHo, New York. Since he debuted his creation in May, a cronut craze has ensued with people lining up for hours outside his bakery to get a taste.

Wairarapa people seem keen to get a taste too.

Karen Maulder, manager at Moore Wilsons, said the bakery department started selling cronuts about two weeks ago and they were proving popular.

"They are very nice."

Customers must also agree - they have been selling well every day. "Most days we sell most of them."

The cronuts are delivered daily from Bordeaux bakery in Wellington and there are two varieties - chocolate and vanilla.

The Ten O'Clock Cookie Company has picked up on the trend and may do a trial run, said duty manager Julianna Hema. "We aren't selling them at the moment, it's something we are looking into.

"I haven't tried one but I've heard all about it."

Moise Cerson, the owner of The French Baker in Greytown, said it doesn't sell cronuts and they have no plans to sell them in the future.

He said the bakery just sticks to a core product range.

Cronut creator Mr Ansel has even trademarked the name cronut in the US, leading to a flood of creative names such as "Doissants", "Crognets" and "Cro-Nots."

There is apparently a black market for his pastries - they can go for as much as $40 each.

On Twitter, Mr Ansel said one woman "legitimately cried" after the bakery sold out of them. Mr Ansel has also just released another creation - the never-collapsing souffle, which sold out within 15 minutes after its debut. Called the Magic Souffle, the Grand Marnier chocolate souffle has a soft chocolate centre, entombed in a toasted orange blossom brioche.