Tasty treats in Prague - Cukrárna Myšák and trdelnik

Part of traveling is to experience the food and culture of another place. When I surfed the web for best pastry shops in Prague, Myšák was at the top of the list for many. Just follow the link to read about the interesting history of the place and what they have to offer (BTW - cukrárna is translated as confectionary or sweet shop.)

Steve and I visited the shop/cafe after our visit to Prague Castle and a somewhat lengthy walk from the tram to the “main drag” leading up to the statue of Wenceslas, a big name in Bohemian history. But enough about that. As it turned out, Myšák is located on a side street not too far from our apartment and so we settled in for a respite and some treats.

Pastry case

After perusing the case I opted for three treats: Karamelový větrniček - pâte à choux with caramel cream and glaze; tartaletka - a petite lemon tart topped with Swiss meringue and dried blueberries; pražská koule, literally translated as Prague ball - sponge cake with caramel cream, chocolate, peanuts.

Interestingly, each came on its own plate with fork (along with the requisite cappuccino) while I had expected the medley to arrive on a single plate. Oh well - when in Rome . . . . .

Tartaletka

All were tasty, particularly the Prague ball which Steve and I agreed offered a surprisingly pleasant combo of sponge cake texture, crunchy nut and tasty chocolate coating without being cloyingly sweet.

They also have an upstairs space offering the same cakes and pastries in addition to packaged goods like cookies, chocolates and assembled cakes as well as their own ice cream. We picked up a couple of croissants to go and enjoyed them the following morning.

Upstairs at Myšák

Morning croissant - yum!

On our first day of strolling around the old city of Prague we noticed a number of trdlo/trdelnik shops along the way (and a lot of folks eating them!). After a bit of research I learned that the treat itself is referred to as a trdelnik and the mold on which the dough is shaped is a trdlo. I also discovered that these are called chimney cakes in the English vernacular.

Niece Christina had given us a heads up about these popular treats, and we waited until our last day in Prague to give one a try. Sharing one seemed like the thing to do.

Basically a sweet yeasted dough wrapped around the trdlo, coated in sugar (sometime nuts) and grilled on a spit, you can get them edge dipped in chocolate and nuts, filled with whipped cream or soft serve ice cream with fruit options and various add-ons as well.

Choose your options

Most shops had rows of horizontal spits, grilling multiples at one time. Here’s an example of a single vertical one.

Some shops offer more choices than others - ours was pretty straight forward - chocolate/pistachio edge dip with vanilla ice cream.

The dough is what intrigued me the most - slightly sweet, chewy in a good way and a great contrast to the creamy ice cream, chocolate and nuts. Once we had eaten some of the ice cream, it nestled down into the hollow of the dough and one could take bites of the edges. We truly enjoyed it!

I’ve found a couple of recipes on line and realize there’s a bit of finagling to do to create a form and bake them in the oven buuuuuttt . . . . who knows - once we’re back from our travels I may give it a try!

Meanwhile spring continues springing. Take good care - I’ll be back!

Flowering tree at Prague Castle