At Ruby et Violette, you have a reason to keep coming back for more

What do you think of when you hear Midtown?  Tourists. Neon lights. Broadway shows. People asking you just how much you like comedy. And let's not forget the plethora of chain restaurants.  What you don't expect to find in this melting pot of everything wrong with NY, is the cutest bakery with the best variety of cookies I've ever seen.

Ruby et Violette is known for their gourmet cookies.  But not just your ordinary cookie.  They have 120 flavors, with about 18-20 rotating in the store.  The selections change seasonally, so for the fall  I was treated to cookies such as Cardamom, a chocolate cookie with a tinge of chai, S'Mores, perfect for pretending you're sitting by the campfire, and Carrot Cake.  The cookies are average sized, about 4-5" lengthwise, so they're not overwhelmingly large like your Levain or Jacques Torres monsters. 

Yesterday, I sampled 3.  My favorite was the Candy Jar, because of all the amazing, unique combinations, I would choose the one that's a giant mish mosh of 15 different types of candy bars :)  The Candy Jar is a combination of Snickers, Oreo, Reeses Pieces, Toffee and Butterfinger. I don't even like peanuts, but this just had the perfect amount of the classic candies, held together by a warm, not too buttery dough. 

The second cookie I tried, I unfortunately forgot to write the name down of (and this is why no one will hire me to be a real full time dessert blogger!)  But I'll tell you, it was definitely a close call between this and the Candy Jar for my top choice.  It was dark chocolate, with white chocolate chips baked in that were thick but soft when you bit into the cookie and simply melted in your mouth.  The cookie had a circle of cream cheese in the center, which I tried to avoid for calorie sake.  Someone eating 3 cookies doesn't seem as bad if you leave the 'bad parts' behind.  The cookies and creme looked like the result of the inside of a handful of Double Stuffed Oreos mixed together, with large chunks of the cookie baked in. 

The fun part about this place is never knowing what you're going to expect when you get there.  Some of the upcoming seasonal flavors are Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, and Monday Night Football.  They separate their varieties into categories. My favorites fall under the 'Kids Choice' category (that doesn't shock me at all.)  Smores, Caramel Popcorn, Mint Chocolate Chip - fun takes on our favorite desserts, in cookie form.  Then you have your 'Intoxicating' category - these cookies include elements of liquor, such as the White Russian, - one part Kahlua, one part Cream, the Black Irish - Irish whiskey & Baileys, and the Pina Colada, amongst others.  The full list of flavors can be found here: Cookie flavors

Ruby et Violette also makes their own ice cream, so you can get cookie dough ice cream and have the best of both worlds.  They make 6 kinds of brownies too, from your traditional brownie and blondie, to a champagne strawberry, 'Incomparable' (packed with caramel, toffee, peanut butter, dark chocolate and white chocolate), Lemon White and Molasses.  You can also get coffee and other beverages, so stop by Ruby et Violette for an afternoon coffee/snack break (Ogilvy people, you finally have somewhere else to go besides the Intrepid now!)

Ruby et Violette is located at 457 W 50th street, between 9th and 10th Avenues (closer to 10th).  You can also create customized orders to give as gifts for the holidays.  Bring them to your Thanksgiving dinner, and everyone will be giving thanks to you :)

http://www.rubyetviolette.com/index.php

No animals were harmed in the making of this brownie

In our time as dessert connoisseurs, we have found what we deemed the best brownie (Baked), the best cookie (Levain), and the best froyo (well, best froyo-making  experience, 16 Handles).  But finding the best doesn't mean we can't keep searching for one to take the #1 spot!

I had read about a brand called Vegan Divas, who make vegan, all natural (and Kosher) brownies and cupcakes that are supposed to be amazing.  Upon farther investigation, I discovered they are sold at Butterfield Market, a gourmet market on the Upper East Side.  They're also sold at the FC Chocolate Bar at Mauboussin at 714 Madison Ave,  Butterfield Kitchen at 346 E 92nd street, and D'Latte on Main Street in North Fork.
We took a ride up to the Lexington Ave location a couple weeks ago to investigate these brownies for ourselves.

The brownies are sold individually in a plastic container.  We tasted it, and were shocked to find that rather than the dull, dry taste of many vegan products, these brownies were dense,  fudgy, and an overload of chocolate wonderfulness in each and every bite.  I never like to not finish a good dessert, but they were so thick and filling that after a few bites my chocolate fix was complete!  The surprising sell point on these brownies is there's full nutritional information on the back, showing that an entire brownie goes for 220 calories.  And since these things are so big and filling, you really don't need to eat more than half anyway!  They're made with spelt instead of flour, which is great for us since we're now trying to follow a gluten free diet.  After doing some research we also learned that one of the Vegan Divas chefs used to work at Babycakes, which surprised me since we're not big Babycakes fans.  Maybe she learned from her mistakes.

In terms of cost, it was a bit on the high side (just under $5), but considering you're getting a fresh, all-natural product that won't pack on the pounds, I'd say it's worth it.

Butterfield Market is located at 1114 Lexington Avenue, between 77th & 78th streets (right off the 6 train).
http://www.vegandivasnyc.com/index.html