Dessert Valley, Wisconsin

My final dairy visit for June Dairy Month 2024 is a nice little place on the south side of Eau Claire. It’s sort of a combo ice cream/coffee shop, with…

The concept of dessert does not necessarily need to involve sugar. Dessert could be considered as a contrasting taste to a main course, perhaps a palate cleanser — or, the…

There are two places I had never gone, both of which were accomplished within a couple miles of each other. One was driving through Rusk, Wisconsin — a hamlet just…

June Dairy Month means the time has returned for me to highlight dairy desserts for “Dessert Valley, Wisconsin.” Given the historical importance of dairy to this area, it seems appropriate…

Golden Leaf Cafe in Menomonie is the location of a small milestone in the process of my family life. It is the place where, in mid-2016, my then-fiancée/now-wife and I…

The first time I heard of fried ice cream was probably in the late 1980s, likely via a Chi-Chi’s ad. I’d see the commercial on TV promoting something that struck…

Earlier this spring, the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 was “Too Sweet” by Hozier. The essence of the lyric is that the object of his desire is, in…

You don’t find too many tarts around the Chippewa Valley. I have made a tarte Tatin, based on a recipe that my mother once found. However, tarts aren’t particularly commonplace.…

Would you believe that I’ve never been to Bloomer? Almost a lifelong resident of Eau Claire, and I’ve been to almost all the surrounding communities at one point or another…

Over the past few years, boba tea has spread in popularity around the Chippewa Valley (as well as across the country). More specifically, I would argue a good amount of…