Savory baked goods ideas for a bake shop

[Mooshmouse]

The owner of my favourite neighbourhood coffee shop is quite a prolific baker and features quite a selection of house-baked sweet treats at her café. Her latest creations include individual coffee cakes, homemade vegan granola bars and bittersweet chocolate cupcakes.

For the past couple of months, we've been trying to come up with some savoury baked goods that she could sell, something other than the ubiquitous coffee-shop scone, but have struck out so far. So, I thought I'd put this question to the collective eGullet Brain Trust and see what kind of creative ideas surface.

Suggestions anyone?

[Gifted Gourmet]

Savory croissants:

Filled with savory chicken, ham and cheese, spinach and cheese, beef, or potato.

Calzones with savory fillings...

Small quiches with various savory fillings ...

Spinach herb or savory mushroom strudels ...

[Ling]

quiche or savoury tarts?

[Mooshmouse]

Savory croissants:

Filled with savory chicken, ham and cheese, spinach and cheese, beef, or potato.

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Ham and pesto croissants is one idea that we had bandied about... chicken and smoked gouda was another thought.

As a bit of background, I think she's trying to stay away from being too lunchy; she doesn't offer meal-ish food, per se, but I was hoping that she could offer savoury alternatives to her array of sweet goodies. There's a convection oven on premises, but no stovetop, so that limitation must be taken into account as well.

[Badiane]

Cheese straws - the puff pastry kind...and if you make them a little wider, say a full centimeter, they come out like a big puffy cheese cookie....they flip themselves on the side so the puff happens right to left rather than top to bottom, if that makes sense.

Savory cheesecake tarts? Chili, cheese or sausage studded corn breads? Mini Irish Soda Breads? Quick breads like Asiago, Apple and Rosemary loaf?

Oooo...I know...my mom makes this thing, in low german it's called fleishpershki...or meat peroshki...it's a yeast dough, like a bun, filled with whatever you have on hand...some leftover ground meat and potatoes, or stew or roast beef or whatever. I guess it's kind of like a kolachy. That would be good...I would buy those!

[prasantrin]

Cheesesticks--not made with bread dough, but with puff pastry. They're long, thin, and twisted--perfect for eating while walking. I'll see if I can get some of my favourites today, and take a picture for you. Sesame ones are good, too.

I like savoury shortbread cookies, too.

And knish. I forgot about knish! Not too lunchy, because they're small. I like spinach and feta...

Edited November 22, 2005 by prasantrin (log)

[petite tête de chou]

whoops...no scones, eh?

Edited November 22, 2005 by petite tête de chou (log)

[Ling]

There's a southern snack called a "ham biscuit"...she could try playing around with cheddar biscuit recipes, sandwich some ham in there, slather with mustard, or serve with chutney.

[Rebecca263]

My favorite savory is papas rellenos, which is basically a ball of mashed potato filled with a picadillo(ground beef seasoned nicely) and rolled in breadcrumbs, then baked(or fried!). Then I also can devour a few lachm'a'jin.. a small round of pizza dough topped with a Syrian spiced ground lamb/onion/pine nut/tamarhindi mixture... heavenly! At our house we make savory breadsticks from quick yeast dough recipes and different seasonings or cheese mixed in. They're like portable seasoned chewy bread, so good!

But, of course, tarts are good, too. Onion tarts, especially divine!

Croissants, well, they're so messy, I always have to eat them with 2 napkins! I dislike that in a coffee shop, all those flakes~ Look, Ma, my food has dandruff!

Of course then there are Greek Spinach turnovers, those are nice, but spinach in your teeth! All right, I'm done for now. If I smoked I'd need a cigarette after this bit.

[Mooshmouse]

Cheese straws - the puff pastry kind...and if you make them a little wider, say a full centimeter, they come out like a big puffy cheese cookie....they flip themselves on the side so the puff happens right to left rather than top to bottom, if that makes sense...

Chili, cheese or sausage studded corn breads?  Mini Irish Soda Breads?  Quick breads like Asiago, Apple and Rosemary loaf? 

Oooo...I know...my mom makes this thing, in low german it's called fleishpershki...or meat peroshki...it's a yeast dough, like a bun, filled with whatever you have on hand...some leftover ground meat and potatoes, or stew or roast beef or whatever.  I guess it's kind of like a kolachy.  That would be good...I would buy those!

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Cheesesticks--not made with bread dough, but with puff pastry.  They're long, thin, and twisted--perfect for eating while walking.  I'll see if I can get some of my favourites today, and take a picture for you.  Sesame ones are good, too.

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Great minds think alike on the cheese sticks/straws idea! I'd love to see a photo, Rona. But would that be too similar to the cinnamon straws that Starbucks serves?

Oooooooh, cornbread. I loooooove me my cornbread! The whole savoury bread thing hadn't even dawned on me, so that's definitely worth consideration.

Kolachy is a good thought too, Badiane, but I think ktbear has the corner on those at The Kolachy Shop.

[Eden]

Curried cheese biscuits.

easy to make and more snacky than lunchy.

[Mooshmouse]

There's a southern snack called a "ham biscuit"...she could try playing around with cheddar biscuit recipes, sandwich some ham in there, slather with mustard, or serve with chutney.

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Curried cheese biscuits.

easy to make  and more snacky than lunchy.

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I like the biscuit ideas a lot!

But, of course,  tarts are good, too. Onion tarts, especially divine!

Croissants, well, they're so messy, I always have to eat them with 2 napkins! I dislike that in a coffee shop, all those flakes~ Look, Ma, my food has dandruff!... All right, I'm done for now. If I smoked I'd need a cigarette after this bit.

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Rebecca, would a martini do?

I love croissants, but I'm definitely with you on the mess factor at a coffee shop. Tarts are a distinct possibility too.

Remember, though, no stovetop. That imposes limitations on fillings, especially ones that must be precooked, since I believe she tries to do everything in-house versus bringing in cooked components from home.

[Rebecca263]

There are these little round savory rings we eat called Ka'ak. They are hard and crisp but not really a cracker.... my stepmother says they're easy to make, I don't know, since I've lost my Deal cookbook. (marked for his own by an otherwise sweet puppy years ago). Anyway, back to the topic, they're great with espresso or black coffee. Now that I think of it, cheese is boring. Jalapeno cornbread muffins, now that's great OK. I'll take a martini now... but actually, I'm having a glass of rum. And asking my date for next month to bring me some papas rellenos from Miami when he visits!

edited because I don't 'think' very well right now, but I don't 'tinhk' for sure!

Edited November 23, 2005 by Rebecca263 (log)

[Carrot Top]

Italian black pepper bread rounds or lard bread (with bits of crunchy salt pork or prosciutto). . . .

[KatieLoeb]

Miniature Mascarpone cheesecakes with a layer of pesto and sundried tomatoes. Served with crackers or flatbread.

I use THIS recipe from Epicurious and there's never any left.

She could make them in muffin tin size. Just enough for a snack with something to spread it on, or she could make it full sized and serve slivers.

[Badiane]

Kolachy is a good thought too, Badiane, but I think ktbear has the corner on those at The Kolachy Shop.

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Ahh...but if you call them piroshki...and really, the dough isn't the same...then you are scott free...besides, competition is good.

There are an abundance of fillings that can be made in the oven and in a crockpot, just in case she is interested in trying things

I didn't say biscuits, because people might see them as scone-like, but in reality, I would LOVE to find a nice baking powder biscuit with honey butter or some jam in a coffee shop. If I ever had a restaurant, there would be no toast, no bread, no danish, only biscuits

[John DePaula]

Cheesesticks--not made with bread dough, but with puff pastry.  They're long, thin, and twisted--perfect for eating while walking.  I'll see if I can get some of my favourites today, and take a picture for you.  Sesame ones are good, too.

I like savoury shortbread cookies, too.

And knish.  I forgot about knish!  Not too lunchy, because they're small.  I like spinach and feta...

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I second the idea about the knish! When I lived in Atlanta, Harry's Farmers Market had the most heavenly potato knishes. I tried to make it at home but it was a total flop.

[mochihead]

What about breads like focaccia that don't take a lot of rising time, can be done in a big sheet pan or rounds and topped with a billion different toppings (tomato, herbs, parmesan, onions, etc.)?

Or maybe lavash with sesame seeds or poppy seeds. Perhaps accompanied by a chutney or tapenade that can be made in advance.

[Pam R]

you already have lots of good ideas here. I'm always in favour of knishes - lots of assorted flavours possible.

I also like to do focaccia rounds - bake them with different toppings.

[Majra]

Another vote for cheese straws/cheese sticks. I used to frequent a bakery that made them as long as a baguette, but very narrow, and twisty, chock full with cheese . My kids loved those things, mostly because of the long dramatic shape. And I loved them, because I could take my kids for a bakery treat without having to give them sugar!

[CanadianBakin']

Another vote for focaccia rounds. There's a bakery at Granville Island that makes individual size rounds in a variety of flavours that are delicious. Great snacky thing as well as a quick lunch.

[Ling]

If I ever had a restaurant, there would be no toast, no bread, no danish,  only biscuits 

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Oh my god...I'd eat there in a heartbeat.

[prasantrin]

Great minds think alike on the cheese sticks/straws idea!  I'd love to see a photo, Rona.  But would that be too similar to the cinnamon straws that Starbucks serves?

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I've never seen a Starbucks cinnamon straw in real life, but on their website, it looks much bready-er and more doughnut-y than what I'm thinking of. Their website claims to have a crunchy cinnamon straw, too, and I think it may be more similar, though there was no picture with which I could compare.

I dropped by the bakery today, but they were closed. Pictures will have to wait till tomorrow! Unfortunately, all this talk about them has left me with a craving that will not be satisfied till one touches my tongue!

Also common in Japan are things like tuna bread. It's even better when made with croissant dough, instead of bread dough. Because of its shape, it's a little more snack-like than lunch-like. It's commonly seen with potato salad, too, instead of the tuna.

Oh, sausage rolls are always favourites of mine, and I never pass up a chance to eat one.

Edited to add: if you go to the bread page of that site with the tuna bread, and just keep clicking on the links at the side (they're recipes for different breads), you can find a multitude of ideas for savoury breads. Although the links and recipes are all in Japanese, each recipe has title in English so you can see what they are.

Edited November 23, 2005 by prasantrin (log)

[Rehovot]

How about these savory mini muffins?

Both the red onion-Gruyere and sage kinds are terrific.

Found them on this thread; lots of tasty ideas in there!

Edited November 23, 2005 by Rehovot (log)

[Swisskaese]

How about phyllo triangles stuffed with spinach and feta.

There is a wonderful bakery in Tel Aviv that sells antipasti foccacia with aubergine, sweet potato and tomato slices.

Edited November 23, 2005 by Swisskaese (log)