Tutti Frutti

Frozen yogurt shop?

Don't care. Don't care. Don't care.

Hey, what's that? Are those cream-filled choux pastries in the back of your frozen yogurt shop, Tutti Frutti?

We care a lot!Oh, I've been avoiding the Tutti Frutti chain serving frozen yogurt ever since they opened last year on Walnut St. in Center City. Why? Not because I love frozen yogurt (I like it enough), and am afraid I'll overindulge, but because I freakin' love choux-pastries (profiteroles, eclairs, beignets, and churros to name a few), and the Japanese cream puff, a choux pastry filled with cream, is their main draw in Tutti Frutti's back-of-the store bakery.

Yep, just walk right past the wall of frozen yogurt nozzles like you just don't care.
I go gaga over choux pastries that are filled with pastry cream, and the Japanese cream puffs that Tutti Frutti serve are pretty much pudding bombs.

A la the Japanese cream puff chain, Beard Papa, Tutti Frutti serves up puffy, buttery, eggy pastries filled with various cream flavors — vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, green tea, mango, berry.Without a side-by-side taste test, I couldn't tell you who — Beard Papa or Tutti Frutti — makes a better pastry, and, since Philly doesn't have a Beard Papa, it's sort or irrelevant. Tutti Frutti wins!

Now, I'll wait another year before allowing myself within 30 feet of Tutti Frutti's back bakery.

Tutti Frutti also has other baked goods, including Famous 4th St. Cookies.

Don't Care. Don't Care. Don't Care.

Tutti Frutti
1315 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19107

Beard Papa's Cream Puffs

Popped into Beard Papa's while in NYC to see what the fuss is about with the Japanese cream puff chain with locations only sparsely dotted here and there in the US...and none in the Delaware Valley! You want what you cannot have, and I wanted some Beard Papa's cream puffs when the chance arose. Cream-filled pastries, be they eclairs, Boston cream pie, or Bavarian cream donuts, are at the top of my list of favorites, so I knew I'd enjoy some Beard Papa's.

Daily made, fresh choux pastry puffs filled to order with cream are the main game at Beard Papa's, although they do offer some other goodies. The vanilla cream puff is the original flavor, and a rotating cast of flavors like chocolate, greet tea, coffee, and pumpkin are also up for order. With advice that some of the more adventurous flavors are not the best, I stuck to chocolate and vanilla for my first foray.The chocolate cream puff is dusted with cocoa powder and generously filled with Beard Papa's own unique mixture of custard cream and whipped cream that is not as thick and decadent as the cream in most eclairs, but more pudding-like. Be careful biting into one, or the filling will ooze out any crack and onto your hand. The choux pastry is softer than most eclairs I've encountered, making Beard Papa's cream puffs seem light and airy...well, for something filled with cream!I saved the original vanilla flavor dusted with powdered sugar for last, and this really is where it's at! Same soft pastry shell with pudding-like cream filling, but with classic flavors. Start here, then repeat next time in a city with a Beard Papa's.

Watch the cartoon Beard Papa's story here.