For years, my business partner, Matt has asked if we could make cornetto. Matt spent a year living in Italy and became quite enamored of the Italian breakfast – a stop at the local café on the way to work, a beautiful cappuccino, a cornetto and an animated conversation, usually about soccer. Every time Matt asked, I had to tell him we don’t have enough space. Well, this summer, we moved into our new production facility. There is space and I am finally able to grant Matt’s wish!Cornetti are often referred to as the Italian cousin to the French croissant. Cornetti are made with laminated dough. Buttery dough is repeatedly folded and rolled to lace the dough with thin layers of butter fat. This creates a moist and flaky texture. Macrina’s laminated dough is slightly sweeter and made with a smidge less butter to create the perfect texture. We use the laminated dough to make our Cornetto, Chocolate Cornetto, Morning Rolls and Orange Hazelnut Pinwheels.The story behind laminated pastry is an interesting one. It seems to have originated in Austria with a pastry called a kipferl. Some say the crescent shape was created to celebrate the Austrian defeat of the Ottomans whose flag carried an image of the crescent moon. Whether that story is myth or not, what is certain is that the pastry spread throughout Europe with regional and national differences.Recently, The New Yorker published a story, “Straightened-out Croissants and the Decline of Civilization” after one bakery in England started making their croissants un-curved. We have wisely opted to stay out of the centuries old England-France controversy. Our cornetti are slightly curved and available in our cafes and for wholesale sales. Come down to one of our cafés, order a cappuccino and a cornetto, and treat yourself to an Italian breakfast (while you read the New Yorker article, it is a fun one!)Leslie Cornetto (pictured above): “Little horn” in Italian. We form our cornetti from a triangle of our laminated dough rolled to create a crescent shape, brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with pearl sugar and baked to a deep brown. Lightly sweet, flaky on the outside and moist inside. Enjoy plain or with fresh preserves.Chocolate Cornetto: Our cornetto filled with batons of semisweet chocolate.Morning Rolls: Our laminated dough layered with house-made vanilla sugar and rolled into a swirl. Baked to a golden brown. Flaky and light with buttery caramelized sugar at the base.Orange Hazelnut Pinwheels: Our laminated dough layered with house-made hazelnut sugar and fresh orange zest, rolled into a pinwheel and baked golden brown. Dusted with powdered sugar. Flaky and sweet with just the right touch of citrus.

We get really excited about brioche around here. Whenever Leslie is working on a new brioche product, she's never short of taste-testers. (We live for these taste-testing moments!) This velvety dough flawlessly hugs the line between sweet and savory. It plays well with pretty much everything.With that in mind, we decided to swap our Spinach & Cheese Dumpling with a new menu item: the Spinach & Cheese Bun. Light, buttery brioche wraps around a divine mixture of fresh, sautéed spinach, fromage blanc, goat cheese and Parmesan.It’s the perfect size for an on-the-go breakfast or lunch. For those looking for a heartier meal, it can easily be paired with our Organic Greens Salad, meze side salad, or cup of soup. Look for it in our pastry case!

Brunch - that delicious blend of breakfast and lunch - has fuzzy origins. Some food historians believe that the meal is rooted in 19th century Britain when hunting groups would have extravagant mid-morning meals. But, my favorite historical mention comes from an 1895 "Hunter’s Weekly" article:"Brunch is cheerful, sociable and inciting." Guy Beringer wrote in "Brunch: A Plea." "It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week."There’s a soothing rhythm to this ambrosial weekend tradition: Champagne, fortified with fresh citrus, is poured into tall glasses; sugary breads are passed among good company, feeling downright communal; concerns drift away with the arrival of savory diversions; and finally, we’re ready to nap.Here at Macrina, we adore the bustle of brunch. The great din of diners bonding over our food and lingering at the case for just one more pastry or a rustic loaf of bread to go with dinner. For us, it’s satisfying seeing everyone walk away completely contented.With Memorial Day drawing near, we already hear the brunch buzz as everyone organizes his or her weekend morning gaggle. Our weekend diners get to enjoy not one or two but three days of brunching as we extend our brunch menu to Monday.So, linger longer this weekend, brunch lovers, and reenact your leisurely meal an extra day.