Meringue Cookie Sandwiches at Karina's Cake House - Glendale

What is this strange, flower-looking object? An Armenian meringue cookie sandwich, or at least that's what I'm calling it. If there are any Armenians in the audience or polyglots who might know what its proper name is, please chime in. I choose to call it this because to describe it as just a meringue, a cookie, or a sandwich would be insufficient.

It does, in fact, contain a filling of chopped hazelnuts suspended in a schmear of what I have to guess is either hazelnut paste, speculoos, or buttercream. This is "sandwiched" between two swirly meringue cookies. And when you eat it, it kind if makes you lightheaded--your brain tells your mouth you need more of this in your body. I would imagine this is what happens with drug addicts.

The first thing you think as you look at it is that it will be too sweet, as most meringues are...and it is sweet, but then somehow the thing manages to pull itself back from the brink. It is as if you could combine the best parts of sugar-derived junk foods (like cotton candy) and make it classy and enjoyable for grown ups.

The meringue itself is a thing of wonder, simultaneously sticky, chewy, crumbly, crunchy--a texture somewhere between taffy and a just toasted marshmallow, and already addictive. But as the base for that creamy, chunky, buttery, vanilla-scented filling, it fulfills its true destiny.

The first time we had it, a friend of ours served it to us when we visited her home. Upon tasting it, we asked and found out where it's from: Karina's Cake House in Glendale, which charges a buck fifty for each.

When we found ourselves near Glendale, we bought a dozen and then rationed ourselves one-a-day, because, well, we are responsible sugar addicts. But we discovered that these meringue cookie sandwiches are at their best when eaten within a day of purchase. It loses its characteristic chewiness after 24 hours.

So here is the subject of a future post: Is it possible for two people to eat a dozen of these meringue cookie sandwiches in a 24-hour-period and avoid diabetes?

Karina's Cake House
515 S Glendale Ave
Glendale, CA 91205
(818) 240-6718
http://karinascakehouseglendale.com

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