In the city of Gent, in Belgium, is one of the
smallest storefronts I have ever seen. It is
the space of a closet ~ by that, I mean the
closets of our youth, not the closets in today's
McMansions. I "discovered" it by scent, I
could smell that irresistible aroma of butter
and cinnamon, it made me think of an apple
fritter. I turned the corner and came upon
this young man. He was a good looking guy
with a fabulous sales pitch ~ he could sell ice
to eskimos.
Gestreken Mastelle are traditional treats in Gent.
They sort of looked like a flattened bagel. In the
old days you would cut the bun in half and add
butter and brown sugar and heat it with your
clothes iron. The name means "ironed buns" in
Dutch. This guy was using something like a
panini press and you can get them now with all
sorts of savory fillings, like salmon and brie.
We had been climbing through castles and
churches and cobblestone streets and a
snack seemed like the perfect thing. We got
out our euros and then noticed everyone in the
crowd had their euros out as well. Needless to
say, it would have been a long wait and we
needed to move on. So, sadly, I didn't get to
taste this treat ~ but it is a reason to return
to lovely Gent someday.
