Circles of Food

Humans are most attached to round food. Think about it. We grew up loving meatballs and maltballs. Gumballs were always a favorite as were  the somewhat healthier melon balls. Now there are some bakers and chefs who are cashing in on that love.

It was the subject of an article in today's New York Daily News (yes, we're taking a temporary break from the  New York Times for today). The piece written by Sheila McClear explains why we're so hard wired to fall for round morsels. It stems from our hunter gatherer days millennia ago. We gathered round berries for food and associated them with something tasty and filling.It has carried with us through the centuries explaining our love of any morsel small and circular.The craze started in the 1800's with the invention of the melon baller and is ever growing and evolving. Some of the latest are the tiny balls of ice cream Dippin Dots and Utz Cheese Balls both created in 1987 and 1990 respectively.

New York food shops are also cashing in our our love. The Doughnuttery in Manhattan's Chelsea Market creates tiny doughnuts, (think Munchkins with holes). These bite size beauties have names like Paris Time which combines macaron flavors like pistachio, lavender and vanilla along with Mistletoe which blends together the holiday flavors of gingerbread, cranberry and sage,  West villages Sugar and Plumm gives us the Danish pancake like dumplings ebelskivers. The little gems can be savory, filled with ham and Gruyere or sweet  with a caramel apple filling.

Little round treats are here to stay. There are several new innovations that will make us love them even more. They're just bite sized bursts of fun and goodness.