This month marks the 100th birthday of Nashville’s own
Goo Goo Cluster. There are a number of events planned to help celebrate, including the
Jog ‘n’ Hogand
The Great Goo Goo Scavenger Hunt(both taking place this Saturday, Oct. 13). But Nashville area restaurants are celebrating all month long with special Goo Goo-inspired desserts. I was lucky enough to sample a couple of these cluster concoctions, but I had to be selective. You see, I don’t like peanuts with chocolate. I know. I know.
That’s why I was happy to hear that Riffs made their dessert, Goo Goo Cluster Supreme biscuit pudding with the Goo Goo Supreme (obviously). No peanuts! A biscuit pudding is like a bread pudding, but not quite so mushy. These biscuits soaked in buttermilk and mixed with the candy were great on their own, but the bourbon sauce really made them a dessert. I think I may have gotten tipsy.
Next up, I made my first ever visit to the Copper Kettle to try the red velvet bread pudding (with the warm Goo Goo sauce on the side). Luckily, lunch was a salad because I needed those saved calories for this decadence. It was like a red velvet cake that was moist from melted ice cream but still warm. And not too much of the candy in there to make it too peanutty for me to eat. Very tasty.
Because of my aversion to chocolate with peanuts, I enlisted the help of Nicki Wood to sample some of the other desserts. Tough job, no? Her first stop was at The Painted Cupcake in Green Hills, where she described the treat thusly: a fudge cupcake, dense caramel center, Goo Goo chunks and toasted marshmallow, but light, not too rich and just the right size. That’s a good endorsement. Over at Sloco, Nicki enjoyed the Goo Goo Cluster cookie that uses Goo Goo chunks instead of chocolate chips. It got a thumbs-up as well.
And there are many, many more Goo Goo Cluster desserts to taste all over the city, ranging from the simple (Goo Goo Cluster brownie at Provence) to the elaborate (Cluster’s Last Stand at Flyte). Here’s a full list:
