Sugar Shock: Hip to Be Square

Inside a renovated midcentury building in 12South that was once home to beloved vintage clothing shop Katy K Designs and Ranch Dressing sits a new kind of eye candy. The best kind of eye candy — edible eye candy.

The Butter Milk Ranch is where dessert dreams come true. The cafe and bakery opened in October and serves breakfast, lunch and desserts Wednesday through Sunday, with a special emphasis on the sweet side of the menu. The front counter displays an array of baked goods, from cookies and something called Southern Lard Bread to more than half a dozen different kinds of croissants — twice-baked almond, lemon poppy, maple bacon, raspberry pain au chocolat, butter pecan and more. On the other side of the front counter is the refrigerated pastry case, where a colorful selection of picture-perfect single-serving mousse cake entremets shine brightly from behind the glass like valuable artifacts in a gallery.

Unseen until you order it: the croissant cube, The Butter Milk Ranch’s take on the breakfast sandwich. A cube-shaped croissant — yes, cube-shaped — is split in half and filled with eggs, cheese and your choice of meat. This is a life-changing invention for anyone who clamors to get the corner piece of anything, as there are eight crunchy corners that burst into delicate buttery flakes with each bite. It is fantastic.

All of this is made by pastry chef Alyssa Gangeri, a New York transplant who came to Nashville in 2018. Gangeri has been baking since she was a child, having first developed her skills while hanging out in the kitchen with her grandmother. She learned more trade secrets at the Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park, N.Y., and eventually worked with some of New York’s best chefs, including Tom Colicchio, Norman Van Aken and Gray Kunz. In 2015 she also launched a series of children’s cookbooks called Mimi’s Adventures in Baking, in which a young girl named Mimi learns how to make everything from New York-style pizza to gingerbread men.

The Butter Milk Ranch’s desserts aren’t the kind of sugary delights I’d ever attempt on my own — I tried to make croissants exactly once. It was a disaster, and I promised to never do it again because it was an insult to butter for me to even attempt. But Gangeri was kind enough to spill some of her kitchen secrets anyway. See our conversation below.

 I need to know more about your croissants. What is the key to getting a really, really good croissant?

Croissants are a serious labor of love and dedication. I was lucky enough to train under the famous Antonio Bachour in Miami, where I learned how to make croissants and viennoiserie. There are so many variables that go into ensuring the perfect croissant — a slight change in temperature can affect your dough and end product in a big way. Our croissants at The Butter Milk Ranch are a three-day process. Lamination is a delicate process that takes a lot of patience and attention to ensure you are creating the perfect layers. At BMR we are really trying to focus on small-batch baking to ensure that no matter what time you visit, you get to enjoy a croissant that is less than two hours out of the oven. The fresher the better. If you eat a croissant and don’t make a flaky mess you aren’t enjoying a fresh croissant!

I have sampled several of the entremets from the pastry case, and I think one of my favorites is the black forest cake. It is so flavorful, and that mousse is the perfect texture — what is the secret to good flavor balance? There are a lot of components in the entremets, and I’d imagine it can take some experimentation to ensure they all work well together.

Our entremet case was always meant to be similar to a jewel case that was bright, colorful and happy. Almost like small edible pieces of art. There is nothing better than something that catches your eye and tastes even better. Developing new desserts is something I am constantly doing. Both our entremet and baked-good cases change all the time. I love experimenting with new flavors and techniques, but I focus heavily on making sure the flavors are balanced. Not too sweet, not too heavy — it has to be just right, which takes some trial and error sometimes. Luckily I have a great team that is always willing to taste test and give feedback!

I believe if you aren’t learning and growing you become stale. I strive every day to be better than yesterday. Developing new flavor combinations is something we are constantly working on. The key is focusing not only on flavors that work well together but textures as well. I am a big texture person. I love creating the perfect mousse and pairing it with a delicate cake, along with a softer filling and maybe a light crunch component as well. I believe taking it to another level is what separates a good dessert from a great one.

I loved the Yule log too — what are some of the spices in it that make it taste extra Christmassy?

The Yule log is one of our bestsellers currently! When I opened up Butter Milk Ranch we brought in some of the amazing High Garden Teas. One of my favorites was the Bergamot Chai, and the moment I tasted it I wanted to transform it into a dessert. I find inspiration all over for new desserts. Our Yule log is made with a flourless dark chocolate cake, bergamot chai cream cheese mousse and finished with a chocolate caramel ganache. The bergamot chai I felt gave the perfect subtle holiday flavor without it being overpowering. The flavors of cloves, orange peel, black pepper, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom are married perfectly with the citrus flavor of bergamot and the subtle sweetness of cream cheese.

Are you working on any more books for the Mimi’s Adventure in Baking series?

Mimi’s Adventures in Baking has been a huge passion project for me. I always wanted to write a cookbook but never knew what was going to separate mine from the thousands of others. I spent countless hours in Barnes & Noble, wandering around the cooking section trying to figure out what I wanted to write. One day I ventured into the kids’ section and realized there was a huge lack of children’s cookbooks. The thing with baking is, it is perfect for core STEM learning. There is so much hands-on learning in baking all while children get to do a fun project. From science to math to following directions. I knew at that moment that I wanted to develop the first-ever children’s storybook cookbook. I am working on my fifth book, which is slated to be all about learning how to make biscuits. At the BMR we are working on perfecting a laminated biscuit to stay in line with our other laminated products, and my hope is to create a version of that recipe for the newest book!