Cupcakes? Done (unless you're Chris Romer or one of his minions). Pies? Yes, I adore them, especially when they're plumped with fresh fruit. But, as of about noon yesterday, I'm hot, like California boys on California "Gurls," for popsicles. But not -- definitely not -- the shirt-staining, artificially flavored ice pops that riddle supermarket shelves. Those suck. And the ice crystals that pass for popsicles handed out by escaped convicts your friendly neighborhood ice cream truck driver, force kids to spend their entire allowance just to be able to yell "Bomb Pop" without getting sent to juvy.
No, the popsicles I'm talking about are the kind that make you really want to lick a stick. And for those, you've got to go to Spuntino, which recently opened in Highland. The popsicles are made in-house, from natural juices and fruits (and sometimes spices), in some sort of awesome contraption that swirls and whirls and freezes and god knows what else. But suffice it to say that they're jaw-droppingly delicious. The flavors, of which there are many, change on a whim, but if the incredible celery and lime ice pop is available, buy a case and horde it like you would gold. I'm not a fan of celery. In fact, I pretty much abhor it, but the juice, combined with the intense citrus of the lime, is an unlikely combination that's about as much fun as you can have sucking a stick.
Hungry for more? All the dishes in our countdown are linked below:
No. 100: Italian wedding soup from the Squeaky Bean No. 99: American Classic Burger (and fries) from Tarbell's No. 98: E's clam linguini from Mangiamo Pronto No. 97: Queso a la plancha taco from the Pinche Tacos wagon No. 96: Prosciutto-wrapped jalapeño poppers from Tony's Market No. 95: Fried chicken from the Pinyon No. 94: Seafood soup from Farro No. 93: Posole from The Porker No. 92: Breakfast Burrito from the Taco Wagon in Lafayette No. 91: Hummus from Shish Kabob Grill No. 90: Albondigas meatballs from Solera No. 89: Lemon-ricotta doughnuts from Olivéa No. 88: Döner kabob from Shondiz No. 87: Roasted cauliflower salad from Euclid Hall No. 86: Beef cheek enchiladas from El Diablo No. 85: Fried Brussels sprouts from Panzano No. 84: Pork osso buco from Osteria Marco No. 83: Cazuela Colombiana from Cafe Brazil No. 82: Chicken potpie from Devil's Food No. 81: Sichuan braised beef noodle soup from Zoe Ma Ma No. 80: Larb nua from Taste of Thailand No. 79: Pork shank from Argyll No. 78: Truffo panino from Shangri-La Cafe No. 77: Pig-snout tacos from Guadalajara Authentic Mexican Buffet No. 76: Speck and maple ice cream from Pizzeria Basta No. 75: Tom yum goong from Thai Flavor No. 74: South African black ruff from TAG No. 73: Gumbo from Bistro One No. 72: New England clam chowder from Bittersweet
In late 2009, we embarked on a culinary journey that took us through our favorite dishes in the Mile High City -- one hundred, to be exact -- as a precursor to the Best of Denver 2010 issue. Now we're back with round two, counting down (in no particular order) a hundred more of our favorite Denver dishes in a list that, by our imperfect calculations, should be wrapped up by the time the Best of Denver 2011 hits the streets on March 31. In the meantime, if there's a dish you think we need to try, tell us about it in the comments section below, or shoot us an e-mail at [email protected].
