Restaurant Week 2023 continues with Visit Greater St. Cloud, and Thursday’s category is one I am beyond excited about, “Sweet Treats!” I have an active sweet tooth (that the dentist keeps reinforcing via cavity fills) and I know just how great the options are here in the St. Cloud area.
- Monday: Health Conscious
- Tuesday: Seafood
- Wednesday: Pasta
- Thursday: Sweet Treats
- Friday: Beverages
- Saturday: Unique Finds
- Sunday: Sandwiches
Mixin’ It Up Gluten Free Bakery: 106 2nd Ave N, Sauk Rapids, MN 56379
Mixin’ It Up Gluten Free Bakery is a place that holds a special piece of my heart. I have a dairy allergy and finding a dessert made with no butter, milk, whipped cream, or cream cheese in Central Minnesota can be a daunting task. Mixin’ It Up is a place I know I can walk in to and ALWAYS find something to satisfy my sugar craving. In addition to everything being gluten-free and celiac-safe, their dairy-free options are always growing. One of my favorite things to get just so happens to be their featured item for Restaurant Week 2023, the Loaded Cupcakes. These monstrous cupcakes are expertly topped with everything from Fruity Pebbles cereal to full Oreo cookies. I brought a 6-pack of them home for Mother’s Day last weekend and had my family do a taste test. My niece went for a raspberry lemonade flavor, and my dad opted for blueberry. I myself enjoyed the cookies and cream cupcake with the Oreo on top, and I think that one might just be my new favorite.
Jupiter Moon Ice Cream: 15 E Minnesota Street, St. Joseph, MN 56374
Jupiter Moon Ice Cream is another one of my old-reliable places to find great dairy-free desserts. Jupiter Moon started as just a small ice cream operation, peddling ice cream joy out of a special bike. Now they have a brick-and-mortar location in St. Joseph, and it is one of my favorite places to bring out-of-town guests. Everyone is blown away by the selection of hand-crafted ice cream made on-site. We just recently went there with a friend who moved to the area and he said “I’m glad I don’t live in St. Joseph because this place could be a problem for me.”
There are so many great rotating flavors of ice cream at Jupiter Moon that it is hard for me to pick just one to highlight. Personal favorites of mine in the past have been the spicy mango, key lime coconut, and raspberry berry beret sorbet. But really you can’t go wrong with any flavor in a freshly made waffle cone.
More restaurant week content will be coming out as the week goes on. To see a full list of participating restaurants and get involved with the giveaways going on to celebrate, visit the Visit Greater St. Cloud website. And check out The Small Town Tourist Podcast for a deep dive into Restaurant Week and the St. Cloud food scene.
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