Holbrook

Yummy Lummy’s vanilla slice review

Over a five day road trip I enjoyed 5 types of vanilla slice

This post is dedicated to one of my favourite pastries, i.e., the vanilla slice. I’m not talking about the pooncy Mille-feulle that the French make. I’m talking about a good old fashioned vanilla slice that you find at school fetes, an Australian classic. An Australian legend. 

This post is not about the story of the vanilla slice and its iconic position in modern Australian history. This is my opinion (only) on what makes a good vanilla slice.

As I was driving home yesterday, I was chatting with Mum on the telephone. I was describing my holiday experience and the vanilla slices I’d eaten. We discussed how we remember vanilla slices from the time I was a young boy when you get them at the school tuck shop and at school fetes. 

In my mind a good vanilla slice isn’t too tall, that is, the layer of custard only needs to be a centimetre or so not the two or more centimetres you see in most shops. The custard should also be rich and creamy without too much gelatin. I’ve had some vanilla slices which I’m sure I could bounce off a wall because the custard was like a squash ball. You don’t want your tongue to slide off the custard, the custard needs to be soft enough that you can manipulate the custard with the tip of your tongue. You want to be able to savour and taste the custard, it needs to coat your tongue so that all the amazing flavour of the custard can give you that amazing rush. The pastry should be thin but not so flaky and hard that when you bite into it it cracks and creates a flaky snow storm. I don’t mean soggy, soggy pastry isn’t good, but soft to firm. This goes for both the bottom layer of pastry and the top layer. The icing is contentious. I’m a fan of both the passionfruit and pink icing variations. I’m not a fan of the white icing with chocolate swirls. That sort of fanciness has no place in vanilla slice making (IMHO). The icing needs to be subtle, sweet, but not sickly sweet. It also needs to be thin, not thick, thick makes it too sweet. The icing also needs to be soft so that when you bite into the slice your maxillary incisors can slice cleanly through the icing into the custard and the mandibular incisors cleanly slice through the pastry and into the custard. You don’t want to make a mess. You don’t want your fingers to be too sticky. You want to be able to eat a vanilla slice with your hands or if you’re with polite company with a fork. Modern day vanilla slices often have icing that is too thick or too ‘tempered’ so it snaps or embeds into the custard as you push down with a fork. 

In terms of shape and size, rectangles or squares are fine but not too big. Everything in moderation people, you want to have that feeling of wanting more but knowing you’ve had enough with just one slice. 

Okay here’s the lineup of vanilla slices from my recent holiday. 

Holbrook Bakery (central)

This was the first vanilla slice of the trip. It’s from the (central) Holbrook Bakery (there are two, viz., central and southern). You can see the icing has been dusted with icing sugar. I believe this is superfluous. If the pastry is too stiff when you bite in or when you use a fork the icing sugar goes all over the place, not a good thing if you’re wearing a black shirt. I made the mistake of going for the French vanilla slice which has a layer of cream. The cream was good but because the pastry was too hard you basically squirt the cream all over the place making for a messy experience. If I was eating this over my kitchen sink or in the bath tub with my hands that would be fine but not in a bakery or cafe. 

Vanilla slice from the central Holbrook bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40
Vanilla slice from the central Holbrook bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40

Henri’s Wodonga Bakery

Henri’s is a big bakery in the Coles car park in Wodonga. There’s a lot of tables and chairs and a great selection of cakes. The pastry and custard in this vanilla slice was good. The icing though was too thick. Way too thick. I lifted it off when I couldn’t get my fork through it. I ate the icing separately. I really enjoyed the custard and the pastry but the icing was too sweet. 

Vanilla slice from Henri's bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 50
Vanilla slice from Henri’s bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 50

Hides Bakery Benalla

So this was the only passionfruit icing I came across on my trip. It was really nice and the flavour was subtle. The tang of the passionfruit was there and contrasted nicely with the sweetness of the soft and light icing. The custard though was a little too gelatinous. 

Passionfruit vanilla slice from Hides Bakery in Benalla Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40
Passionfruit vanilla slice from Hides Bakery in Benalla Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40

Kemp’s Bakery in Kilmore

Before I describe the vanilla slice let me say this is a really good bakery/cafe. The staff are friendly and helpful. The tables and chairs are great and not too close together. The best part of the bakery is the toilets. Best, cleanest well lit toilets I came across on this trip. I’d happily read a newspaper in the toilets in Kemp’s Bakery in Kilmore. Now the icing on this vanilla is this pink. Can it be too pink? Who knows! What I found odd was the strawberry flavour in the icing. The custard was set a little too high and was a bit gelatinous too. 

Vanilla slice from Kemp's Bakery in Kilmore Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/120sec, ISO 32
Vanilla slice from Kemp’s Bakery in Kilmore Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/120sec, ISO 32

Beechworth Bakery in Beechworth

I didn’t have Beechworth in my original itinerary. That said, quite a few friends told me they thought the Beechworth vanilla slice was the best. One friend in particular who I know to be a connoisseur of vanilla slices thought Beechworth was the place to go. Given I was driving at a leisurely pace on this holiday, I took a detour from Wangaratta to Beechworth and then headed on to Holbrook. The Beechworth Bakery is impressive and if you check out yesterday’s post you’ll see why in the display case photograph I posted. This vanilla slice was certainly good. The custard wasn’t too high. The custard wasn’t too gelatinous. The pastry was softish. The icing though was thick. That said, the Beechworth Bakery Vanilla slice was probably the best of this trip and I’m glad I took some time out to visit. The better reason though to visit Beechworth Bakery is their beesting. OMG the best beesting ever. Custard in light sweet pastry. It was amazing. 

Vanilla slice from Beechworth Bakery

 

So have these vanilla slices been better than my all time favourite of recent years? NO The vanilla slice from the Gumnut Patisserie at Bowral (or Mittagong or Moss Vale) still ranks as the best even though it does have pooncy white icing with chocolate swirls. 

Sunday morning tea. Vanilla slices from Gumnut Patisserie in Bowral. The best vanilla slice in the world I reckon. | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/1000sec, ISO 100
Sunday morning tea. Vanilla slices from Gumnut Patisserie in Bowral. The best vanilla slice in the world I reckon. | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/1000sec, ISO 100

The last word on my vanilla slice journey comes from my Mum. “Gary you know the only way you’re going to enjoy the perfect vanilla slice is if you practice and make it yourself”.
 

[googlemaps-photo-gallery] 

I also want to mention that one of the enjoyable parts of my driving holiday wasn’t just listening to podcasts on Star Trek and photography, but the book The Crossroad by Mark Donaldson, VC. It’s an open account of what made the man. I’d recommend the book to anyone interested in defending human rights, being Australian and loving life.  

So no more bakeries for me (for a week or two anyway) Do you have a vanilla slice story you’d like to share? Please leave a comment.  

1 vanilla slice, 1 cottage pie and salmon

So today ends the driving portion of my short holiday. I woke up in Wangaratta after another crapulent sleep and after not seeing the kettle yesterday when I checked in found the kettle and some instant coffee. After a shower I packed up and set off for Beechworth. I had been told by a number of friends that the best bakery to visit in Victoria is the Beechworth Bakery just east of Wangaratta. I thought a detour was in order. 

My jeans are already tight and what is a few more calories going to change? 

I plan to write a specific post about vanilla slices on this trip so I won’t go into detail about what I think makes for a good vanilla slice. Suffice to say, the vanilla slice from the Beechworth bakery is good but not amazingly good and is still not a patch on the Gumnut Patisserie in Bowral. The pink icing was subtle with little or no flavour besides the sweetness of the sugar. The custard had a very nice flavour and the custard wasn’t too gelatinous, and was probably the best custard of this trip. 

Vanilla slice from Beechworth Bakery

This bakery though has another pastry that I adore and again it’s a custard filled pastry. Can you guess what I’m buzzing at? That’s a clue there too. 

Take a look at this photograph and you’ll know what I mean.

Beechworth Bakery

So my next stop was in Holbrook, I’d already tried the central Holbrook Bakery so today I went to the southern one and enjoyed a cottage pie. So far on this trip every bakery I’ve been in hasn’t had a potato pie, either they had sold out or they just didn’t have them.

Cottage Pie

I finally got into Canberra sometime after 3 pm and after grocery shopping went for a walk to move my legs after sitting on my big fat arse all day 

It’s Monday and you know what that means right?

Curry salmon and rice

Curried salmon with peas, corn and fried onions on brown rice. 


 

For dessert I had the best beesting ever.

Beesting Beesting 

2 vanilla slices 1 pie 1 steak and 1 tiramisu

Today I started five days recreation leave from work. I drove from Canberra to Wangaratta and stopped at the Dog on the tucker box (near Gundagai), Holbrook, and Wodonga.

I’m on my way to Geelong to spend a couple of days watching Miss13 compete in the WAG National Club Championships at the Geelong Arena. 

I’ve never driven through southern NSW and Victoria before so in preparation I spoke with many friends who have lived in Victoria. A recurring theme is the food in Victoria is better than anywhere else and the bakeries can’t be beaten. 

Here is my path from Canberra to Wangaratta

[sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/2014-11-11T204611Z.gpx”]

The dog on the tucker box near Gundagai SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 70mm and f/4, 1/1600sec, ISO 100
The dog on the tucker box near Gundagai SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 70mm and f/4, 1/1600sec, ISO 100
The dog on the tucker box near Gundagai SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 52mm and f/8, 1/500sec, ISO 100
The dog on the tucker box near Gundagai SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 52mm and f/8, 1/500sec, ISO 100

The next stop was Holbrook because I heard the bakery was amazing and the vanilla slice there was the best in NSW. That is a big claim given my love for the vanilla slices from the Gumnut bakeries in Mittagong and Bowral. 

Before I got to the bakery I stopped at HMAS Otway. Holbrook is the adopted home for the submarine. 

HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/4, 1/1000sec, ISO 100
HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/4, 1/1000sec, ISO 100
HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/8, 1/200sec, ISO 100
HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/8, 1/200sec, ISO 100
Public art SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 67mm and f/22, 1/25sec, ISO 100
Public art SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 67mm and f/22, 1/25sec, ISO 100
HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/8, 1/800sec, ISO 100
HMAS Otway SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 24mm and f/8, 1/800sec, ISO 100

Then I got into the bakery and asked for a vanilla slice. 

Vanilla slice from the central Holbrook bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40
Vanilla slice from the central Holbrook bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 40

It was good but it wasn’t great. It certainly wasn’t as good as the vanilla slice from the Gumnut patisseries. 

The central Holbrook Bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/1600sec, ISO 32
The central Holbrook Bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/1600sec, ISO 32

The drive was made more interesting by podcasts. I love the fact with my iPhone I can listen to podcasts rather than having to rely on the radio or a CD. Today I listened to a couple of Star Trek podcasts from Trek.fm, a Jared Polin “I shoot RAW” podcast as well as a Trevor Long “Your tech life podcast. 

The next stop was Wodonga just over the NSW/Victoria border. The Murray River at the cross over is fairly narrow. I was expecting a more substantial river.

I stopped at Henri’s Wodonga Bakery and enjoyed a nice pepper steak hot pie with sauce. 

Pepper steak pie with tomato sauce from Henri's bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/15sec, ISO 50
Pepper steak pie with tomato sauce from Henri’s bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/15sec, ISO 50

I also had another vanilla slice. This is the first time in decades I’ve tried a vanilla slice with pink icing just like when I was a kid buying them at school. This one was very good, although the icing was a little too thick and very very sweet. The custard was nicer than the Holbrook bakery vanilla slice.

Vanilla slice from Henri's bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 50
Vanilla slice from Henri’s bakery in Wodonga Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/30sec, ISO 50
Henri's Wodonga Bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/1300sec, ISO 32
Henri’s Wodonga Bakery Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/1300sec, ISO 32

The next stop was Wangaratta and the motel I’d booked. 

I love how motels in Australia always seem to place this strip of paper or a variation of it over the toilet seat. 

Toilet seat hygienically cleaned in the Park View Motel Wangaratta Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/60sec, ISO 40
Toilet seat hygienically cleaned in the Park View Motel Wangaratta Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/60sec, ISO 40

The room is pretty good and it has free wi-fi. I’ll write a review in TripAdvisor soon. 

Parkview Motel Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 32mm and f/5, 1/125sec, ISO 100
Parkview Motel Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 32mm and f/5, 1/125sec, ISO 100

For dinner I went for a walk to find a restaurant. I found Cafe Martini and decided to ask for a steak.

 
Cafe Martini on Urbanspoon

On the way to Cafe Martini though I shot some photographs of some public art and the King River

 

 

Public art Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 46mm and f/8, 1/400sec, ISO 100
Public art Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 46mm and f/8, 1/400sec, ISO 100
King River Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 39mm and f/22, 1/60sec, ISO 320
King River Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 39mm and f/22, 1/60sec, ISO 320
Public art in Wangaratta Park SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 53mm and f/5.6, 1/60sec, ISO 125
Public art in Wangaratta Park SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 53mm and f/5.6, 1/60sec, ISO 125
Public art in Wangaratta Park, Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 65mm and f/5, 1/80sec, ISO 160
Public art in Wangaratta Park, Wangaratta SONY ILCE-7S with FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS at 65mm and f/5, 1/80sec, ISO 160

I asked for the rib eye fillet on the bone cooked rare with vegetables. The steak was rare and well rested. It was very good. I’d eat here again. 

Rib eye fillet steak at Cafe Martini, Wangaratta Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/40sec, ISO 32
Rib eye fillet steak at Cafe Martini, Wangaratta Apple iPhone 6 with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/40sec, ISO 32

For dessert I had the tiramisu. It was also pretty good. 

Tiramisu at Cafe Martini Wangaratta Apple + Pro HDR iPhone with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/180sec, ISO 32
Tiramisu at Cafe Martini Wangaratta Apple + Pro HDR iPhone with iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f/2.2 at 4mm and f/2.2, 1/180sec, ISO 32

So that’s it for day one. 

Have you driven through southern NSW and Victoria? Tell me about your experiences.