Vanilla Slice Slice Baby

Found at: it's at my mums house, address not supplied

Price: Free (usually).

Okay, this is where it all began - the custard obsession. Mum's humble recipe, (no doubt its from a circa 1970's Womens Weekly magazine) has been faithfully turned out 3 or 4 times a year or upon special request and it never disappoints.

Sure its basic - the base = SAO biscuits, the glaze = icing with passionfruit seeds - but its classic flavour and texture keeps me coming back for more. I can't understand why more bakeries don't use the passionfruit on top, its almost the highlight.

As long as the custard is done right this one is a winner and always will be, sure i'm bias and my score will reflect that but for me this one is all about the nostalgia and those flavours that take me back to childhood. The only problem now is that Mum needs to share them amonst grandchildren as well as the children!

Needless to say price was not an issue and the compact size means you can probbaly fit in two (if you save room for dessert).

Found at: 270 South Terrace, South Fremantle / Fremantle Markets Website

Price: $4.20

It's been a while since I have found a decent Vanilla Slice but they seem to be showing up in places again, or perhaps because winter is starting to turn into spring I'm looking a bit harder?.

The southern end of the South St. precinct in Freo has spawned all sorts of various foodie delights (don't get me started on the RunAMok hotdogs), and amongst them a few bake houses.

One of these, Abhi's Bread is heaven.

Firstly they know how to bag a vanilla slice, which means you can carry it back to the office without having to be too delicate with it and its contents will remain in tact and the glaze is not stuck to the bag.

Closer to a traditional mille-feuille with its three pastry layers, this was a fine example after such a long hiatus. Pastry was flaky and the glazing wasn't to sweet and had that nice colour of chooclate decorated into it. The custard was vanilla'ery, velvety smooth and creamy.

Size was spot on and not excessive in price, a welcome return to form.

Tragic news – from the ABC News website

Ouyen loses appetite for vanilla slice contest

The small Mallee town of Ouyen, in north-western Victoria, is bidding farewell to the Great Australian Vanilla Slice contest.

The competition, which attracts about 3,000 people to the Mallee town, is coming to an end after 14 years. Thousands are expected to flock to Oke Street for the last hurrah. The vanilla slice competition involves about 200 entries from bakeries around the state. The categories include professional, innovative, school and amateur.

The event was born when former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett declared that the Mallee Bakery vanilla slice was the best he had ever tasted. Organisers say they cannot find enough volunteers to sustain it.

Event organiser Mark Wilson says he wants the competition to go out on a high and hopes it will be hosted by another town in the Mildura municipality, in Victoria’s north-west.

“We accepted the challenge Jeff Kennett threw our way in 1998 not once, but 14 times,” he says. “It’s the right time for it to move on.”

Found at: Shop 8, 369 Canning Hwy Melville

Price: $4.50 (from memory)

Previously if you wanted to try a Miami Bakehouse pie or slice you had to travel all the way to Miami… – not the city where Dexter lives and kills but the seaside suburb in Mandurah. Not any more!

When i arrived at the store the attendant was engaged in an emotional conversation with a friend – they were lamenting that their favourite TV show was not on that night,

“Ohh no, no Patrick on tv tonight!” was the cry.

I think Patrick must be the female eye-candy in this show, anyway I digress.

Once that unfortunate news had been dealt with I was able to get served a glorious looking Vanilla Slice (remember, that’s why we’re here folks).

Despite the price tag being fairly high (I do find it somewhat ironic that something from Mandurah would turn out to be the most expensive sofar) however, this time it was somewhat justified. Unlike the previous slice this one was a good size and all the elements did what good elements should. .

The pastry was flaky and short, the glaze was sweet, light and had streaks of chocolate icing through it (probably more for appearance).

But it was the essential texture of that fluffy and creamy custard that stood out, could do with a tad more vanilla flavour but very enjoyable.

Both Dexter and Patrick would approve!

Found at: 44 Napoleon St Cottesloe

Price: $4.00 (from memory)

I’ve been occasionally dropping in to Maid Marions after going to the beach for a while, but it had been some time, so when the opportunity came to grab a slice I was really looking forward to it. Maybe it was this weight of expectation or the fact that Culleys had been so enjoyable but I truly found this vanilla slice to be nothing but dissapointing.

For a start the price tag, whilst not OTT for a bakery treat it has been the most expensive I’ve come across. There was nothing to justify (other than being found in Cottesloe, maybe) the price tag in either quality or quantity – it was rather tiny.

Most elements tasted okay but really lacked texture, the glaze was gluggy and the pastry lacked layers, resembling something more like the density of a thick pie base. The custard had plenty of vanilla flavour but again the texture was way off the mark. It had a plastic, ‘spent to long in the fridge’ edge to it and none of that creamy mouth feel you would prefer to get.

Sadly this Robin has not found his perfect match at Maid Marions. I do still love the name of the place though.

Found at: 116 High St Fremantle

Price: $3.20

Culley’s is like the Planet Video of Fremantle, it’s customer base and magnetic pull has wiped out any close-by competition (as far as I can tell, I’m not a local by any means*) and rightly so – the savoury and sweet treats on offer here are very very good.

The vanilla slice ticked all the boxes a good slice should. The pastry was flaky and the glazing was not overly rich. The custard was delightfully smooth and creamy – an almost fluffy texture with a pinpoint level of vanilla flavour.

Size was ideal and the price excellent, at this very early stage it’s going to be hard to find a better basic slice.

Rating: 8.5 / 10