Missouri Baking Co. opened on the Hill in 1924 and has earned a reputation for its cassata cake, cannoli, Italian bread, and assorted cookies. This seemed like a slam dunk – if anyone in St. Louis was going to do tiramisu right, it would be the nearly 100-year-old bakery in St. Louis's Little Italy.

                I was wrong! It was not what I expected. When I think tiramisu, I think spongy lady fingers oozing espresso and rum or Marsala wine covered in a thick layer of custard. It’s rich, yet airy. While Missouri Baking Co.'s tiramisu was airy, it had hardly any espresso flavor. It was made with two layers of vanilla cake that looked like it had a skimpy drizzle of coffee on top of each layer. That was it! Then there was a buttery layer of frosting on top, which tasted fine, but was not the creamy goodness I was looking for. It was good cake and paired well with a cup of coffee, but without the interesting texture and flavor of coffee-soaked lady fingers, it lacked personality.

                I also tried a blackberry cobbler that suffered from a similar problem. I expect cobbler crust to be flaky like a pie crust or maybe dry like a biscuit. While this was denser and flakier than cake, it had a distinct cake-y sponginess and sweetness. I didn’t dislike it, but I would have preferred a flakier texture. The filling itself was wonderful – not too sweet and not too tart.

                After this disappointing first trip, I wanted to give Missouri Baking Co. another try. It has earned too many stars and rave reviews over the decades not to deserve another shot. Plus, with the huge selection, I figured I could hit upon something delicious.
                When I walked in for round two, the place was packed with eager customers. I had to take a number and wait for one of the teenagers behind the counter to call me up. While I looked around, I asked a couple of women what they recommended. Without hesitation, they directed me to the cookie section, so I took their advice. I got four kinds: amaretto macaroons, a chocolate and mint cookie, a butter cookie topped with apricot jam and a ravioli cookie, which was shaped like ravioli with jagged edges and walnuts sprinkled on top.
               Round two went much better. The young woman who took my order recommended the amaretto macaroon and explained it was voted best cookie in St. Louis by Riverfront Times. It lived up to this reputation. It had a balanced sweetness and pleasant almond flavor. The chocolate and mint was my favorite, though I preferred it without the mint frosting. The ravioli was almost too sweet for me, but the walnuts cut it with a slightly bitter flavor. The apricot cookie tasted like a boring sugar cookie with sticky jam on top. Not my thing.
               While I didn't accomplish my mission to discover phenomenal, classic tiramisu, I did figure out why Missouri Baking Company gets so much love. It's worth a trip for the cookies, at least. Just be sure to bring cash - it's cash only!