Since its May 10th debut in New York City, the Dominique Ansel Bakery cronut has fascinated the world. Trademarking the original name hasn’t deterred imitations from springing up worldwide — from Melbourne and Dublin to Jakarta and Singapore. There’s the Kronut, and then the Croughnut, the Dossant, and what have you. Back in the Big Apple, many would stand in the super-long line outside the bakery, often as early as two and a half hours before the bakery opens, just to indulge themselves in this guilty pleasure! The cronut is best described as “half croissant, half doughnut,” and has to be served fresh. It’s made with a croissant-inflected laminated dough, but the recipe remains a proprietary secret. According to the bakery’s website, it took chef-owner Dominique Ansel two months and more than 10 recipes to nail it. After coming out of the fryer, cronuts are rolled in sugar and then filled with cream before getting glazed on top. He stressed that it shouldn’t be, however, mistaken simply as a croissant dough that’s been deep-fried. Well, thank goodness you need not take a 20-plus-hour flight to get to NYC just for the cronut. If you are already a dessert fiend, you would have probably heard of or even tasted Malaysia’s own versions of the infamous doughnut. But here’s the downside: only two places are offering cronut knockoffs as of now (there were three, actually, but one of them has already closed its cronut production). DESSERT STORM (Tuesdays – Sundays, 1 – 10 p.m., 9:30 p.m. for last order) This dessert pop-up is a fairly new feature of Ben’s Independent Grocer in Publika. Its themes change monthly, and its menu weekly, including its KLonuts (how punny!). Three different flavors are offered at any one time, like its signature Peanut Butter & Caramel. And just 100 are made daily — first come, first served! Make your way there as soon as possible because these deep-fried babies are available only till Oct. 30! BURPS AND GIGGLES (Wednesdays – Mondays, 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m.) Miles from K.L. is this cozy little café in Ipoh that offers cronuts — that’s a good news for anyone up there who want to sink their teeth into this pastry hybrid. One caveat, though: the cronuts are available on any three given days each week, starting 8:30 a.m. until they’re sold out. And only four to five are up for grab every time! Flavors vary, too, depending on ingredient availability. Why not take some (or all!) home if you happen to spot them!