Lemondrop

Cupcakes: they're the new ultra-ubiquitous delicious dessert on the scene. Ever since the Scary Sadshaws started patronizing Magnolia Bakery for their delightful buttercream-topped cupcakes, they've quickly replaced cookies and pies as the go-to treat. Now, there's a cupcake TV show and three (THREE!) cupcake-related holidays. In fact, National Cupcake Day was this week.

We've reached total cupcake saturation. And now we never want to see a tiny, miniaturized, frosted-to-the-death cupcake ever again. Cupcakes are so 2010--and that means there's a new snack that needs to claim primacy in 2011.

Allow us to humbly offer our five top contenders for Pastry of the New Year.

BEAR CLAWS
What can we say? We love a pastry that reminds us of both furry woodland creatures and Harvey Fierstein. Bear claws are typically almond-flavored and might contain almond paste, raisins, buttered pecans or dates. Or Yogi Bear.

NAPOLEANS
We love it when dessert and French imperialism come together, don't you agree? Napoleans (also known as Mille-feuille) consist of two layers of delicious cream or custard squashed between three layers of puff pastry--along with revolutionary fervor and insecurities about being short.

THE CHERMPUMPLE
You might call it the "dessert version of the Turducken." A Chermpumple is a three layer cake and pie travesty which sounds equal parts revolting and absolutely DELICIOUS. The bottom layer is a spice cake with an apple pie in it. The middle layer is a yellow cake with a pumpkin pie in it and the top layer is a white cake with a cherry pie in it. Put it all together and you've got a stunning (and very tall) Chermpumpl (and probably Type 2 diabetes).

HAMENTASHEN
Everybody loves Jews--look at the success of Larry David and Andy Dick. These three-cornered cookies are the Semetic version of a Danish, but more cookie than breakfast pastry. The triangle shape is supposed to represent the three-cornered hat of Haman, the evil buttface villain of the Jewish holiday of Purim.

CANNOLI
Not just the name of a Consigliere in a mafia fam, Cannoli means "little tube" and are made from fried pastry dough filled with a ricotta-based cream. So of course they're healthy.

Tell us: What pastry do you think should be the IT Dessert of 2011?