New York pastry wizard Dominique Ansel's imaginative croissant-meets-doughnut creation is perhaps the most buzzed-about dessert in history. Endless queues and myriad impostors hatched in its wake, yet there are other compelling, if not more under-the-radar, bakery offerings worth devouring. From coast to coast, here are 10 one-of-a-kind treats.

Lime sugar cookies certainly tempt, but stifling Southern temperatures make the ice pops at this Cannonborough-Elliotborough bakery a no-brainer come summertime. Owners Bill Bowick and David Bouffard, both former architects, puree fresh fruits from local farmers to make their cool, icy slabs in flavors such as strawberry, lemon-blueberry and creamy peach. Order the watermelon and, for a more piquant twist, they will dust it in salt from Charleston’s own Bulls Bay Saltworks.

Among the buckwheat scones and honey pecan sticky buns found at Sandra and Mathieu Holl's Lincoln Park bakery, one discovers the peanut butter and jelly cookie. Two golden-brown orbs, spun from creamy peanut butter, vanilla, and white and brown sugars — yes, they're safe for flour-shunning dessert fans — are sealed by a blob of homemade raspberry jam.

Masala eggs and butter chicken curries usually bring the crowds to Pondicheri. Then, Anita Jaisinghani decided to open a bakery above her Upper Kirby Indian cafe, and her affinity for spices also became illuminated in pumpkin chai pie and saffron-infused yogurt. The cardamom-forward besan mithai, a sunflower and pumpkin seed-strewn chickpea fudge, is a particularly novel departure from the usual barrage of chocolate versions.