Usually Vermont is slow to see national trends, but not in the case of the "cronut." Dominique Ansel, pastry chef at the bakery of the same, debuted the croissant-doughnut hybrid on May 10. Since then, hungry New York fans have risen before dawn to wait in line or get on waiting lists, and even have scalped the breakfast sweets for upward of $100 apiece.

While the mania hasn't caught on yet in Vermont, the pastry has. For more than a month, Burlington's Mirabelles has been quietly selling its own variety of "cronuts." (Yep, Ansel has already acquired an international trademark.)

The pastries are available Friday and Saturday at the Main Street bakery in as many as four flavors each day.

Longtime Mirabelles baker Brian Cashman says that all the hype around the New York fad inspired co-owner Alison Lane to attempt her own version. After a few tries, the Mirabelles "cronut" was born.

Cashman fries rounds of the buttery, croissant-style dough, resulting in a puffy, doughnut-like body. He cuts each pastry in half and fills it with custard, then glazes the top.

On Friday morning, only two flavors were ready when I stopped by Mirabelles: creme brulee and one topped with raspberry glaze and filled with orange-blossom custard.

The first thing I learned was, if you're buying "cronuts" to share, get one for each person. The flaky, crackly, chewy pastry is nearly impossible to cut. But that's what makes it so gloriously delicious.

Most of my colleagues were impressed with the sweet, especially one designer who ate the crumbs off the plate after everyone else had finished.

They only questioned the $3.50 price tag. Still, it's better than Ansel's $5 Cronuts. And, after all, your money is getting you both a croissant and a doughnut.