What’s in a name? Something unexpectedly delicious.

Eric and I stopped by the Public Market Saturday afternoon to check out the Grand Opening festivites. If you haven’t been down yet, you really should make time. The array of things collected in that single building is astounding.

Eric had his pocket knife sharpened for $3.50 by Mack the Knife (awesome name). We bought some beautiful and delicious corn on the cob. We sampled pasties that tasted just like the ones Grandma used to make (and we tried one with Italian Sausage and Basil, which I wish my Grandma used to make). We chatted with a guy who makes bird feeders from cast-off shiny stuff like soap dishes and cake plates. I talked to a lady about attending her group knitting lessons that’ll begin after the first of the year. We tried pickled garlic and jalapeno goat cheese.

Then we came upon The Scone Ranger booth — a place my friend Michelle had raved about after a recent market visit. Typically I’d walk on by someone peddling scones; why would I want to gnaw on a brick of sort-of sweet bread when there are cupcakes in the world? But I had on good authority that these were something different, and let’s face it, the name is clever as hell so I was a fan already. We graciously accepted a sample from the energetic lady at the table. Chocolate? You bet! Cherry Almond? Thank you very much. How about a gluten-free Pumpkin scone? O.M.G.

Let me just say, this is what you should be having for breakfast tomorrow. And probably the day after that. There was nothing dry about these organically shaped blobs of sweetish bread. They were dense, like you’d expect, but they were moist and chewy like you never thought possible.

This is a picture of the gluten-free Pumpkin scone … soft and spongy and not a single choke-inducing crumb in sight. All topped off with a silky smooth glaze. Oh, Hi-ho!

You’ll find The Scone Ranger, and a couple dozen other local vendors of all things fresh and funky, at the Spokane Public Market at 24 W. Second in downtown Spokane. It’s open 10 - 6 Thursday through Saturday.