When it comes to baked goods, some people are adamant that there’s nothing like homemade. Still, it’s hard to compete with cookies, cakes, breads and pies crafted from scratch by a top-notch professional baker or pastry chef. Then there are the one-of-a-kind creations dreamed up by creative pastry wizards across the country. These often spawn copycats (hello, Cronut®!), but biting into the original is still the real deal. These bakeries are worth a trip — even for the accomplished home bakers among us.

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 more under-the-radar, bakery offerings worth devouring. From coast to coast, here are 10 one-of-a-kind treats. — Alia Akkam

In the hierarchy of baked goodies, cookies don’t get as much respect as some of their fancier sugary compatriots. The workhorse of many a bake sale, nothing goes better with a glass of milk (or almond milk) than a still-warm chocolate chip cookie. And where would ice cream sandwiches be without them? But lately, cookies are making a comeback. Artisan bakeries from coast to coast are giving Mrs. Fields a run for her money. From s’mores named after a popular rapper to Oreos with a French Laundry pedigree, you'll want to steal these babies from the cookie jar. — Meesha Halm

Pie is the very symbol of all things American, homemade and nostalgic. It's a metaphor for financial success — not to mention a common prop in slapstick comedy. Most importantly, it's so delicious that we crave it. There are all kinds of pie: seasonal fruit pies, cream filled pies, savory meat pies, and even little hand pies and mini pies. True pie lovers will travel the distance for it. — Amy Sherman

Made from heirloom organic wheat, freshly milled flour and natural yeast, these artisan breads come from a crop of passionate bakers. Pick up a loaf and take your sandwich game to the next level. — Andrea Strong

For some jaded dessert aficionados, the very mention of the word "cupcake" induces eye rolls. Yes, Sex and the City and those absurdly long queues it spawned outside of New York's Magnolia Bakery helped push the spherical concoction into decline, but many a hard-to-resist version still exists. Whether they are churning out a bright strawberry rendition or a hedonistic one shellacked in hot fudge, these 10 bakeries around the country prove that from-scratch cupcakes can still be worth lining up for. — Alia Akkam