for the ladies

I have had a crazy start to the new year with lots of traveling!  Starting at Christmas I went to Cincinnati, then Eastern Florida, then New York, down to Miami, Western Michigan, back to Cincinnati, and ended the travels in Tampa.  That was one month.  While my frequent flyer miles were growing, my mixer was getting dusty.  As soon as I had some down time in Chicago I decided to get to work.

Three of my best friends have birthdays in January.  Unfortunately, none of them are in Chicago.  I had all intentions of baking them each a different cupcake and then shipping them out.  Nope.  That didn't exactly happen.  I ended up making one flavor to honor all of them.  I didn't send any, but it is the thought that counts, right??


I made red wine and chocolate cupcakes.  This is fitting because I have had a lot of wine and chocolate with these ladies.  I went to Trader Joe's and picked up a bottle of 2 buck chuck.  I didn't find it necessary to use a nice wine when baking.  

The recipe had quite a lot going on, but I made it work... This wonderful recipe came from sprinklebakes.com

Cake:
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 oz. dark chocolate broken into small pieces
1/4 cup boiling water
1 stick butter, room temp
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 1/8 cup all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup red wine

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a medium heatproof bowl, combine cocoa powder and chocolate pieces, whisk in the boiling water until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

3. In a large bowl, cream the butter and granulated sugar.  Beat in the eggs until well blended.  Sift in flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Mix until just combined.  Alternating, add the chocolate mixture and wine, mix until batter is smooth.

4. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them about halfway full.  Bake for about 20 minutes.

Frosting:

1 cup wine plus 4 tablespoons, divided
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 sticks of butter, softened (not room temperature, butter should still be a little cold)
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt

1. Place 1 cup wine and granulated sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat.  Stir until sugar is dissolved, and simmer until mixture is reduced to just 1/3 cup.  Allow to cool completely

2. In the bowl of a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, combine the softened butter and confectioners' sugar.  Mix on low speed at first, and then on high until mixture is fluffy.  With mixer running, gradually pour in the cooled wine reduction.  Add salt and beat until well combined.  Scrape down the bowl as necessary.

3. Again, with the mixer running, gradually pour in the 4 tablespoons of wine one  tablespoon at a time until thoroughly mixed.  Then ice away (make sure the cupcakes are cool before icing)!

These babies are awesome!  I didn't love the icing alone, but the combo together is great.  You should know there is a lot of wine in these cupcakes.  I didn't even feel bad finishing the bottle.  

I would absolutely reco making these!

So, Happy Birthday! Love you!!!

Birthday Girls: Erin, Alyson, & Stacy

enjoy!

j

NYC Round 2

If you recall, the last time I was in New York I tried to hit up several bakeries to give the big city a fair shot.  I had all intentions of doing this on my last trip, but I had a crazy schedule and there wasn't much down time for cupcake testing.  I was only able to get to 2 places, and they weren't even intentional.  

The first, unfortunately, I don't remember the name.  I was staying at the Gansevoort Park Hotel and had just returned from a night out on the town.  My friend Mike and I decided to continue the party at the Gansevoort's Rooftop bar.  As the party died down, we of course, went out searching for late night.  We ended up at a store across the street from the hotel and right in front of my face was a beautiful cupcake counter.  You'll have to remember that this was roughly 3AM so it could have looked like total dog crap and I would have thought it was high quality.

This guy was fantastic, all dressed up in his chef outfit.  He had a great attitude for putting up with the late night crowd.  I went with the chocolate chip cookie dough.  The problem with getting a cupcake at 3AM is that sweets are the last thing I want.  I am 90% sure we also ordered gyros, but for some reason I don't have any pictures of those...

I didn't end up trying the cupcake til mid day the following day.  I remember not liking it very much.  My educated review is to definitely go party at the Gansevoort Rooftop but don't get a late night cupcake at the shop across the street :)

The rest of the weekend was a whirlwind of events, but I was able to run to Crumbs before heading to LGA.  Normally I wouldn't want to go to a chain - especially in NYC, but I had never been and there was one just a couple blocks north of the hotel.  


Upon walking in, the first thing I noticed was that the cupcakes are HUGE.  The second thing I noticed - they put the calories next to each cupcake.  This can't be good for business.  The worst by far as the Blackbottom Cheesecake Brownie Cupcake at 1090 calories.  I would love to know who sees that and then orders one.  

I decided on the white hot chocolate.  

It was a standard yellow cake which was delicious!  It had a light icing with white chocolate chips and marshmallows. I really liked the icing as well.  Overall I found the cupcake to be misleading because it did not taste like white hot chocolate.  It was good, but needs a new name.  There was also something in the middle which I didn't love.  I am not exactly sure what it was, but I am not a fan of fillings.  I also only had about 2 bites.  I couldn't bring myself to eat anymore after such a crazy weekend.

I did pick up a tray of minis to bring back to Chicago to share.  I had a few and really liked the ones I tried.  My friend Katie also said each flavor she tried was great.  

I would definitely go back, but maybe now I will try the Chicago Crumbs to see if it compares.


enjoy!
j

Orlando

Over the holidays I traveled down to Orlando to visit the fam and while there I made a stop at Blue Bird Bake Shop (bluebirdbakeshop.com).  They had a nice variety of cupcakes and they all looked delicious.  Due to my indecisiveness I decided to buy two to take home so I could split with my mom.  

I loved the simple packaging and cute sticker.  I am a sucker for things like this.  

Neapolitan - I loved the strawberry icing.  It had the right amount of strawberry taste to it and was the perfect consistency.  The cake was just okay.  Personally, I did not think the flavors were strong enough.  The strawberry outweighed the vanilla and chocolate for sure.  I think a rich chocolate bottom would have helped.  Overall it was a delicious cupcake.  I loved the presentation.  Usually I don't enjoy that much icing, but I thought it looked nice.  

To get in the holiday spirit my second choice was Peppermint.  This was a chocolate cake with a peppermint buttercream.  Again, I loved the icing, but thought the cake was just so so.  All together it had a really good flavor.  I  liked the contrast that the crushed peppermint and chocolate shavings provided.

I would absolutely try Blue Bird again.  I arrived at closing time, so I can imagine that these cupcakes would be much better right when the bakery opens.   

xx

j

Cross Country Cakes

I recently came across a recipe for Biscoff cupcakes.  Most people aren't familiar with Biscoff unless you have flown on Delta.  They are the little cookies the flight attendants hand out to you during the beverage service.  

I used to think these cookies were manufactured specifically for Delta until I met my friend Laura.  Laura was my roommate for 3 years in college and her mom would send her giant tins of Biscoff cookies for every birthday and holiday.  When I saw the recipe I knew I had to make them for her.  The problem is that we no longer live in the same city.  She lives in Big Bend National Park down in Texas.  I wasn't sure if she could receive packages because the first few years she lived down there she didn't even have cell service.  There was even a summer without running water...seriously.  However, she assured me the package would make it, so I hopped in the kitchen and got to work.  

The Beautiful Ms Laura.  She loves that headlamp.

The reason these are considered Biscoff cupcakes is because they are made with Biscoff spread.  Looks like a jar of peanut butter, but instead, creamed cookies.  You can't just buy Biscoff spread in the store (or at least I have no clue where you would), so I ordered some off of Amazon.  I would love to know other uses for this spread outside of cupcakes.  Do people put it on a bagel? Apple? Biscoff & jelly sandwich?

The recipe came from thenovicechefblog.com

ingredients:

1 1/4 c APF
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
a pinch salt
1/2 c Biscoff spread
1/2 c brown sugar
1/3 c vegetable oil
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c half and half

directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

In a small bowl, whisk together first four ingredients. Set aside.

In a stand mixer, beat Biscoff spread and brown sugar until creamy. Add vegetable oil, egg, and vanilla, mix well.

Slowly mix in the flour mixture, alternating with the half and half, until completely combined.

Spoon cupcake batter into tin, about 1/4 cup batter per cupcake. Bake for 16-18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. 


These cupcakes were originally made with a marshmallow frosting, but I didn't think that would hold up so well on the way to Texas.  I just used a basic cream cheese frosting then topped with crumbled cookies.  

I didn't love the consistency of the cupcake.  When I bought the spread it came in a pack of two, so I will definitely try to make them again, but I will take a different approach than the recipe above.  I know you are all waiting on the edge of your seats to see how they turn out, so stay tuned!


xx
j

Right to womanhood...

I think for men the "right to manhood" is usually when they get their first car.  For ladies, I think it is baking an apple pie.  As shocking as it may sound, I have never baked one from scratch on my own until this year (gasp).  

This fall some girlfriends and I went to Country Line Orchard, about 45 minutes outside of Chicago.  I figured if I was going to bake an apple pie from scratch I may as well pick the apples too.  My all time favorite apples are Honeycrisp and Pink Lady, but they were not in season at the time.  

I settled on Gala which would still be in my top 5.  I didn't want to bake with Granny Smith because I feel like EVERYONE uses granny smith in pies.  "They give it so much flavor" is what I always hear.  Well, personally I didn't want my pie to be super tart so I went with the more subtle Gala.  The picking was fine, but I was bored after about 5 minutes.  The selection was pretty picked over (no pun intended) so I had to really search for the good ones.  Luckily I am tall so I was able to grab some of the apples that were left up top.

After picking the apples we decided to go through the corn maze (again bored after 5 minutes).  Before going in the guy running the show told us that the maze was pretty muddy and if we didn't want to slip and fall or get dirty then we should buy booties.

Only two of us decided to buy them - yes, we looked like morons.

The worst part is that there was hardly any mud in the maze.  Maybe a small section that was easily jumpable for a full grown adult.  Next time I am risking it.  After all that fun it was time to actually bake the pie....  I used a recipe from momswhothink.com

Pie Crust Recipe

Makes two 9-inch pie crusts

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, chilled and diced
1/2 cup ice water

Directions:

1. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl.

2. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

3. Stir in the ice water, a Tablespoon at a time, until the crust mixture forms a ball.


4. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

5. Sprinkle flour onto rolling surface. Roll dough out, then divide in half. Roll each half to fit a 9-inch pie plate.

6. Place crust in pie plate, pressing evenly into the bottom and sides.

Filling Ingredients:

8 cups sliced,peeled apples - about 3 lbs.  

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

3/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 Tablespoons butter

1 egg yolk

1 Tablespoon milk

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with lemon juice.

2. Combine sugars, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg; add to apples and toss well to coat.

3. Fill pastry lined 9 inch pie pan with apple mixture. Dot with butter.

4. Place second crust on top of pie filling, cut slits in top of crust to vent. Seal the edges of the crust with a fork or by hand.  - I chose to lattice the top.

5. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolk and milk. Brush mixture over top crust.

6. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes.

7. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake 40-45 minutes more or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.

I forgot to brush with the egg mixture, then tried to do it last minute while it was baking.  That is why it looks kind of weird on top.  Regardless, this pie was AMAZING.  Couldn't get enough of it.  

enjoy!

j

Suite Life

Well, my last post was a little premature.  My friends and I actually booked a last minute trip to South Beach for the night.  We had one hour to pack and get ready from the time we booked.  Crazy.  It was a blast, but I didn't have any time to snag a cupcake as it was a ridiculously short trip.  However, I was able to grab a sweet treat in Connecticut.

I have always said Connecticut is very vanilla.  Nothing much to it - very mediocre.  When I was in Norwalk, CT I stopped at Cake Suite, and I found it appropriate to get a vanilla cupcake.  I did go a little crazy and get one with chocolate icing and sprinkles.   

Icing - Chocolate.  Very smooth and had a light flavor that I really liked.  Cake - Pretty dry.  Not that great.  Yellow cake with chocolate icing is one of my all time favorite combos, but this one was just okay.  Cake Suite specializes in actual cakes for a special occasion and probably bulk cupcakes too.  I don't think they sell a lot of cupcakes "off the rack".  You can see the display below...

Not all that appealing - close to the floor and only a handful of varieties.  I probably wouldn't go back to Cake Suite, so hopefully Connecticut has another spot I can try!

xx

j

They say money doesn't buy happiness...

but, money does buy spontaneity.  Sitting around with friends this morning we were inspired to take a last minute trip to Vegas...for the night.  Unfortunately, prices were rising by the minute...seriously.  At one point we thought we had a roundtrip flight for $230.  Gone.  Then $350.  Gone.  We couldn't move fast enough, and now we sit here still in Chicago.  What a bust.  I need my own plane.  

Obtain private jet = 2012 goal.

Enjoy the weekend!!

Donut is the new Cupcake

Is it donut or doughnut??  I see it both ways.  Personally I prefer donut because I am lazy and it is less letters for me to type.  Anyway...I have always been a fan of donuts.  I'm going to blame this love on my grandfather.  I spent a lot of time at my grandparents house as a child, and my grandfather would always wake up, drive to the local bakery, and come back with a dozen donuts!  I LOVED those donuts and the quality was great.  Much better than the manufactured Dunkin and Tim Hortons we eat today.  Don't get me wrong, if I pass a Tim Hortons I will still stop and get a little box of Tim Bits.

It appears the donut trend is catching on outside of the chains we have grown up with over the years.  Not too long ago a hole-in-the-wall shop popped up in downtown Chicago - Doughnut Vault (http://thedoughnutvault.tumblr.com/).  Located just around the corner from Gilt Bar (love).  I call it hole-in-the-wall because it is just that.  You walk into a hallway where there is one girl a register and a couple bakers racks of donuts - that's it. 

One Friday morning, my friend Justin and I decided to go see what the hype was all about.  We had heard many stories about people waiting in line for an hour so they could get their donut of choice - I'm not kidding.  I didn't want to wait in line for an hour, for a donut, that's absurd.  Doughnut Vault opens at 8:30AM so I figured arriving by 8AM was reasonable.  30 minutes for a donut = not absurd.  I am not great at the whole twitter thing, but I tried following doughnut vault that whole week because they post tweet updates on the line and the inventory.  From my research 8:00 seemed perfectly reasonable.  When we arrived, there was only one other person waiting outside.  We were a bit confused as we expected to be arriving to a line of at least 20.  We quickly pulled out our iPhones and mapped the nearest Starbucks (lemons into lemonade).  There was a bux around the corner, so we went and grapped a cup then headed back to the vault.  By the time we got back there were about 10 people waiting.  This was at 8:20AM.  Not too bad.  They finally opened the doors and the line quickly grew behind us.  As you may know I am incredibly indecisive (read: i had to get one of each flavor).   I decided to bring a dozen back to my team for everyone to try.  I was able to try a piece of each flavor - I had to in order to judge fairly!

I LOVED the simple boxes

Heaven

The "stacks" came in these great little sacks (sack of stacks!)

Perfection

Buttermilk Old Fashioned

Gingerbread

Vanilla Glazed

Chestnut Glazed

Chocolate Glazed

Overall, I loved the doughnut vault and thought they were all delicious.  My favorite was the vanilla glazed and my least favorite was the buttermilk old fashioned.  They also have flavors of the week from time to time so I will have to go check those out.  My guess is that there won't be much of a line once winter actually hits here in Chicago.  I would def reco going and trying each one, but get there early because according to their tweets they are usually sold out of their best flavors by 10AM. 

enjoy!
j

Ann Arbor is a W

onderful little spot to grab a cupcake.  This fall I made my first trip to Ann Arbor. Growing up in Ohio I was pretty much raised to hate all things Michigan.  Now, ironically I spend at least 40% of my time there.  I spend most of my time in Western Michigan, but occasionally journey east. During my first trip to Ann Arbor I turned to my trusty Yelp! app to find some cupcakes.  I ended up at just baked.   

I didn't realize until later that this is actually a chain of cupcakeries located throughout Eastern Michigan. I normally don't love chains, but it was a rookie mistake.  Since it was fall I decided on the Apple Cider cupcake.  You better believe I spent a good long time going back and forth between the Pumpkin Pie and Apple Cider, but let's face it...the icing was much more appealing on the apple cupcake.  

1) Icing - Great texture and flavor.  I could def taste the cinnamon. 2) Cake - Very moist and perfect consistency.  I think it could have used a smidge more apple flavor.  3) Presentation - I am a big fan of the large icing swirl.  4) Creativity - I believe apple cider is quite creative in the cupcake form.  Would have been perfect with a side of spiced rum!  Just like college. 5) Overall - very happy with this cake.  I would absolutely go back and get it again.  

So, if you are ever in Ann Arbor (or pretty much anywhere in Eastern Michigan) I would def reco just baked.

enjoy!

j

Welcome Back!

Happy New Year!!!! I hope you all rang in the new year in style.  I decided to hit up NYC for NYE and it was amazing.  Now that I have recovered from my 4 day bender I am back and ready to blog it up.  I apologize for disappearing for the last couple months, but I have good reason.  I was baking my tail off for the holidays.  As you know I generally stick in the cupcake world, but I decided to completely engulf myself in Christmas cookies.  I baked probably 15 different types of cookies.  Yes...15.  Then, for some ridiculous reason I thought it would be a great idea to gift them to all of my family and friends.  That would have been fine if everyone was here in chicago - nope.  I flew with lbs and lbs of cookies from Chi to Cincy and then to Florida.  I lost a lot of cookies to breakage in transit, but it's the thought that counts, right?

Regardless, the cookie madness is over and I am back to cupcakes.  I have quite a few to catch you up on that I baked/tested since last October, so stay tuned!


xx
j

I'm the worst!

I realize I have not posted since October (the end of October), and I apologize.  I know the 5 of you that read this are wondering what the h happened.  Well, I got crazy busy.  Like super cray.  Don't worry I have still been baking my behind off and trying different cupcakes all along the way.  No worries I'll be back in action after the holidays!


xo
j

Food Truck Friday

Food trucks are all the rage these days.  I don't know about other cities, but these trucks are buzzing through the streets of Chicago like a swarm of bees.  They come in all shapes and sizes and carry all different types of cuisines.  Being the good friend that I am, I accompanied Matt so he could scope the goods these mobile kitchens had to offer.  It just so happens there was a cupcake truck - Sweetie Cakes - mixed in with the sliders, mac n cheese, and tamales.  Obviously I had to check it out.  I decided on "spice me up"- spiced sweet potato zucchini cake with a brown butter buttercream frosting aka fall in your mouth.

1) The Cake - Similar to a spice cake.  I liked the flavor a lot, but it had more of a muffin consistency.  This makes sense considering the ingredients.  2) icing - good flavor, but VERY sweet.  It works with the cake though.  3) Presentation - so, I didn't get to see the cupcake before purchasing which I didn't love.  Once purchased I thought it looked delish and obvi loved the holder so I could carry it back to my office without smearing the frosting.  4)creativity - very creative.  Can't say that I have come across another sweet potato zucchini cupcake.  5)overall happiness - so happy.  As I mentioned earlier it was like biting into fall.  The combo was perfect together and I absolutely appreciated that they were delivered right to me!

If Sweetie Cakes parks out front again I will be sure to stop by and try another one!

enjoy!

j

Cincinnati Love

Well, it is no secret that I have mad love for Cincinnati.  Unfortunately..Cincinnati does not have mad love for cupcakes.  sigh.  How is it that I, cupcake lover and connoisseur, came from a city without a phenomenal cupcake?  I started asking myself how I even fell into this addiction hobby.  I traced it back to Chicago.  On a trip to the windy city to visit my friend Katie, she took me to Sweet Mandy B's.  Those cupcakes are the only reason I even moved here.  Kidding! kind of...I do keep moving closer and closer to the shop.  Anyway, I have always had a sweet tooth, and that my friends began in Cincinnati.  While they may not do cupcakes well, they have some stellar bakeries.  I have favorite treats at each one and not a single one is a cupcake.  On that note, I will give you a brief tour of Cincinnati's best.

First, The BonBonerie (bonbonerie.com).  This is a cute little shop located in Oakley.  You can smell the sugar when pulling into the parking lot.  It is small and always crowded, so if you are impatient like me it is best to get there early.  Especially if you are visiting near a holiday.  Madness

The cases are packed with some of the most beautiful and delicious sweets I have ever had.  My go-to...

Sugar Cookies!  I never pick sugar cookies...EVER.  If faced with a cookie decision the absolute last choice would be a sugar cookie.  The only place that rule doesn't apply is The Bon Bonerie.  These cookies are a-ma-zing!  not only are they beautiful, but they are so good.  I usually think if a dessert is pretty it wont be good.  Not here.  Aren't they so cute?  They change them up for every holiday/season, but you can also get custom cookies.  They make such a perfect gift

No one is ever mad about getting a little pink box!

Next...Busken! (busken.com) There is more than one Busken location throughout the city, but the one pictured below - open 24 hours!

Busken also has cases packed with treats, but they are most well known for their smiley face cookies.  As you can see they also make them in support of the Reds (love).

They created "the skinny cookie" - the healthier version on the smiley cookie.  One word - gross.  Don't waste your time on these.  Like eating chalk.  Just get the original cookie and try to have some self control to not eat the entire box in one sitting.

They are a very creative bakery - hence the "boosken" onesie.  They have clever billboards all throughout the city which are too funny.  I think there is even a book of all the billboards.

Always love canine support!

I have 2 favorites at Busken.  The first...

Chocolate tea cookies!  They have other iced ones, but the chocolate are the best.  My friend Erin got me hooked on these bad boys.  When I lived with her she would always come home with a bag of fresh cookies and we would just sit there and snack away.  Now I crave them and have to get some every time I go back to Cincinnati.  My other favorite at Busken is Schnecken.  If you are not familiar, Schnecken is a german type cinnamon bun.  You can only get it around the Thanksgiving/Christmas holidays, so yes, I am waiting patiently for Schnecken season.

Lastly, Servatii (servati.com)  Also, multiple locations.

Servatii's is bringing out all the German we have in Cincinnati.  When I think of this bakery I think of coffee cakes more than actual cakes.  My mom would pick one up from here each weekend.  Two of my best friends worked at Servatii's in high school.  I also blame them for my sweet tooth since I had cakes, cookies, and anything else they offered right at my fingertips!  Those were the days...

My favorite...not even a sweet!  I am obsessed with their pretzel bread.  I would always pop in and pick up a couple of the pretzel bagels for sandwiches, or to snack on plain.

They also make the best rolls.  

So Cincinnati, I forgive you!  You may not have any outstanding cupcakes, but you have the best bakeries.  I will now be counting down the days til Christmas as this post has made me super homesick.

enjoy!

j