I love the feeling you get when you walk into a cupcake shoppe - it is an assault on the senses! The smell of wonderful sweetness is masked only by the powerful whiff of perfectly risen cakes just out of the oven. The wonderful bright combinations of colours, patterns, ribbons and bows - what only a girl could dream about, and it instantly lifts my spirits!
Of course, to love cupcakes is to amplify this experience tenfold, and I am in trouble - not only do I love sweets, I have a daughter that hasn't fallen far from the tree! We have made it our civic duty to taste test every cupcake in every shoppe in this fair city! Don't get me wrong, this is no easy task! Yes, the cupcake looks like a simple treat, but there are many properties which have to align to make them worthy to consume. First, the cake: is it dry or moist, too delicate to hold the heavy mound on icing on top or it crumbles from the action of removing the cake from it's wrapper? And then there is the icing: too sweet, too bitter, too buttery or even a taste of petroleum in the mouth (trust me). Many problems exist when creating the perfect cupcake.
We have a selection of shoppes to choose from in Edmonton: Fuss, Flirt, The Cupcake Shoppe, Whimsical, Babycakes and now in Sherwood Park, Hey Cupcake. And unfortunately, my vote goes to hopping in the car and driving south to Calgary for CRAVE cupcakes!
Of course, to love cupcakes is to amplify this experience tenfold, and I am in trouble - not only do I love sweets, I have a daughter that hasn't fallen far from the tree! We have made it our civic duty to taste test every cupcake in every shoppe in this fair city! Don't get me wrong, this is no easy task! Yes, the cupcake looks like a simple treat, but there are many properties which have to align to make them worthy to consume. First, the cake: is it dry or moist, too delicate to hold the heavy mound on icing on top or it crumbles from the action of removing the cake from it's wrapper? And then there is the icing: too sweet, too bitter, too buttery or even a taste of petroleum in the mouth (trust me). Many problems exist when creating the perfect cupcake.
We have a selection of shoppes to choose from in Edmonton: Fuss, Flirt, The Cupcake Shoppe, Whimsical, Babycakes and now in Sherwood Park, Hey Cupcake. And unfortunately, my vote goes to hopping in the car and driving south to Calgary for CRAVE cupcakes!
Over the years Crave has perfected the art of the cupcake - a beautifully moist cake (most of the time) with a great assortment of flavours from mint, lemon/lime, strawberry, coconut and chocolate AND all natural flavours! The icing is fantastic - not too sweet, not too buttery and no chemical taste, only a rich and flavourful butter cream icing with fruit purees mixed in. If we have to select a cupcake store in Edmonton, my daughter points towards Whyte Avenue to Flirt or the Strathcona Farmers Market.
However, on Saturday we made the trek to Sherwood Park and my daughter fell in love with Hey Cupcake's peanut butter cupcake. Not only is the icing an intense peanut butter flavour, but the cake is made with peanut butter and chunks of chocolate chips! We found the cupcakes to work well when consumed right away, but the few that were brought home for dessert where heavy and dry by the time the BBQ was done.
If you like to travel with your stomach, the big cities of Chicago, LA and of course, NYC have a multitude of bakeries to pack on some extra pounds! Last year in New York I dragged my dear husband through Rockefeller's Square to the famous Magnolia Bakery - ( http://www.magnoliabakery.com/ ) line-up for cupcakes, yes. Worth it, not really. Very disappointing. Icing too sweet, cake too dry. Maybe the baker was off that day....
I am secretly hoping my travels take me to L.A., so I can experience the cakes of Sprinkles, the landmark cupcake shoppe in Beverly Hills.
http://www.sprinkles.com/
For now, the next adventure is Treacle, in London, England. Only open on a Sunday (thankfully we land on Sunday morning) and the most popular bakery in England! If the Brits can do anything in the culinary world, it's cakes and sweets!
Above all, remember to take some time and enjoy a bit of sweetness in your life!
K
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