Cake Byte: Sweet News from Cakespy

They say that when it rains it pours, and certainly there's a lot of sweetness in our world these days at Cakespy. Here's an update on some sweet things that we just had to share:

First, the BIG HUGE NEWS: our Head Spy Jessie has a grand new illustration gig! Starting in the April 2008 issue, you'll be seeing Cakespy illustrations in...Taste of Home! Taste of Home is a pretty awesome publication--they just joined the ranks of nationally audited magazines, entering at #9 – one step AHEAD of OPRAH and one step behind SPORTS ILLUSTRATED--this ranking officially makes them the #1 Cooking Magazine in the World, with over 3.2 million (no, we did not stutter) subscribers, and 250K copies of it on the newsstand each issue. Holy sweetness! But don't buy it solely for the Cakespy artwork--they also have some pretty awesome recipes, which come from a pool of over 90,000 reader submissions each year, and which are all tested in their in-house kitchen. And, did we mention they also have the coolest art director ever, who just so happens to be a cupcake lover in her own right, and author of the awesome Milkwaukee Cupcake Queen blog?

• Press/Praise: What sweet times! Cakespy was recently featured on some great sites: Bakerella, a wonderful blog by an incredibly talented and artistic baker, featured Cakespy artwork; the Seattle Times mentioned the "groovy" Cakespy artwork shown in Sugar Bakery+Cafe; Chicago-based Hungrymag.com featured our interview with Claudia Saraniecki of Babushka Bakery; Seattlest, a cool media and pop culture blog, featured our writeup on the Pink Frosted Cookie; Culinate called out our Sweet Sandwiches Project; and don't forget to check out the interview with Head Spy Jessie on Cherry Runway. Like Whoa!

** Addendum: But wait, there's more! Bakerella (mentioned above) also went above andbeyond and created the MOST amazing video featuring our own L'il Cuppie Character, rendered in fondant and having an adventure! It's amazing; watch it below, or here:

• New Bakeries! We've recently been tipped off to the opening of a few new bakeries; let us know if you've tried 'em! First, Cake Gumshoe Matt informs us that Georgetown Cupcakes in Washington, DC has just opened its doors; Sprinkles Cupcakes continues to spread sweetness with two new locations: a new store in Scottsdale, AZ is scheduled to open later this month, and a new Palo Alto location is slated to open up later this spring or early in the summer (for more information or precise locations, visit sprinklescupcakes.com). Out of Chicago, Whole Bakers is taking their gluten-free goodies nationwide with a newly-launched website full of shippable treats; the lemon shorties caught our eye. In Los Angeles, while Cake Monkey still hasn't found quite the right retail space yet, they are currently available for custom orders of darling little cakes (and homemade pop-tarts!!) from their commercial kitchen space. Or perhaps you're in Dubai, you jetsetter, you? Well, they're not brand-new, but they were new to us: Cake Gumshoe Kristin spied Scrumptious, a cupcake bakery whose wares are available by special order and at the Dubai Marina Market every Friday. So you don't have to go cupcake-free in Dubai! Whew! Cakespy Note: While some are opening, some are closing: New York Cupcakes in the Westlake Center in Seattle appears to have closed its doors, at least at this location. Judging by our last experience there, we say good riddance.

• Perhaps you're looking to buy Cakespy artwork? Happily, there are now several spots to buy: if you're in Seattle, Venue now carries Cakespy original artwork and buttons, and original paintings are for sale at Sugar Bakery+Cafe. In the Midwest? Happily, a new shipment will be heading out soon to the Renegade Handmade Store in Chicago! If you're in NYC, don't explode with pleasure, but rumor is that we'll be showing at the Renegade Craft Fair this coming June. Of course, artwork and custom work is always available through jessieoleson.etsy.com. Cakespy Note: Additionally, if you were one of the many disappointed parties who wanted to buy the original Valley of the Cupcakes painting, cry no more: a limited edition of prints is available!

• Finally, if you've ever visited one of the Sweet Melissa Pâtisseries in Brooklyn, you'll know why we're so excited about their brand-new cookbook! If you haven't had the chance to visit one of their three adorable Brooklyn locations, make sure to put it on your agenda for your next trip to the city; in the meantime, the nice people at the Penguin Group were nice enough to share a recipe to whet our appetites for what promises to be a delicious book (available at amazon.com):

Chocolate Orange Macaroons

Makes 2 dozen cookies

• 6 ounces best-quality solid semisweet (58%) chocolate
  
  
• One 14-oz. bag sweetened coconut
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large egg whites

Before you start: Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.



1. Using a serrated bread knife, finely chop the chocolate. Set aside.



2. In a large bowl, combine the coconut and zest, and rub together with your hands. (This will break up the coconut and release the orange oils.)



3. Stir in the sugar and chocolate to the coconut and mix to combine. Add the egg whites. Use your hands to mix until everything is coated and the egg whites are distributed evenly.



4. Using a 1-oz cookie scoop, firmly pack the dough into the scoop and unmold about 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool.



The foregoing is excerpted from The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy. All rights reserved. Copyright © Melissa Murphy, 2008.

Comments

[Suzy]

Congrats on taste of home! That's awesome!!!

[Mary-Laure]

Valley of the Cupcakes - that's in heaven, right? (I can't find it on my local map)

[eclectic works]

Congrats Jessie!! On the illustration gig with Taste of Home!! :)

[Peabody]

Good for you! I love Taste of Home.

[The Caked Crusader]

Aaargh! I shouldn't have looked at the items for sale. Bag, mousemat, sticker now winging their way to me. Such lovely paintings though. How can a cake lover resist???
Answer: they can't. Resistance is futile.

Lovely site.

[Jeanna]

Congrats to you all and nice recipe.

[Cakespy]

Anne-Marie: thank you! To one of my inspirations! :-)

Anali: Thank you so much--and so glad you enjoyed that video. Isn't it adorable!?

Passionate Baker: Thank you for your kind words!

Bittersweet: Thank you! Your support means a lot--not just saying that! You inspire me.

MKE Cupcake Queen: No, thank you!! You've helped make my world so much sweeter (chorus of "awww"s).

Deborah: Thank you so much!

Glamah16: I dunno, I think maybe we are just hopped up on a LOT of sugar!

Suzy: Thank you so very much!

Jeanna: Thank you so much!! Hope you enjoy the recipe!

Mary-Laure: if not heaven, it must be close to it. ;-)

Eclectic Works: Thank you so, so much!

Peabody: Thanks! They have so many awesome recipes!

Caked Crusader: We like that: resistance is futile. Thank you for the kind words! Your site rocks.

[eatme_delicious]

Congratulations on the illustrator job! :) I never look at that magazine but now I'm going to go searching for it to see the cupcake drawings!

[Wandering Chopsticks]

Wow! Congratulations! That's great news. Your illustrations will be a hit! They're just so adorable.

[jillytacy]

Congratulations on your new magazine gig! I discovered your blog through Bakerella. I loved her cupcake video...amazing! I saw that you would be doing the illustrations for Taste of Home. My copy arrived and I just discovered Tomas the Tiny Taco hidden away in the issue. I entered at the Taste of Home site, maybe I'll win this time. Either way it was nice to see your illustration included in the magazine. I look forward to seeing what you'll have hidden in future issues. Once again congratulations, your illustrations are fablulous!