Seeking Sweetness: Daily Snapshot, Cupcake Made of Light

CakeSpy Note: if you follow me on facebook or Twitter, you probably know I'm partial to adding bits of sweetness to my daily surroundings, via sidewalk chalk, small cutouts, and the like--I call it "gentle street art". Here's where I post a daily feel-good photo, for no particular reason other than to showcase these sweet little nothings, in hopes that they'll make you smile.

This is an oldie but sweetie: a cupcake created from the light of a laser pointer! This was done by artist buddy Rakka.

Sweet Spot: Oatmeal Raisinet Cookies Recipe by Cake Gumshoe Christine

CakeSpy Note: This is a guest post from Cake Gumshoe Christine Mullen, a photographer and food blogger from Ottawa, Ontario. She enjoys experimenting in the kitchen and photographing the results but ultimately hates doing the dishes. She blogs at Munchin With Munchkin.

I have the biggest weak spot for chocolate covered raisins. Every time I bite into one it brings me back to my earliest childhood memory.

I remember the specific moment I was hooked for life. It was December of 1989. My mother was on Christmas holidays and she decided to take me to see my first movie. We drove to Britannia which had both an indoor theatre and a drive in.

When we entered the theatre I was mesmerized by the speckled carpet, the sparkling ceiling and the overwhelming smell of popcorn. As we stood in line my eyes focused on a glass display case at the front
counter filled with colourful boxes of candy.

When we finally got to the front of the line my mother purchased our tickets and asked me if I wanted a treat. In my 3 years of life I rarely had candy so I knew this was a special occasion. As I peered through the glass my options were overwhelming. Without the ability to read my decision was determined solely by the colour of the box. I came to the conclusion that the purple box would contain the best treat and mother happily agreed.

With large purple box in hand we walked to our theatre and chose seats
close to the front. My memories of the movie are vague but I remember
sharing that box of raisinets and thinking my mother was the coolest
person in the whole world.

My mother is coming to visit me this week so in preparation I made these oatmeal raisinet cookies to share with her. They are incredibly soft and chewy and the chocolate covered raisins add that taste of childhood every great cookie should have.

Oatmeal Raisinet Cookies

Makes about two dozen cookies

• 1 cup butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 Tsp. baking soda
• ½  Tsp. salt
• 3 cups old fashioned oats
• 1 ½ cups chocolate covered raisins

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars.
3. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until fully combined.
4. Stir in the baking soda, salt, and flour and mix until just combined, being careful not to over mix. Briefly mix in the oats. Add the chocolate covered raisins and stir until just combined.
5. Scoop 1 tablespoon of cookie dough onto un-greased cookie sheets about half an inch apart.
6. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until the cookies are golden brown along the edges.

Cake Byte: The Piecycle Bakesale At CakeSpy Shop, Sunday, April 3

Buy pie from this cute boy. (photo courtesy: Trung Le)Have you been curious about The Piecycle, Seattle's pie-by-bicycle delivery service in the University District, but don't live in the delivery zone?

Well, lucky you. For one day only, today, from 12 til he sells out (and he will sell out, I promise) The Piecycle's Max will be selling pie by the slice at CakeSpy Shop on Capitol Hill!

He will be baking up a limited amount of pies, so be sure to come early, because these sweet slices are bound to sell like hotcakes. Hot pies? Whatever. It's delicious.

Follow The Piecycle on Facebook here; on Twitter here; buy his pies from 12 til they sell out at CakeSpy Shop on Sunday, April 3, at CakeSpy Shop, 415 E. Pine St., Seattle WA 98122.

Just Ducky: Mallard Ice Cream, Bellingham WA

Ice cream is not my kryptonite.

Don't get me wrong, I like ice cream. But it's usually something that I enjoy along with a baked good: cake or pie a la mode. But for whatever reason, while making a trek to Bellingham to deliver artwork for my solo show at The Paperdoll, with about 43 miles to go to Bellingham, I got an odd craving for the cool and creamy stuff.

Happily, I was headed into good hands: Bellingham boasts Mallard ice cream, the type of place that locals love and others will travel especially to taste. In fact, while paying the parking meter outside, I heard no less than three people walk by and remark "I love this place!".

When it came to choosing, I evaluated the choices carefully. They had a variety of flavors, including classics, unexpected twists, and even vegan flavors. They also had a pony on the wall, which was slightly distracting (in a good way).

Ultimately I settled on a childhood staple: Oreo Mint. 

It wasn't green (I do love me some green ice cream) but I was able to forgive them, because it was very, very good. The ice cream was rich, luxuriant, and very creamy; the mintiness was ably backed by the creamy cookies which were mashed up this way and that, with plenty of sizeable chunks rendered soft and lick-able by virtue of being surrounded by ice cream.

While standing outside with my cone, no less than three more people stopped to commend me on my good choice, saying "I Love that place.".

Well, I can see why.

Visit them next time you're in Bellingham. 1323 Railroad Ave, Bellingham, WA; online here.

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links

OMG! Best week ever. Let's discuss:

Big Deal Sweetness: CakeSpy's Book is now available for pre-order.

Sweet discovery: Jenny's Cookies is a Seattle-based business and super-fun website.

Go nuts: Coconut Patty Shake. OMG!

Whoopie! The New York Times likes Oddfellows as much as I do.

The Pink Door in Seattle has a hot chocolate that is X-rated. Sounds intriguing.

Bread...pudding...breakfast...sandwich? Yes, it exists, without ellipses.

Girl Scout Cookie Sandwiches. Do it.

Top 10 Pastry Chefs in the US: I've never been to any of these restaurants, but it sure is fun to dream.

Sizzling: we went to Applebee's (don't ask) and I was hypnotized by this sizzling dessert.

It's all about the cookie: Discover Sweet Dani B cookies!

Capitalizing on sweetness: I have heard very good things about the charmingly named San Francisco Street Bakery in Olympia.

Deep Fried Cake Batter Cookie Dough? Pardon me while I vomit out of pure pleasure. (this is a compliment)

Flake-out: Discover a new croissant in Seattle!

A tale of two doughnuts: Seattle doughnut makers face off on the Food Network! 

Seeking Sweetness: Sweet Cupcake Animations by Helen Windle

CakeSpy Note: if you follow me on facebook or Twitter, you probably know I'm partial to adding bits of sweetness to my daily surroundings, via sidewalk chalk, small cutouts, and the like--I call it "gentle street art". Here's where I post a daily feel-good photo, for no particular reason other than to showcase these sweet little nothings, in hopes that they'll make you smile. 

Today's dose of sweetness isn't by me, but by uber-talented UK-based animator Helen Windle. I dare you to watch the above video (or any of these) without smiling. Check out her website, too.