Whole Hog: Groundhog Day Cake for Serious Eats

My family has an unusual tradition: we celebrate Groundhog Day. In a completely non-ironic way. And to herald the occasion, there is always a cake-homage to the skittish little critter.

Why? Well, my dad is a surfer, and he carefully follows Punxsutawney Phil's yearly emergence. If he does not see his shadow, it means spring is coming, and thus surf season will come sooner. And also because, well, cake is very delicious.

Of course, no matter whether you're in a rush for spring to come, it's a pretty sure thing that this Groundhog-themed cake will brighten your day—and the remaining crumbs will cast minimal shadows.

For the full entry and recipe, visit Serious Eats!

Save The Date: Pie Slam at CakeSpy Shop on March 14!

Did you miss National Pie Day on January 23rd? Aww, poor thing. But don't despair, because in the effort to keep you fat and happy all winter long, CakeSpy and Four and 20 Blackbirds are teaming up to host Seattle's first Pie Slam on March 14 (the "other" pie day...Pi Day!), at CakeSpy Shop, 415 E. Pine Street in Capitol Hill. Here are the details:

Cake and Pie Peace Talks Result in Seattle’s First Pie Slam

Seattle, WA – While the media has been heralding the demise of the cupcake and the ascension of pie – two Seattle bakers have come together in peace to hold Seattle’s first writing and baking contest – the Seattle Pie Slam.

Jessie Oleson, artist and blogger of CakeSpy fame, and Wendy Sykes, owner of the baking business Four and 20 Blackbirds decided there was no room for malice in the world of dessert and came up with the concept of a Pie Slam.

“It’s a writing contest and a pie contest, all baked into one,” said Sykes. “The concept is loosely based on a poetry slam, but in this contest the plot must contain pie. And the writer/baker is judged not only on the content and quality of the story -– but also on the quality of the pie.”

“It’s not just pie in the sky,” said CakeSpy Jessie Oleson.  “this crusty confection has inspired many a taste memory, and we’re ready to celebrate these stories at the Pie Slam!”

The event will be held at Oleson’s Capitol Hill gallery on Monday, March 14th at 6:30pm. True, while National Pie Day already happened in January, for those of you who missed it, “Pi Day” is just another chance to celebrate pie!

For more details on entry rules, prizes and judges, email jessieoleson@gmail.com! 

Toast of the Town: French Toast from Table 219, Seattle

CakeSpy Note: When it comes to starting the day sweetly, Mr. CakeSpy's favored flavor of delicious is French Toast. He's known and loved many varieties and has even perfected the art of eating it. Every now and again, we feature a particularly toothsome one he's tried here.

And now, there's a new variety that he suggests to keep you toasty during the cold Seattle winter: French Toast from Table 219.

Now, the restaurant's menu description for this item is...well, sort of nondescript:

"rustic bread dipped in egg batter and topped with today’s fruit selection. served with real maple syrup"

And even when it came to the table, it looked like fairly standard French Toast fare--a modest portion at that. But from the first bite, it was clear that pains had been taken to ensure that this was no ordinary pain perdu. The texture was absolutely perfect, with a lightly sweet, crunchy, evenly browned exterior giving way to a soft, yielding interior, which was almost custardy from what one can only imagine was an extremely luxuriant bath in egg mixture before its pan-frying. On the day of our visit, the fruit of the day was a homemade peach compote, which was a mellow, smooth, sweet complement to the sweet slices of carbohydrate bliss.

Only reservation? If you're an extremely hearty breakfast eater, you might want to order some eggs or bacon (or both) on the side. But moreover, the flavor of this French toast is well worth a try.

Table 219, 219 Broadway Ave. E, Seattle. For more information, visit the Table 219 website.

Taking it to the Sweet: Sidewalk Chalk to Make the World a Sweeter Place

Truth? Seattle can be dreary in the winter. Especially after Christmas, when all of the holiday lights come down. Actually, it is this Spy's firm belief that this is a big part of the reason that coffee and pastries have such a big presence in the Emerald city: we have to keep warm and cheerful somehow.

And today, I decided to make my cold-and-rainy commute to CakeSpy Shop a bit funner by leaving a little sweetness in my wake. Sidewalk chalk in hand, I made the world (and my walk) just a little sweeter, like so:

This utility marking of some sort, originally just an unassuming number five, got an automatic sugary makeover;

a manhole got turned into a cake-hole;

a tagged doorway got a sugar-coating;

...of course, at one point I did have to tell Cuppie that he was a bit behind the times...

Cuppie found a waffle in the urban wilderness;

instead of stop, I said "GO!" to sweetness;

...and though it's not necessarily cake-related, I left an optimistic note of sweetness for whoever might happen upon it:

These sidewalk chalk tributes likely washed away quickly, but talk about a way to brighten up a rainy day!

Cake Byte: New Cake Plates and Knives by French Bull

What is it about cake that makes us want to put it on a pedestal...and then hack it up with a knife?

Well, why we could ponder what this says about us psychologically, it's far funner to browse pretty cake accessories on the internet. And these are probably the most fashion-forward that I've come across in a long time: gorgeous new cake plates and knives by French Bull, a company headed up by the very brilliant Jackie Shapiro (who I had the great pleasure of working with in my pre-Cake Gumshoery life, when I worked at iPop!).

Cake murder has never looked so good.

Want to buy them? These cake plates will retail around $30 and the knives will retail around $15--mark your calendars, because they will make their debut in the online French Bull shop on February 15.

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links

It's, like, SO Friday. Let's celebrate a sweet weekend ahead, starting with some awesome sugar-stuffed links:

Sweet! Sweetie Pies from MegPies (pictured top) are not only a sweet sentiment, but very cute to boot.

Fun, fun, funfetti: Peabody and I are sympatico: while I was frying some Funfetti Pancakes, she was baking Funfetti Bread Pudding.

Sweet love: I've got a bakery crush on Naeglin's, the oldest bakery in Texas! I'd love to visit this bakery, which has an interesting history and delicious menu! (Thanks Sabrina for the tip!)

Jim's Pancakes: Cute and sweet!

Sweet read: I just read (and truly enjoyed) True Confections: A Novel by Katharine Weber, a novel about a confectionery family business at war with itself. Though the story is fictional, many details about the candymaking industry ring true!

Whoopie! A recipe and sweet tribute, from Bake and Destroy.

Speaking of whoopie pies, this Maine institution offers them in big, bigger, and biggest sizes.

Just donut: a fascinating recipe for doughnuts using instant biscuits.

Biscuit time: the cutest joconde you've ever seen!

Curious about how that book of mine is coming along? Here's a sweet sneak peek on the blog of the photographer, Clare Barboza!

One crafty cupcake: check out what a sweet blogger made with the CakeSpy stamps for Taylored Expressions!

Sweet desktop designs, and cupcake toppers, by artist Anne Bryant (via Diggin Food)

Finally, you just have a few more days to shop for original artwork at Trophy Cupcakes - I am taking down the show at Wallingford on the 31st! Quick, get yourself over there and buy some CakeSpy art!

Cake Byte: Valentine Card Assortment!

As you've probably started to suspect, what with the proliferation of heart-shaped boxes full of candy at grocery and drugstores and endcap displays packed with conversation hearts, Valentine's Day is coming.

And undoubtedly, there are some sweet people in your life who are deserving of a sweet note for the occasion.

Happily, there's a new Valentine assortment of cards now available in the online shop! It's a 9-pack of cards, 3 each of the sweetest CakeSpy designs: "Cuppie Love" (greeted with "You're Sweet and I Like You"); Cake Loves Pie (blank inside) and Cookie Loves Milk (blank inside).

As I see it, there are two good reasons to buy these cards:

1. You want them.

2. They will delight the recipients.

See? Win-win. This double happiness can be attained by clicking on over to cakespyshop.com! If you're in Seattle, they can also be purchased at Cupcake Royale locations or at the retail CakeSpy Shop!

Ask CakeSpy: How Can I Become a Superstar Dessert Blogger?

Dear CakeSpy,

I recently started a food blog, and I have a question: how do I make my site a sweet success like yours? Cos, you know, I totally want to quit my day job and write about food all day. So how do I garner a following and get famous, quick?

Love, 

Fellow Foodie

- - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Dear Foodie,

Well, I am sure flattered that you think I'm famous. Because, you know, other than the millions of dollars in my bank account, I'm really just like you.

I'm kidding, of course--but this touches on something I am asked all the time: "How do you make money?". Sometimes within five minutes of meeting me. For reals.

But it's ok--I don't find this rude, because I think it is a genuinely interesting thing--how do you turn a food blog into a business, from which you can actually make money?

I don't consider myself an expert, but as someone who makes a (very modest) living from a business based on my blog, let me offer up some of my thoughts.

First off, start your blog because you love it, not to make money or become an international superstar. When I started CakeSpy, I started it as a place to channel my love of baked goods, writing, and illustrating in one place. I thought I would do this while I figured out what I really wanted to do with my life--I never thought that the blog could be the springboard for a business. And I can honestly say that I would still be maintaining the blog even if I didn't make a cent from it, because I genuinely love it.

Think about content first. Because while it's a great goal to get a zillion visitors to your site, they are not going to come back if there's nothing interesting to read. So in my opinion, concentrate on providing great, engaging content first. Once you've gotten some content on your site, start promoting yourself by creating a community--leave comments and get involved in the conversation on other blogs you like, submit your posts to sites like TasteSpotting and FoodGawker, promote them on sites like Reddit or Stumbleupon, link to your posts via Flickr photos (and join like-minded photo groups), and of course update Twitter and Facebook with new posts.

Take nice pictures. It's always nice to click over to a blog and be greeted with a pretty picture, isn't it? However, don't get your panties in a twist over the equipment. You don't need to spend thousands of dollars on a fancy camera (of course, it's your money, so if you love having gadgets, go for it). My camera cost me less than $100, and I've been using the same one since I started the site, and while my photos aren't professional grade, I think they work just fine to convey the rich and delicious nature of many of the sweets featured on the site. 

Of course, I should give a side note on commenting on other blogs. In my opinion it's best to leave comments on blogs you like and follow--simply spam-commenting on as many blogs as you can to increase people clicking over to your site is not only disrespectful, but kind of annoying. 

And of course, there's that bit about getting links on other blogrolls. I am not speaking for everyone here, just for my own site, but here are my thoughts on the matter. I link to several sites that I enjoy on mine, but in general, you're not going to get a link on my site simply by asking or offering to trade. I generally will link to blogs and sites that I like and think you will too--it rubs me the wrong way to receive requests to add other people's links to my site if I have never heard of them or seen their website before. However, a thoughtful email introducing me to a new website (um, not a copied and pasted "Dear Blogger" email) might eventually result in me linking to the site!

Oh, and I guess I'll come back to that money thing. I'm sure that there are some superstar bloggers who make a zillion dollars through advertising -- I am not one of them. I make a modest amount from monthly advertising, but I will be honest--the majority of my income is from other projects that have come as a result of my work on the blog: freelance writing and illustration assignments, and wholesale and retail orders from my product line, and one of these days, a book advance. It often feels like my income comes in small amounts from various places, rather than coming in monthly paychecks. I will admit, it makes tax time very painful and headache-y. 

OK. So, in a nutshell:

1. Take a deep breath.
2. Start creating content that you love. Post stuff that keeps you engaged, and post regularly.
3. Once you have a few things up, start creating a community with other blogs that you like--follow them, leave comments, link to them.
4. Start promoting yourself on networking / sharing sites as mentioned above.
5. Fame and fortune will follow! Or not. But it's ok, because remember: YOU ARE HAVING FUN. 

Hope this helps!

For the love of blog,

CakeSpy

Life or Deathcake: Cupcake Royale Brings Back the Deathcake Royale

It's truly the most wonderful time of year in Seattle.

No, not Christmas, jerk: it's time for the yearly debut of the Deathcake Royale.

If this is death by chocolate, then bring on the gurney: this little brickster of a chocolate cake may have a hefty price tag, (at $6.66 it's definitely devilish), but be assured that it's an investment in pure pleasure: gorgeously decadent, comprised of a chocolate trifecta: Royale's chocolate cake, Stumptown Coffee ganache, and Theo Chocolate Decadence. 

Dude. This cake is good. 

This cake is served in a cubelike form designed to be "shared by lovers and loved by haters"; technically, it is meant to be shared, but one couldn't be blamed for downing it solo.

Ready for some Deathcake Royale? Start your calisthenics now, because this baby's making its debut on January 28, and will be available through February 14 at all Cupcake Royale locations; for directions and hours, visit cupcakeroyale.com. You can also stay on top of their sweet news via their blog and their twitter feed.

Sweet Giveaway: A Melange of Chocolate Cake and Brownie Mixes from Naturally Nora

Guess what? Today is officially National Chocolate Cake Day (which basically means that every other day is unofficially chocolate cake day, no caps involved).

And to celebrate, Naturally Nora, a manufacturer of all-natural, no-creepy-ingredient cake mixes, has kindly offered up a sweet prize for one lucky reader: a parcel containing a box of their chocolate cake mix, a box of their chocolate frosting mix, and a box of brownie mix. 

Having sampled these sweet mixes for myself during my week of birthday cake making, I can attest that they are highly delicious--and everyone knows that for a quick fix, it's fun to use a mix. (Yes, I just made that up)

How do you put yourself in the running? Simply leave a comment below stating your favorite type of chocolate cake. Perhaps it's German chocolate? Or Black forest? Or a simple chocolate birthday cake with fluffy buttercream frosting? 

The giveaway will close on February 2 at 12pm PST; the winner will be announced shortly after. US Entrants only, please. Oh, and if you can't wait for these mixes, find a retailer near you via the Naturally Nora site; you can also find them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Update on Wednesday, February 9, 2011 by Cakespy

UPDATE: The winner! We have a winner, friends! It is Erin, who wisely chooses chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. Good choice! Enjoy the cake mixes!