Virtual Tour de Sweet, Stop 2: Nanaimo Bar Awakening by Bake it in a Cake

Photo: Bake it in a CakeCakeSpy Note: My book tour has already begun--online, that is! Bake it in a Cake marks stop 2 for the virtual Tour de Sweet blog tour. And this one's a true victory: I have made Megan Seling a True Believer in the mighty Nanaimo Bar! Here's what she has to say:

I had the perfect plan. To celebrate the release of CakeSpy’s new book, CakeSpy: Sweet Treats for a Sugar-Filled Life, I was going to bake Nanaimo Bars into a cupcake! They’re one of CakeSpy’s favorite treats, after all, and I wouldn’t know about their magical existence without her introducing me to them.

But last night, when I made Nanaimo bars for the first time (can you believe I’ve never had one until yesterday??), I realized the bars, as dense as they are, are about 80% butter (no wonder CakeSpy loves them so much). I can’t bake these into a cupcake! The fluffy, custardy, buttery center would just melt away into nothing. What kind of Nanaimo bar has no fluffy middle layer? So instead of baking these treats into a cupcake, I simply made them and enjoyed them the way CakeSpy meant for them to be enjoyed. They’re every bit as delectable as she says they are—a co-worker even declared that they were “The best treat ever brought into the office.”

CakeSpy’s adorable new book also has some suggestions for variations—eggnog Nanaimo bars, peppermint Nanaimo bars, even boozy Nanaimo bars! Click here to buy the new CakeSpy book—you Bake It in a Cake fans will be happy to know, contains a recipe for cupcakes baked into cupcakes! 

Read the full entry on Bake it in a Cake. 

CakeSpy Official Book Launch on October 13 in Seattle!

OK, sweeties. Consider this your official reminder: this Thursday is the Official CakeSpy Book Launch Party at CakeSpy Shop in Seattle!

I will be there. My parents (from NJ) will be there. I will have books to sell you. And there will be cake.

Here are the details.

What to expect: an informal open-house type setting where we will have cake and treats (I will have 4-5 types of sweets made from recipes in the book!), alcohol (woooo!), original artwork as featured in the book on sale in the gallery, and my lovely little self on hand to sign the books which you should plan on buying. 

• Date: Thursday, October 13 (this is also the night of the Cap. Hill art walk!)
• Time: 6pm-9pm
• Location: CakeSpy Shop, 415 E. Pine Street, Seattle, WA; online at cakespyshop.com

But wait, there's more! Because I hate being at an event and waiting for people to arrive fashionably late (don't make me wait all alone in my party dress, people!), I would like to give you an incentive to come early: the first three guests will receive a FREE copy of the book!! That's right. You just mention this post and if you're one of the first three, you'll get the book at NO COST. And I will still sign it for you.

But even if you can't make it to this awesome event of the century, there are more chances to get your hands on my book over the next few days in Seattle:

• Friday, October 14: Book Larder in Fremont, details TBA
• Saturday, October 15: Sweet Meet-Up at Cupcake Royale of Capitol Hill, 1111 E. Pike, 7-9 pm - more details here!
• Monday, October 17: Cupcake Royale of Bellevue, 3-5 pm! More details here.

For the rest of the tour dates, click here! To purchase the book in advance, visit cakespyshop.com or hit up Elliott Bay Books. Or win a copy here.

Virtual Tour de Sweet, Stop 1: Everything Fall Cupcakes by Cupcake Project

Photo: Cupcake ProjectCakeSpy Note: My book tour has already begun--online, that is! Kicking off the Tour de Sweet blog tour for my book is Stef at Cupcake Project, who was inspired by my cupcakes baked in cupcakes--and she created her own fall version, which include all of the best fall flavors in one sweet treat! Here's a sneak peek at her post; read the entire post and find her recipe here.

When perusing Sweet Treats for a Sugar-Filled Life to decide what to bake for you for on the tour stop (what would a baking book tour be without sweet treats?), my choice was clear.  In her book, Jessie creates the cupcake in a cupcake - genius!!  The Everything Fall Cupcake is my own take on her creation (which, by the way, is her take on the work of her friend Megan Seling from Bake It In a Cake)...

...When you bake a cupcake inside of a cupcake, you end up with a little cupcake nipple poking out of the top of the original cupcake.  This is normal, and as you can see in the photo at the top of this post, once you frost the cupcakes, no one will ever know it was there.

Cupcakes inside of cupcakes open up a whole new realm of cupcake possibilities.  Take any two cupcake and frosting flavors you love and you might love them even more in the same cupcake!  Not only do you achieve different but complementary flavors in one bite, but you also end up with varied textures, a super moist center from the twice-baked cupcake, a typical cupcake texture from the normal-sized cupcake, and a top that has flaky crunchy bits from the mini-cupcake's frosting spreading and caramelizing.

Photo: Cupcake ProjectFor Stef's recipe for "Everything Fall" Cupcakes as well as the rest of her sweet thoughts on the book, visit her site!