Cake Byte: Trophy Cupcakes Offers Hi-Hat Cupcakes For a Limited Time

Happy, happy Easter week! In Seattle, here's a very sweet way to celebrate: with a limited run of Hi-Hat Cupcakes from Trophy Cupcakes! Here's the 411:

Trophy's most anticipated cupcake of the year returns especially for Easter weekend! Available just two days per year, the Hi-Hat Cupcake is made by topping Trophy's Valrhona Chocolate Cupcake with a sky-hi swirl of pastel marshmallow frosting…but that's not all… they are then hand dipped in Semi-Sweet Callebaut Chocolate! Pastel marshmallow, Belgian chocolate and Valrhona Cake all rolled into one amazing cupcake…what could be a more perfect Easter treat?!

Available April 23rd at all three Trophy locations and on Easter Sunday at The University Village, for $4.00. Trophy will also be dressing up all of their cupcakes for spring with flowers, bunnies, candy eggs and baskets, perfect for your weekend festivities.

Trophy Cupcakes will take advance orders for Hi-Hats, as well as for Easter themed cupcakes. Hi-Hats and Easter Cupcakes will also be available in each of the three retail locations on Saturday and at the Univerty Village shop on Sunday (The Bravern and Wallingford shops will be closed on Sunday). Quantities of Hi-Hats for walk-in orders are limited, so Trophy recommends placing an advance order at least 48 hours prior to your pick up. The Wallingford Center and The Bravern are Closed on Easter Sunday, April 24th. University Village is open from 10am to 6pm.

Available at all three Trophy Cupcakes locations; for availability, directions and hours, visit their website. Also, follow them on Twitter!

Sweet Memories: A Slideshow of Sugar Overload from CupcakeCamp 2011

CupcakeCamp 2010 was totally awesome. Nobody's arguing that.

But if I were to write in the yearbook of this year's followup,  CupcakeCamp Seattle 2011, which took place at The Canal House in Ballard, what I would write would be this: UR 2sweet + 2B = 4GOTTEN. No, really.

Organizer and cupcake genius Carrie Middlemiss of Bella Cupcake Couture couldn't have put on a sweeter event, with proceeds going to HOPE Heart Institute.

I mean, for one thing, New York Cupcakes made a cake tower on which they decorated the cake to look like the artwork I did for the event poster! OMG!

And for another, I got to be a judge in the cupcake competition. I took this job very seriously, as did co-judges Rachel of Cupcakes Take the Cake, Melody Biringer, and Keren Brown (aka Frantic Foodie).

But don't take my word for it alone, because I have plenty of photographic evidence. And to celebrate the sweet memories (or, if you weren't there, make you jealous), here are over 100 sweet snapshots from this amazing event, during which over 800 cupcake enthusiasts ate many thousands of cupcakes (including, notoriously, a Monte Cristo cupcake comprised of french toast cake, swiss cheese buttercream, raspberry preserves, and salty ham; also, a Chicken n Waffles cupcake).

Note: These photos are not listed in any particular order of awesomeness, just sort of as they happened. Here's the slideshow:

Cake Byte: CupcakeCamp Seattle 2011 is Tomorrow, April 17

This poster will be for sale at CupcakeCamp!Hey, sweeties. Remember what an awesome time CupcakeCamp 2010 was? Well, forget about that, because CupcakeCamp 2011 is coming--TOMORROW!--and it promises to be bigger, badder, and buttercreamier than last year.

Here are the details:

Date:  Sunday April 17, 2011. 
Time: 12PM- 4pm
Location: The Canal, a Jewel Hospitality property in Ballard
5300 34th Avenue NW Seattle, WA 98107
Why: Because who doesn’t love cupcakes? Plus we will have some fun competitions and all proceeds go to a good cause!

HOW:Purchase tickets HERE for $8 or $10 at the door.

Ticket valid for 6 mini cupcake tastings or 3 standard size on the day of the event only. No refunds available.

For a preview of the awesomeness that awaits you, check out this epic post on last year's event. Also, be sure to check out Cupcakes Take The Cake's great roundup of the sweet times ahead.

Cake Byte: CakeSpy Featured in a Brazilian Newspaper!

Totally sweet! I'm big in Brazil...well, my artwork is, anyhow! Last week an art director emailed me and asked if he could use my artwork from the Coconut French Toast With Bananas Foster recipe for his article, and I said "si!". Now, if only I could only figure out what the article said. 

A link to a bigger image of the article can be found here; the paper is online here.

Top of the Pops: Doughnut Pops by Frost Doughnuts, Mill Creek WA

Topping the list of things I'd like to pop in my mouth? Doughnut pops by Frost Doughnuts!

That's right: they've got a totally sweet new product over in Mill Creek:

We are excited to reveal our newest creation: FROST Pops! All of the flavor you love in FROST doughnuts, in a pop!

Launching for Spring, FROST Pops aren't doughnut holes on-a-stick, but an entirely new doughnut-based cake that has the moistest brownie-like texture you can imagine - dipped in chocolate! Best of all, they have the unmistakeable flavor of FROST.

The flavors will range from your favorite Evolved line doughnuts to new and exciting creations. Shown here are Red Velvet and Peanut Butter Perfection, both dipped in luscious chocolates. These, plus our newest variety Island Escape will be available at launch next week at a price of 1.49ea.

For more info, visit frostology.com; stay updated via their Facebook page, too.

Cake Byte: April Means Coconut Lime Cupcakes at Cupcake Royale, Seattle

It has been said that April is the cruelest month, but this is not the case at Seattle's Cupcake Royale, where a delicious flavor reigns supreme all month long: Toasted Coconut Lime!

As they put it:

Yeah, we did it. We put the lime in the coconut and baked it all up. Moist coconut cake gets a tart and tangy swirl of real lime buttercream. We finish it off with toasted coconut for a truly tasty tropical treat!

But be sure to go early in the day, because in this spy's experience, the flavor of the month is the first to sell out daily!

Available all month long 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 News: Bakesale for Japan at CakeSpy Shop on April 2nd

Photo: Jackie BaisaConsider this your official reminder. This Saturday, April 2, at CakeSpy Shop, we're gonna bring a little sweetness to those who may be struggling in Japan.

Here's how we're gonna do it. With a Bakesale for Japan, hosted at CakeSpy Shop! (415 E. Pine Street, Capitol Hill, Seattle).

This is a national project, and in Seattle, bakers will be gathering and selling baked goods for this sweet cause at my little shop in Capitol Hill. You will have plenty of delicious things to choose from, including sweet treats by these celebrity bakers:

The Sated Palate (she will be making cupcakes and possibly Nanaimo Bars too)

The Harvest Vine (she will be making "buns of love", which you probably already want without even knowing what they are, and chocolate-hazelnut tarts)

Not Martha (she will be making "Jars of Stars"--jars of star-shaped cookies, like OMG)

Sugar Rush Baking (the owner will be making mini cupcakes adorably packaged in egg cartons)

Here are the details of the project:

When: Saturday, April 2nd from 9am-1pm

Who: Professional and amateur bakers, cooks, artists, artisans, and musicians coming together around food to make something BIG happen.

How: Want to help? We’ll need bakers, artists, volunteers, and lots and lots of customers. Please send offers of help to seattlebakesale@gmail.com

Why: So we can donate BIG BUCKS to Peace Winds Japan and help our brothers and sisters over there in the best way we can. Stay tuned for details.

But don't hesitate! The sale will be over once we sell out (and trust me, we WILL sell out). Once again, if you want to be part of it, please emailseattlebakesale@gmail.com.

Cake Byte: CakeSpy To Teach a Class at Cornish College of the Arts

So, officially I attended a magical sort of college known as Art School. And if you've seen Art School Confidential, you have a pretty good idea of what it was like. Without the murder and stuff.

But unofficially, my college years at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn were spent as a part time bakery stalker--when I moved to NYC, I came toting a list of every bakery in the city and Brooklyn, and during my NYC years I made a pretty considerable dent in that list. 

So it brings me extreme pleasure to announce that now, things are coming full circle, and I am teaching a one-day class at Seattle's Cornish College of the Arts, which is designed to mimic my art school foundation year--but with a foodie twist.

Here's the course description:

Revisit the foundations of visual communication, trading in your pencils, brushes, and clay for the sweet stuff! In this afternoon intensive, you’ll return to figure drawing and still lives, but this time with cakes. Explore the principles of light and color theory by mixing primary, secondary, and tertiary food coloring and frostings. Have you always wondered the difference between aserif and a san serif? Exercise design strategies by creating typography with cakes. And no foundations course is worth its salt, or sugar, without some nod to art history. We’ll also look at how the masters (Wayne Thiebaud, Andy Warhol, Frida Kahlo) have used sweet foods in their art. 

Yeah, the course is $100, but you know, I need to buy supplies and stuff, and it's very true that the memories will last forever. I totally promise. Sign up here!

Cake Byte: Taste of Home has Totally Sweet Coloring Book Pages

Click here for the download-able version!Guess what? Jane and Michael Stern, those Roadfood warriers willing to eat the fattiest and most delicious and interesting regional foods, have joined forces with Taste of Home.

And I would officially like to commend them on their Very Good Decision. Why? Because they are in good company--I work with Taste of Home, too!

And it's because of that I feel that I am very well qualified to say that Taste of Home is totally sweet. I know this because I have visited their test kitchens, have done illustrations for the print magazine, and am a regular contributor to their website, where I design kid's coloring book pages.

I'd like to share one of my favorite coloring book pages with you right now, if you don't mind. It is for something called Turkey Wafflewiches (OMG!). You can click here to go do the download-able version.

If you have a kid--or just like to color--you can find the full series here. You can also read the interview they did with me here.

Cake Byte: Total CakeSpy Awesomeness

Fact: earlier this week I called SpyMom and said "So much good stuff is happening right now, I'm scared that it means something bad is going to happen". SpyMom (in that no-nonsense New Jersey-for-life way she has) said "Quit being so Italian about it. Just enjoy it." Well, we are not Italian, but my grandma grew up in an Italian section of the Bronx, so I guess that counts. 

Basically, that was the long way of telling you about all of this awesome stuff which has been going on:

The Bakesale with Megan Seling of Bake It In a Cake was a huge hit! We ran out of cupcakes, but, you know, that gave us both some serious street cred. 

The sale was featured prominently on:

Photo: Not MarthaNot Martha

Capitol Hill Seattle

Shelterriffic

...and more. And the cast of attendees was equally star-studded, with guest appearances from Seattle royalty including This Charming Candy, members of Three Imaginary Girls, and Another Rainy Saturday.

-----------------------

But wait, there's more. A mere two days later, on the same day that my delicious maple cookie recipe aired on Serious Eats, I was alerted by a reader that yours truly was featured on the cover of Seattle Woman Magazine.

And upon a walk to my closest newsstand, I found this to be fact. And picked up a stack. OK, so I knew it was going to happen. I just thought it was a few more days til it would appear on the street. 

This was a very fun photo shoot, thanks to photographer Ingrid Pape-Sheldon, who is German, and while she speaks fluent English, there was just enough of a communication gap to make it very funny when she arrived to my store and said "I have seen many pictures of you on the internet". She then proceeded to tirelessly tease the best possible photo out of me, urging me to channel my "inner cupcake ninja" and telling me to "be fierce". No, really. 

The article features a plethora of talented Seattle ladybloggers (yes, really just said that), including a few names you may recognize from bestseller lists and Martha Stewart and stuff, including (alphabetically) Shauna Ahern, Keren Brown, Alice Currah, and Molly Wizenberg. And you know, all of them look totally hot in the photos (perhaps they were all urged to "be fierce" as well).

...oh, and finally, not to sound bossy or anything, but my awesome book is now available for pre-order on Amazon. Just do it. You know you want to. Buy one now, forget about it, and buy another in October, when I come to your town on my (to be announced) book tour. It has, by the way, been deemed "the cutest book cover ever" by the esteemed Amster-Burton family. And this family is made of cute, so listen to them.