Cake Byte: Red Velvet Pop-Tarts Exist

Image: theimpulsivebuy on flickr

Apparently, a Pop-Tart and a slice of Red Velvet had a very intimate evening in the breadbox, because this is completely not a joke. It's true. For a limited time only, taking their place in your heart next to the red velvet donut at Dunkin', something that actually exists is Red Velvet Pop-Tarts.

Image: Biggest MenuAs the official Pop-Tarts website says, 

Sweet cream-cheese-flavored filling enveloped by a red velvety crust and topped with vanilla icing and sprinkles. Toast it for a delicious treat your taste buds won't soon forget.

Although I haven't tried them yet, I found a helpful review on Foodette Reviews, who reports:

Surprisingly, they are actually good and taste like their namesake. Albeit, you're not going to find a distinct resemblance to Aunt Sarah's homemade from scratch, vinegar in the batter red velvet cake with mounds of frosting, but these will definitely save you the time and labor you would normally take in making a red velvet cake from a box. They have that raw flour, not-sweet cake batter flavor that I personally adore, and the filling adds a touch of sweetness and a little creaminess, too. Warm, they fared somewhat less successful and tasted like pancake batter, probably because all the frosting evaporated out.  

Red Velvet Pop-tarts, yes; visit the Pop-tarts website for more information or where to buy.

Cake Byte: Cupcake Royale Debuts Deathcake Royale Ice Cream

Like, OMG. The power and sweet glory that is the Deathcake Royale is now available in ice cream form.

As the Cupcake Royale newsletter reveals, 

"we challenge you to find a more chocolatey ice cream. Now in all cafes, Cupcake Royale introduces Deathcake Royale Ice Cream. Creamy dark chocolate ice cream with a gooey salted fudge swirl and chunks of actual Deathcake! Try a sample and take home a pint!"

Now that's sweet news indeed for anyone in the Seattle area!. Here's more info on the Deathcake Royale. Click here for the Cupcake Royale website.

Cake Byte: School of Sweets Program at Bredenbeck's, Philadelphia

Photo: David Difuntorum

Now this is an education we could all use: School of Sweets! It's a new program at Bredenbeck's of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia! Here are just a few upcoming events.

Dessert Night

7:30 - 9 p.m. $85/couple

Held the first Thursday of each month.

Get a hands-on lesson in preparing three desserts, then savor their flavors with wine pairings. Desserts include mousse tarts, tuxedo strawberries and cake truffles.

Cake Design

2 hours (2 classes)

$125/person

Email us at sales@bredenbecks.com or call 215-247-7374 for details.

Birthday Parties

Cake Decorating (age 9 and up)

2 hours $45/person

We'll demonstrate special techniques and teach your guests how to decorate their own cake.

Includes: 
* 4" cake for each person, plus colored buttercream icing and supplies. 
* 7" cake decorated by our sugar artist to enjoy at the party or take home. 

Cupcake Decorating (age 6 and up)

2 hours $40/person

We'll demonstrate special techniques and decorate cupcakes together!

Includes: 
* 4 cupcakes per person, plus colored buttercream icing and supplies. 

 
In all cases, email sales@bredenbecks.com or call 215-247-7374 for details, or to book.

Cake Byte: Deathcake Royale Is Back

Deathcake is Back! 

It's that magical time of year when the Deathcake Royale comes to play at Cupcake Royale. As they describe it,

In a laboratory explosion of sheer genius, the Cupcake Royale scientists created the cult fave Deathcake Royale: Theo Chocolate decadence fused with Stumptown Espresso Ganache and accessorized with a pinch of fleur de sel.

Personally, while I loved the scale of the big version, the smaller version is still crazy delicious, and probably better for your health. I'll just eat three to make up for the dainty size, ok?

But it won't be around forever. Available 1/18-2/14. Not in Seattle? Happily, you can ship a 3-pack of Deathcake Royale to anyone in the US! 

Find out more on the Cupcake Royale website.

Coming May 7th...

Get ready. To be released on May 7: The Secret Lives of Baked Goods: Sweet Stories & Recipes for America's Favorite Desserts.

CakeSpy at the Renegade Craft Fair San Francisco This Weekend!

Lucky you, San Francisco.

You have the delightful and wonderful pleasure of seeing ME this weekend! That's right: I will be selling my artwork, cards, amazing socks, and more at the 4th Annual Renegade Craft Fair San Francisco Holiday Market. 

It will be going down at the Concourse Exhibion Center (635 8th Street) on Saturday and Sunday, December 15-16, from 11am - 6pm!

Please come on down and see me. The show is free to get into, and if you buy one of my first book, CakeSpy Presents Sweet Treats for a Sugar-Filled Life (a great stocking stuffer or holiday gift, btw) I will totally draw a unicorn in it for you.

For more information or directions, click here.

Cake Byte: Pringles Debuts Sweet Holiday Flavors

And on the best day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: 

Pringles and OMG they're sweet! 

That's right sweeties. Pringles has debuted a batch of holiday flavors that bring sweet and salty together in flavors that some may consider awesome, some may consider awful. 

I was first tipped off to the trend by Java Cupcake; I then researched it more and found a fantastic article entitled "Holiday Flavors Keep Getting More Weird" which told me: "Pringles now comes in Cinnamon & Sugar, White Chocolate Peppermint and Pumpkin Pie Spice. Reason: The brand has great success with new flavors the rest of the year, says Angela Gusse, associate marketing director." 

For more information, visit Pringles.com or just go to the supermarket!

Cake Byte: Free Rainbow Cake at Cupcake Royale!

If you want to eat some rainbow cake, you MUST go to Cupcake Royale on Capitol Hill tomorrow.

As owner Jody Hall writes,

WE DID IT!!!! I'm so elated that Washington State was on the right side of history in passing referendum 74 to bring marriage equality to all couples! Love is undeniable! To celebrate, our amazing bakery team is making the "world's biggest rainbow cake" made in the shape of Washington State!

LET US EAT CAKE we say!

To celebrate everyone being free to love and marry who they wanna, hit up Cupcake Royale on Capitol Hill - 1111 E Pike Street – for a slice of equality on Friday, starting at 3 pm. It's on the house – so come one, come all! We're working to try to get both Gov Gregiore and Gov-Elect (I'm calling it early!) Jay Inslee at this event, along with other state representatives who worked so hard on this. We want EVERYONE to join in and have a slice of this amazing cake!

So. To review:

• What: Let Us Eat Cake – free slices rainbow cake!
• Where: Cupcake Royale – Capitol Hill – 1111 E Pike Street
• When: Friday, November 9 from 3 pm until the cake is gone!
• Who: Everyone! 

Gaybies (baby rainbow cupcakes) as well as ObamaCakes will continue to be available at 

all Cupcake Royale cafes until Sunday, November 11. For more information and directions, visit Cupcake Royale's website.

Cake Byte: CakeSpy Featured on Kitchen Party, and More!

Woot! I was featured on the show Kitchen Party! In it, I am clever and witty along with Babette of BakeSpace, Rene Lynch of the LA Times, Jeff Houck of the Tampa Tribune, and Douglas E Welch. You can watch it here!

Also in CakeSpy news: one of my recipes for Peanut Butter and Company, Cranberry Pecan Pie in Maple Peanut Butter Crust, is part of a fantastic promotion they are running called "Nuts about the Holidays". One consumer who votes for the recipe that garners the most votes will be randomly chosen to win the grand prize of $1,000 worth of kitchenware from a leading kitchenware supplier. There will also be five first prizes to give away consisting of Peanut Butter & Co. products, Peanuts merchandise and DVDs. You can find out more and enter here!

Cake Byte: CakeSpy is a Girl Scout All-Star!

If you want honesty, I will tell you that I already knew I was awesome. But now I have cold, hard proof: I was featured as the Awesome Woman of the Month on the Girl Scouts of Western Washington website! It's true. You can read all about it here.

But wait, there's more! If you are in the Seattle area, are you ever in for a treat! There's a fantastic festival that's starting up for girls: GirlFest! And the Girl Scouts of Western Washington were kind enough to give me some tickets to give away!

Back up. What is GirlFest? Here's a brief explanation. 

Have you ever thought, “I sure wish there was one whole day where I could learn more about what I like and who I am?” If you’re a girl (or you know one!) and you live in Washington, then, boy, will you be excited to know that such a day exists! It’s called GirlFest, and it’s a daylong celebration of everything cool about being a girl!

GirlFest is October 20, at CenturyLink Field Event Center from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.!

Perhaps you’d like to study cool stuff under a microscope, or learn more about being a news reporter. Maybe you would like to climb a rock wall, play a guitar or make your own rocket? Learn about T-shirt design, car maintenance, the environment, sample yummy local food and even hang out with some horses! You can even shake your tail feather to hip hop dance lessons and super-cool concerts from snazzy stars, like Savannah Outen! Plus, get face painting, caricatures, nail stickers and henna tattoos. If you can dream it, you can find it at GirlFest! Buy tickets here.

But wait, there's more! The Girl Scouts of Western Washington have offered up a few tickets for me to give away! If you are in the Seattle area and would like to put yourself in the running, simply leave a comment on this post OR tweet me @cakespy using the hash-tag #girlfest saying what your favorite Girl Scout cookie is! The giveaway will close one week from today, on Sunday, September 23 at noon EST and the winners will be contacted afterward.