Over the weekend, we went out to eat lunch at the Georgetown Liquor Company. Afterward, we headed over to the Georgetown Saturday Market. My goal: Cupcake Luv. These cupcakes are sold only at 7 lucky farmer’s markets throughout the Seattle area. I should have made a note of the flavors available that day. I chose The Eternal Luv, described on Cupcake Luv’s website as “our darkest chocolate cake, rich peanut butter ganache center, finished with swirls of creamy peanut butter butter cream and fresh roasted peanuts”.
Cupcake Luv's Eternal Luv: click to enlarge
This cupcake was not cheap at $5. However, it was worth it! The cake was moist and rich and the ganache inside was smooth and silky. The icing wasn’t overly sweet and had strong peanut flavor. The chopped nuts on top added crunch and a little salt. My rating: ♥♥♥♥. I’d go out of my way to purchase this cupcake again. I look forward to finding Cupcake Luv again at a farmer’s market near or far.
So, I haven’t been baking lately for various reasons. I have been able to eat, though. Yesterday, we ventured out to Pabla Indian Cuisine to try out their vegetarian buffet and afterward stopped by Common Ground Coffee and Cupcakes, just a few blocks away, for a cupcake (or two).
We were so stuffed from lunch that we got the cupcakes to go, but the shop seemed like it would be a pleasant place to stay awhile: free wi-fi, coffee, toys for the kiddies.
Common Ground interior
Common Ground Cupcakes: click to enlarge
It was a little warm out, so I was excited that my cupcakes (Strawberry Fondue and S’mores) made it home intact. I dug into the strawberry cupcake first. It was cute. I liked the fact that the strawberry stem was piped on using icing. I don’t like inedible objects on cupcakes. The cake was moist and packed with strawberry flavor. The icing was fine, but I didn’t discern a specific taste to it. I later learned from the website that it was supposed to be a strawberry butter cream. It wasn’t pink, so if it had strawberry flavor, it was artificial. It wasn’t overly sweet and it was nice and fluffy. My rating: ♥♥ 1/2. I’d be willing to pay for this again if I were in the area. I’d be more likely to try something new though…
The second cupcake was okay. The chocolate cake was moist, but the icing again had no distinct flavor. The website says “marshmallow/graham cracker” for butter cream flavor, but I’m not sure if they meant garnished with a graham cracker. After having amazing S’mores cupcakes from Trophy and New York Cupcakes, this was a bit of a disappointment. My rating: ♥♥. I’d eat this again, but I wouldn’t pay for it.
The two cupcakes that I had from Common Ground were good, but not spectacular. I’d be willing to try them again. I wish that their website contained a little more information. It didn’t really draw me to their store. I like a little more description of flavors available. That gets me intrigued about a specific flavor and ready to go and seek it out.
So, we were in Redmond to take the pups to Marymoor and thought we’d stop by the cupcake place at Redmond Town Center…
There were quite a few flavors available:
Banana Split from PinkaBella: click to enlarge
Grandma's Cookie Jar @ PinkaBella: click to enlarge
Vanilla with Chocolate or Strawberry icing: click to enlarge
Chocolate with Chocolate or Vanilla icing: click to enlarge
Lemon with Lemon or Lavender Icing: click to enlarge
Chocolate Peanut Butter: click to enlarge
Pineapple Coconut: click to enlarge
Mr Shuck chose the Pineapple Coconut. The citrus rum cake was very flavorful and fairly moist. It was topped with a creamy, slightly sweet icing studded with chunks of pineapple and coconut flakes. I thought it was extremely cute and very much like a pina colada. Rating: ♥♥♥. I’d definitely go back to PinkaBella if I were in at Redmond Town Center and I’d get this cupcake again.
French Toast from PinkaBella: click to enlarge.
I chose the French Toast cupcake. The vanilla cake was okay. It seemed to have a cinnamon egg wash brushed on top. This was the only part that reminded me of French Toast. The cinnamon icing perched on top was also very creamy and not overly sweet. Rating: ♥♥. I liked this cupcake, but I’d probably try something else next time.
So, day three in San Diego took us to Cupcakes Squared. This shop is located in a strip mall on Voltaire Street. The shop was pretty small and nothing special. No cute decor. There was a cafe table in front of the store for those who wanted to “eat in”. There was baking equipment visible, so I assume the cupcakes were made on the premises. While the store itself wasn’t very unique, the cupcakes were, at least in one respect: They were square! I’m not sure if they are somehow made in the folded square liners or if they are cut from sheet cakes.
We chose 3 mini cupcakes for tasting: Chocolate Coconut Macadamia Nut, Carrot, and Chocolate squared.
Chocolate Coconut Macadamia Nut from Cupcakes Squared: Click to enlarge
The Chocolate Coconut Macadamia Nut cupcake was based on a rich and moist chocolate cake studded with macadamia nuts and coconut. The crunch of the nuts added nice texture. The icing was creamy and fluffy and a little salty from the nuts and coconut. This cake was wonderful, so wonderful that I dug right into the Carrot Cupcake without remembering to take a photo. Oops!
I only had a bite of the Carrot cake. The cake was very moist, but appeared to contain raisins, which I abhor, so I just tasted a little. The cream cheese icing was creamy and not too sweet. This cake was garnished with a little grated carrot and crushed walnuts. Robin from Cupcakes Squared later confirmed that the cake contained currants, not raisins. I should be more adventurous.
Chocolate Squared from Cupcakes Squared
The Chocolate Cake on this cupcake was just as moist and flavorful as the chocolate macadamia nut cake. Chocolate chips added some texture. The icing was light and creamy but still rich and fudgy. I was curious about the kind of frosting used since it was lighter than standard butter cream. Robin confirmed that they use a butter cream made from butter, sugar, cream and flavoring.
My overall rating for the store: ♥♥♥♥. If in San Diego again, I would go out of my way to go back here, especially if it was a day that the Chocolate Coconut Macadamia Nut as available.
So…our original vacation plan was to go to Portland for a couple of days, then head to the Oregon coast for the rest of the week. When we saw the weather forecast for the Coast (45 mile an hour winds and rain for 4 days), we started rethinking this plan. As we checked out of our Portland hotel on Sunday, we made a last minute trip deal with Expedia and ended up in San Diego on Monday. The weather was beautiful and San Diego is cupcake filled!
I thought the shop was extremely cute with an “urban loft” decor. There were a few tables and a couch or two. They are open late (10 pm during the week and 11:30 on the weekend) and bake on site. Also a plus: if you call in your order, they will bring it out to your car for you. A definite plus if street parking isn’t plentiful. They also have a little cupcake mobile which appears to be a fluffy cupcake on top of a Rascal scooter.
Heavenly Cupcake scooter
Another plus, especially if I had the puppies with me: they have a water bowl out front for the four legged patrons and sell pupcakes!
Heavenly Pupcakes: click to enlarge
On to the tasting:
Having just had a full dinner, we planned to only have one cupcake, so choosing the right flavor was important. Our choices were banana peanut butter, carrot, chocolate/chocolate, vanilla caramel, chocolate/vanilla, vanilla/vanilla, red velvet, lemon raspberry, and orange chip. All of them were very cute. The little sugar halo garnish is a nice touch. Banana peanut butter was the winner! (I didn’t think to take my Nikon and my other camera doesn’t take good macros, so no big photo. Lots of photo issues this trip!)
Heavenly Cupcakes on display: click to enlarge
More Heavenly Cupcakes: click to enlarge
The banana cake was very dense and chewy, more like banana bread than cake. It was extremely moist and had a lot of banana flavor. Excellent! The peanut butter icing was nutty and not overly sweet. It was garnished with crushed dried bananas which added a little crunch. Mr Shuck and I both loved this cupcake. Rating: ♥♥♥♥. I would go out of my way for one of these.
After the banana peanut butter, I was still wanting a little something… the only mini cupcakes that were available were the Orange Chip, their signature flavor. I don’t really like the combination of orange and chocolate, but I thought I’d give it a go anyway. As I brought it to my lips, I caught a scent of something familiar…Mr Shuck confirmed that it smelled like Froot Loops! A little taste…the cake tastes like Froot Loops! The cake was nice and moist, but I couldn’t get past the taste. The icing was creamy and rich. Together, it was like eating Froot Loops mixed with Cocoa Puffs. I probably wouldn’t try this one again.
If I lived in San Diego, I’d probably have Heavenly Cupcake programmed in my cell phone. Granted I only have 2 cupcakes to judge by, but my first impression is “Heavenly”.
Ja Da’s Desserts doesn’t have a shop. They are available by special order by contacting the owner, Jamie Savage, (at 503-351-9769 or by email at jadasdesserts@hotmail.com) or at the Portland Saturday Market. These cupcakes were the best that I had in the Portland area.
Cupcakes at Ja Das
Chocolate Mint from Ja'Das
When we first approached the cupcake booth, we were offered samples of the sweet potato cupcake. The sample was so delicious, I couldn’t resist trying a whole cupcake. I decided on the Snickers cupcake and we were given 2 spoons so we could eat it out of the cup. We took our treat over to the fountains…after getting a little distracted by these little guys…
Puppies! Click to enlarge
Snickers Cupcake from Ja Da's: click to enlarge
The cake was extremely moist and rich. The icing wasn’t overly sweet despite the caramel swirl. There were bits of cut up Snickers bars on top and the saltiness and crunch of the peanuts provided nice contrast. I have no complaints, as this photo will show…
YUM!
After wandering around the market for awhile, somehow we ended up back at the cupcake booth. A sweet potato cupcake found its way into my shopping bag. Mr Shuck and I remembered it the next day during the 3 hour drive back home. It was still fresh and stick to your fingers moist after a day (probably because of the air tight plastic container).
My overall rating for both of these cupcakes: ♥♥♥♥. If I were in Portland, I’d go out of my way to make it to the Saturday Market for another one of these. My only complaint is an environmental one: these cupcakes have a lot of packaging. Granted, they do keep the product fresh, but it’s a lot of landfill space. Maybe one day they will consider compostable plastic.
First, I have to say that I really like the Portland food cart thing. I especially love the pod of food carts located at Skidmore and N Mississippi. It’s a vegetarian’s dream! We had a delicious tofu curry at the Ruby Dragon. There was also a falafel cart, vegetarian sushi, pizza, and others that I don’t remember. We had amazing non-meat choices in that parking lot.
The Sugar Cube Logo
The first day when we went to The Sugar Cube, they had 2 cupcakes available. The Amy Winehouse, which I chose, and The Highway to Heaven, a buttermilk chocolate cake filled with salted caramel and dipped in chocolate ganache. I wish I had chosen the Highway to Heaven since the Amy Winehouse was available the next day as well. Then I could have tried both cupcakes!
Amy Winehouse cupcake from the Sugar Cube: click to enlarge
The Amy Winehouse is described on the menu as a “Boozy yellow cake, infused with copious amounts of brandy, a hint of orange zest and then dipped in sexy bittersweet chocolate ganache.” It’s garnished with a “coke straw” and some powdered “sugar”. I thought that it was really good. The cake was moist and and definitely boozy. There were vanilla bean flecks evident. The chocolate ganache was nice as well. It was a regular home baked size cupcake that appeared to have been baked in the cart. We also had the Fizzy Lifting Drink made from freshly grated ginger, plum vinegar and ginger ale. It was very refreshing.
I would definitely go back to the Sugar Cube. I really want to try the Highway to Heaven cupcake. I liked the Amy Winehouse, but I probably wouldn’t get it again. Rating: ♥♥.
Divine Bites is a little cupcake stand located within Divine Consign, a furniture consignment store on Main St in Vancouver, Washington. I have no photos because I deleted them with the photos from Hello, Cupcake.
We got to the shop right before closing, so only had a couple of choices. I decided on “Lip Licking Lemon” and “Elegant Marshmallow”.
The lemon cupcake was filled with lemon curd, topped with vanilla butter cream, and topped with a Lemon Head. The butter cream looked like it had flecks of vanilla bean, but lacked vanilla flavor. Overall the cupcake was moist and lemony. (I ate the Lemon Head separately since I knew it would distort any other flavors.)
The Marshmallow cupcake was chocolate with a marshmallow filling topped with a fudgy icing and garnished with tiny little marshmallows (smaller than the ones in instant cocoa). The cake was a bit dry by itself, a little crumbly, but the entire bite together was yummy!
I’d go back for more if I were in the Vancouver, Washington area. The two cupcakes I had were really good. I’d just make sure I got there way before closing time so there would be more flavor options.
The flavors available were pretty standard: vanilla/vanilla, chocolate/chocolate with sprinkles, mocha with coffee icing, red velvet, carrot, and vanilla/chocolate (both ways). I chose the chocolate with vanilla icing which was extremely cute and topped with a little sugar flower. You’ll have to trust me on this. I apparently deleted all my photos. Oops! (Their website has lots, so check them out.)
I was worried about the moistness of the cupcake when it started crumbling when I pulled off the liner. The icing was standard (American, I assume) butter cream: very sweet with not much flavor other than “sugary”. The cake was dry and not very heavy on chocolate-y-ness. The combination resulted in a slight bitterness. I needed a chaser to get the taste out of my mouth. Darnit! My soda was dry!
My rating: ♥. I might try again if I’m in the area if I were hungry. I’d probably end up getting a veggie dog next door instead.
This cupcake was on my list but a bit out of the way. After leaving Saint Cupcake, we went across the street to Zupan’s Market to get a coffee. Imagine my delight when I saw this cupcake in their bakery case. They also had a peanut butter cupcake from Jaciva’s as well as some cupcakes from other local bakeries. I would have liked to have tried them both, but the 7th Heaven Cupcake was WAAAY too big to have anything else with it. This cupcake was topped with a delightful icing: something between whipped cream and an Italian meringue butter cream. (I discovered when visiting the bakery months later that it is a vanilla mousse.) It was very fluffy and not overly sweet. It tasted like vanilla ice cream and was studded with mini chocolate chips. This sat atop a chocolate cake and was dipped in a hardened chocolate shell that crunched (and made a mess all over) when you bit into it. The cake was dry and spongy. Maybe it had been sitting around in the grocery case for too long before it made its way into my hands. I’ve emailed the bakery to see if they can give me more information about the icing.
7th Heaven Cupcake and grande latte: click to enlarge
7th Heaven Cupcake Icing: click to enlarge
7th Heaven Chocolate Cake: dry and spongy: click anyway to enlarge
The Cupcake Addict's Cupcake Collection 