Cupcake Wars Champion Cupcake Review

Another cupcake review?! Yep. Don't worry, I haven't turned into a cupcake review only blog.  April being my birth-month I'm on a cupcake kick.  I've been meaning to try all these places out and what better time than April.

In researching cupcake shops in my area I came across one that the owner had been on Cupcake Wars.  Well of course I HAD to check out this shop.  Located in Lake Oswego, Kyra's is a 100% gluten -free bakery and was the only gluten-free three time winner on Cupcake Wars.  So exciting! You can read about Kyra's story of why she opened a gluten-free bakery here. 

When I walked into Kyra's the place was busy.  Everyone there that morning wanted the cinnamon rolls.  The smell of the cinnamon rolls filled the air and it was such a wonderful smell. I was tempted to get a cinnamon roll but I was there for cupcakes. I'll definitely be going back for a cinnamon roll. 

I picked up three cupcakes. One for my husband and two for me :) Bunny Hop for my husband and Birthday Cake and Raspberry Lemonade for me.

Jasper wanted to help with the taste testing.

I got the Bunny Hop for my husband because he likes carrot cake. The Bunny Hop is carrot spice cake with cream cheese frosting.  He liked the cupcake and said there was real chunks of carrot in it. A pleasant surprise. I didn't tell him it was gluten free.   As for the frosting, he said it was too much.  Keep in mind my husband is not much of a frosting guy.

I thought the Birthday Cake cupcake was fitting since it's my birth-month.  The cake had a mild vanilla flavor and had a little bit of a mealy texture.  I'm assuming this is because it's gluten-free.  The cake was lighter than the other bakery where I tried gluten-free cupcakes. The frosting was very smooth but a little bland in flavor.  Vanilla cupcakes have never been my favorite because I've always found them a little lacking in flavor. However, if you're a vanilla cupcake lover I think you would like these cupcakes.

I saved the Raspberry Lemonade cupcake for last.  I thought this one would be more flavorful than the Birthday Cake one and I was right.  The texture of this one was mealy too but had a nice lemon flavor.  The mealy texture didn't take away from the lightness of the cake and the flavor.  The frosting on this one was smooth and bursting with flavor.  I really liked this cupcake.

There are so many other great sounding flavors on their menu that I'd like to try. I think this Saturday  I'll stop into Kyra's for some cinnamon rolls and bring them over to the garage sale I'm participating in with my family. See if they taste as  good as they smell.

Vegan Cupcake Review

Can a sugar lover like vegan cupcakes?

When you walk into Petunia's Pies and Pastries a sweet little piggy greets you on the wall. Petunia's is located in Portland, Oregon and is a vegan and gluten free bakery.  

The cakes on display look delicious but vegan and gluten free! I'm skeptical about how they taste.  I'm a total gluten sugar egg loving dessert eater.

Not only can you get baked goods at Petunia's, you can order lunch and get a cocktail too.

On all the tables are Drink and Dessert pairing menu's.  One more reason to  meet friends at Petunia's and spend a lazy afternoon enjoying dessert and a drink.

 I treated myself to two cupcakes and really hoped they tasted good because they were my birthday cupcakes. Yes I know, I already had cake at my birthday party but that was last weekend. I celebrate all month :) Everyone should. It's fabulous!

The first cupcake I tried was the Yum-oha. I was told it was like a Samoa Girl Scout cookie. I tried the cake first and was pleasantly surprised.  The cake was very moist and had a nice rich flavor. The cake is heavier than that of non-vegan non-gluten free cupcakes. The icing tasted like a candy bar. mmm. When I tried the icing with the cake it was a little too much. I scraped part of the icing off and it was much better.

The next cupcake I tried was a coconut raspberry.  This cake was also  moist and rich just like the Yum-oha. When I tried the icing on this cupcake it crumbled off. The icing was stiff and very sweet. Now I like sweet but this was overly sweet. The coconut flavor was very mild. When I attempted to eat the cake with the icing, the icing just crumbled off and it was just too much.  I scraped off most of the icing and the cupcake was much better after that.

As you can see from the cut away view there is a lot of icing. I normally love icing but not the one on the coconut raspberry. The filling was a nice surprise in the cupcake.

Did Petunia's convert me to a vegan gluten free cupcake eater?  Not really.  I did enjoy both cupcakes, will be  trying more flavors and will recommend the bakery to others.  I also felt like I was sneaking in some veggies I don't eat enough of.  But my heart belongs to sugar, gluten and egg cupcakes :)

Cupcake Review

Sweet Celebrations in Long Beach, Washington

Last spring my friend and I went to Long Beach, Washington to get out of town and enjoy the beach.  Walking along the main street through town I saw a sign for cupcakes. Of course I had to go check it out.  The shop is located down an ally off the main street. Not the best location because unless you really look for the shop it's easy to walk right by it. 

The lady behind the counter, who I believe was the owner was very helpful and friendly.

I'm not sure how long Sweet Celebrations had been open when my friend and I visited. I have a feeling the shop was fairly new. As a cupcake lover and party thrower I approached the shop with possibly a different eye than most.  The cupcakes in the trays didn't make for a professional display in my opinion. It had a bake sale look to it.  The flavors of the cupcakes were written on a dry erase board that the cupcakes were sitting on. Pretty little signs would have made a big difference.

Another thing that caught my eye right away was how the cupcakes had a very homemade-y look to them.  As you can see in the photo below where the arrows are pointing, cupcake batter is slopped over the wrappers. As a bakery owner I would not have put these out for sale.  Both my friend and I were a bit turned off by how the cupcakes were displayed and how they looked.

I decided to try two cupcakes anyway.  My friend passed. She said the look of the display case and how the cupcakes looked turned her off.  I wondered how many other people thought the same as my friend.
I went with the maple bacon and orange cream and went out into the sun to sample them.

A Yelp reviewer said she liked the maple bacon cupcakes so much she went back for seconds and the shop is not to be missed.  I was curious to see if I would have the same thought. The orange cream was good. The cake was moist and the frosting smooth with a nice orange flavor.  For the maple bacon I have to disagree with the Yelp reviewer.  I found there to be too much bacon on the top.  A lot of the pieces fell off as I bit into it and the bacon flavor overwhelmed the cupcake. The maple of the frosting was very sweet. I took two bites and couldn't finish it.

I haven't been up to Long Beach, Washington in awhile so I don't know if any changes have been made to the shop or the cupcakes.  Next time I go up I'll stop into Sweet Celebrations and sample the cupcakes again. 

Road Trip Birthday Party

 Every year I throw myself a birthday party.  Sometimes they're big and sometimes they're small and they always have a theme, of sorts. One year I did an ice cream party. I really need to get that one posted on here.  One of the most popular and fun was the Breakfast at Tiffany's party.  This year the theme was Road Trip.  I love road trips. I'd prefer to drive to my vacation destination than fly.  You get to see so much when you're on the road.

My guests were greeted by a banner and the classic air freshner tree's.  I'm not sure how people can stand to have those in their car.  The scent is so strong. I could smell them through the door.

I created the backdrop using a map and photo's of vacations I've been on.  I also marked places on the map that I had been.

Stopping for donuts is common on road trips.  You won't find these mini donuts in any shop on the road. They were made by EZ Favor Lollipop Shop.

Since the air freshner tree's have such a strong scent I didn't want to use them for the garland on the table.  Swishprintables did a great job of creating the air freshners in print.

Auntie Bea's Bakery helped with the snack stop in Arizona with cactus cookies. 

I treated myself this year to a bakery cake.  Devils food cake layered with chocolate ganche and raspberry buttercream and iced in raspberry buttercream. 

4 Kids Cakes created road signs to add some fun to the cake. I love how she distressed them so they look like they've been on the side of the road for years.

No trip is complete without a stop for munchies.

I always liked to get the little bags of nuts or gummy candy when we stopped for munchies.
Do you recognize that gummy bunny? Marshmallow Oreo cookies and  buttery crackers. 

Thank you for joining me on my road trip.

Vendors-

Printables-Swish Printables

Cake- Baker and Spice the Cakery

Cookies- Auntie Bea's Bakery

Donuts- EZ Favor Lollipop Shop

Fondant Road Signs- 4 Kids Cakes

Road Washi Tape- Pretty Tape

Buttery Crackers- Fancy and Fold

Favor Box's, Nut Tubes, Thank You Tags, Napkins and Twine- Fancy That Shop

Map-Powell's

Oreo's-Target

Map Paper and Letters - Joann's

Cars, Dice and Tires- Dollar Tree



Easter Candy

Homemade Gummy Easter Candy

When I saw this pin on Pinterest I had to go to the Hungry Happenings blog and check it out.  I'm a sugar girl. Don't fill my Easter basket with chocolate candies and chocolate bunnies. Fill it with  gummies, licorice and Peeps!

I was excited to try my hand at homemade candy.  Especially sour gummies. After picking up my supplies I was ready to get started.  Hungry Happenings has a great tutorial so I won't be posting one here.  I didn't have time to take pictures anyway. I was too busy watching boiling pots of hot liquid. Of course just as I was about to pour one hot liquid into the other my cat came up beside me and wanted to see what I was doing. Why is it our cats and dogs always get right under our feet while we're cooking with hot liquids?

Making the homemade gummy candy was pretty easy.  Of course the first time is always the hardest because you're trying to read directions and cook/bake at the same time.  The next time I make them will be easier.





 Look at all those bunny gummies, so cute! Hungry Happenings went with an apple flavor and I chose cherry.   

You can leave these as plain gummy candy or you can add citric acid powder to make them sour. I like sour candies so I made mine sour. Next time I'll add more citric acid and make them more sour. Give them more pucker factor.

My husband said the cherry flavor was ok but he thought watermelon would be better.  I'll have to try that next time.

Surprise your friends with some homemade gummy or sour gummy candies. Pick up some fun Easter Eggs and candy bags. Fill the candy bags with some gummies, put them in the eggs  and give to your friends.

These little bunnies are on their way to Montana. An Easter surprise for a friend.

Recipe, a supply list and a link to buy the supplies can be found on Hungry Happenings