Cupcakes vs Whoopie Pies

Whilst hard to believe it was only a few years ago that the bakery industry and consumers delighted at the huge comeback of the cupcake. Some attributed it to the economy downfall, providing small guilty pleasures to boost morale, others have cited the scene in Sex and the City where Carrie munches on a cupcake from the Magnolia bakery with fellow character Miranda as the true cause of the resurgence. Whichever reason it is I, along with thousands of others, have been indulging, enjoying and obsessing ever since. Wedding cakes made from towers of cupcakes, parties and hen do’s themed around making and decorating them, bakeries and shops coming up with innovative new ways to market them in every style, theme, colour and flavour imaginable, not to mention the memorabilia that has flooded the shops in the last few years are evidence of its popularity. So could the cupcake bubble be on the verge of bursting…have people had enough of cupcakes? Well the introduction of a new cake in town, the whoopie pie, certainly seems to be threatening the cupcake’s market share of the treat and cake industry.

Sneaking onto the market just 18 months ago, first through luxury London boutiques and then filtering down to high-end food retailers the whoopie pie is now being described as the new “IT” indulgence. Originating in Amish communities in America and thought to be made from leftover cake batter by wives for their farmer husbands lunch boxes the whoopie pie (two wedges of sticky cake sandwiched together with frosting or buttercream) has started showing up in food markets and on bakery shelves in places where cupcakes used to be causing me to wonder whether our love for the simple cake topped with icing is diminishing? I personally hope not. Whilst I have sampled and (eventually) liked whoopie pies (not without a few dodgy ones along the way which were just far too sickly) there is a simplicity to cupcakes which I far rather enjoy. Maybe it because it reminds me of the fairy cakes I had a child at kids parties, maybe it’s because they are far more versatile in both flavour and appearance, and easier to make (in my opinion), or maybe it’s because they somehow seem more elegant (when done properly and served on a fancy cake stand). But whilst I will rarely turn down a bit of whoopie (!), I can’t deny that I’m just a cupcake gal at heart 🙂

A little slice of heaven…

Tucked away at the lower end of Wokingham high street is a little Italian gem, Don Beni’s restaurant, so hidden in fact that you would be forgiven for not noticing it at all. From the outside this building is very understated and you could walk past it without giving it a second glance. Inside however lies the most authentic italian food I have tasted outside of Italy, a warm and inviting atmosphere and staff who are attentive, cheeky (often with an eye for the ladies) and who if are not actually from Italy (which is rare) are keen to give you as authentic and traditional an Italian dining experience as they can.

Food portions are huge, so much so that you would be wise not to consider eating much else that day, especially if you order 3 courses (which given the quality of the food is hard not to be tempted to do). Whilst not as cheap as many high street chains the fresh and carefully selected menu selection is worth paying a little extra for (roughly £5 starters, £10 mains and £5 desserts from standard menu items) but you get you money’s worth for sure. It’s safe to say that I have never had a bad experience at this restaurant in over 8 years of going (several times a year). In an era of mass reproduced menus and brand pizzeria names, this independent restaurant (now with 8 branches across the south and south-east) is well worth booking for your next special night out. Go on, treat yourself…

Bring back…

There are a number of sweets and treats from the past which have disappeared from our shop shelves and given the success of the Wispa campaign a few years ago (of which I was a very active campaigner!) I thought I would share a few from my wish list for making a comeback…would love to know what everyone else’s are too…

A spot of baking…

So I came home today from work with a burning desire to do some baking. After much deliberating about flavours, recipes, toppings I narrowed my efforts to a batch of zesty lemon cupcakes, a firm favourite in my household, and an experimental but easy batch of chocolate orange “fridge cake”.

The cupcakes are so simple that I’ve got the whole baking and decorating process down to less than an hour (taking into account finding bakeware hidden at the back of cupboards, cats trying to trip me up by winding between my legs, and my desperate need for a new sieve!) which makes them a very quick and cheaper way to quench those sweet toothed cravings instead of heading to the supermarket for some processed substitutes.

Fridge cake is a childhood classic of mine, we used to make it just after Christmas to use up all the leftover biscuits brought round by well-meaning neighbours and relatives and any chocolate left from our selection boxes (it’s a perfect use for those below par milk chocolate treats which are inedible in their usual form!). I’m sure many people will have their own versions as variations of “Rocky Road” and know it by many other names but generally my versions include crushed biscuits, chocolate of any variety (in my case I tried using plain chocolate with orange pieces today), raisins, marshmallows and I suppose if you were so inclined you could add all sorts of other treats (nuts, cherries, honeycomb etc). This is all then just mixed together, stuffed into a tin and left to cool in the fridge, it doesn’t get easier than that and the beauty of it is there are no proportions or method to worry about!

Yes, my presentation needs some work (but quite frankly I’m lucky that I’m not under the pressure to sell these in a shop) however to me they are just about taste, reward of some enjoyable baking efforts and doing something creative after being stuck behind a desk all day long 🙂

Let them eat cake…

I have to admit it, I love cake…small cakes, big cakes, layered cakes, iced cakes, cupcakes…they all catch my eye. Unlike many other types of food cake represents so much, decadence, indulgence, celebration, romance, creativity and much much more…

One of the things I loved most about wedding magazines in the run up to my wedding was looking at all the amazing creations people would have for their wedding cakes. The concept of the traditional 3 tier white, round, plain cake seems to have long since gone (albeit with a few modern exceptions which I’ve actually found rather charming) and the era of multi-tiered, multi flavoured, multi textured, multi this that and the other has taken over.

Much to my figure’s detriment I also love eating cake which is probably all linked back to the memories I have as a child of Sunday “trolley tea” which would involve a selection of (what appeared to a child in the 80’s) quite decadent foods…homemade cake, my Dad’s homemade ginger biscuits made with apple juice concentrate from a barrel in the garden (to this day I still don’t quite know why it was kept that way!) finger sandwiches, a big bar of Cadbury’s dairy milk and any other tasty treats we had in. My family and I would all prepare the spread of treats, each taking on a part of the role and sit around the telly on a Sunday with the trolley in the middle of the room and eat. Looking back I think this was actually was quite a sweet way of bringing us all together and was definitely something to look forward to each week.

I also remember that when I was a child my Grandma would travel up to us by tube on a Friday afternoon and arrive shortly after I finished school with a tupperware full of homemade brownies and fairy cakes topped with delicious water icing and glacé cherries for us all. This is such a fond memory that I always use my grandma’s cake recipe in all my own baking (memorised at a very early age) and it has never failed me. I even gained some smug satisfaction a few years ago when challenged by my husband to a contest to bake the best cake, me by hand, him using the mixer. He thought his would come out better but he was wrong, mine had risen better and were lighter and fluffier than his…sorry honey the gloating continues!!!

Anyway enough reminiscing, I thought I would share some of the wonderful pictures of cakes I have come across (and will probably continue to add to) and which have inspired me to both bake, and eat cake…enjoy 🙂