Peanut butter paradise

This morning's trip to the farmers market was fruitless in the sense that I found it lacking Heavenly Delight's stand. I had been anticipating cupcakes all week after going sweets-less for three straight days, so when I got to the end of the three-block row of stands and found no giant Heavenly banner proclaiming the presence of my favorite treat, the increasingly boiling temperature felt that much more like hell.

Fortunately, I had a back-up plan. At home in the freezer was an HD Reese's Peanut Butter cupcake from a couple weeks ago, and on the daily menu at nearby Cafe Moxo was that eatery's Peanut Butter cupcake. The time had come for another of my side-by-side cupcake comparisons. (Slow HD weeks are always good for these extracurricular cupcake activities.)

 Left: Heavenly Delight's Reese's Peanut Butter. 

Right: Cafe Moxo's Peanut Butter

This was my favorite side-by-side comparison to date. Peanut butter is high on my list of irresistible cupcake flavors, and I had tried both of these at least twice prior to today -- never together, though. The first thing I noticed, alternating bites, was that the salty peanut flavor stood out in Moxo's peanut buttercream frosting, compared to the more dominant sweetness of HD's. No right or wrong here -- both were rich and creamy with luscious flavor. I can't say I liked one more than the other, although I did appreciate the emphasis on peanuts in Moxo's. 

And now, moving on to the cake: Both were chocolate, but one was much better. Moxo's was quite dry compared to HD's, which incorporated bits of peanut butter. My history with these two places has shown me that moist cupcakes are about as common at HD as dry or stale cupcakes are at Moxo. I can count on one hand the number of times I've been disappointed with the texture of an HD cupcake. That doesn't mean I love all of their varieties, but not many HD cupcakes, whether I've cared for the flavor or not, have disappointed me in the category of technical quality. That said, I've had Moxo's Peanut Butter when the cake was fresh and moist, and I could find no flaws. The quality of Moxo's cupcakes tends to vary depending on the day, which is why I've retried several flavors. I've found HD's quality to be consistently good.

I also liked each cupcake's garnishes -- the mini Reese's Pieces on HD's and the peanuts and drizzle of chocolate syrup topping Moxo's. Each establishment took a different approach with its peanut butter cupcake, and I can appreciate both. In the end, though, quality counts, and since Moxo's cake wasn't as moist this time as it has been in the past, I have to base my judgment on today's tasting. Therefore, I give HD the prize in this cupcake battle royale. 

Chai, chai again

I started out today with the intention of picking up a Chocolate Peanut Butter cupcake from Cafe Moxo for a side-by-side comparison with Heavenly Delight's Reese's Peanut Butter, which I've had in the freezer since last week's market. But silly me got my days confused and forgot that Moxo offers Chocolate Peanut Butter on Wednesdays, not Thursdays. This means that I will most likely pit the peanut butters against each other next week instead.

Not all was lost, though. Moxo did have the final two spring/summer menu cupcakes I hadn't tried yet -- Pina Colada and Chai Tea -- and I decided to go with the Chai.

Fast forward to later in the day, when I stopped at the Qik-N-Ez by our house to check out the tip I'd gotten that the gas station and convenience store was carrying cupcakes from Java Express on Peoria Road, the coffee shop from which I've tried cupcakes several times. I've had my ups and downs with the cupcakes there, although I've mostly loved what I've had (there was a Chocolate Peppermint cupcake last winter that was so stale  with frosting so overloaded with shortening that I had to throw most of it away). Favorites I've had from Java include Lemon Raspberry, Cherry-Almond and Pumpkin. I'm on the lookout for a peanut butter that I've heard great things about from a coworker.

On this particular day, I found three flavors: Lemon Raspberry, Chocolate Toffee and ... Chai Latte! Who knew I'd stumble on two chai cupcakes at two different places in one day? Just like that, I had recovered my side-by-side experiment.

Cafe Moxo's Chai Tea  

Java Express' Chai Latte

Even though I wasn't able to try the two cupcakes at the same time (I had the Moxo Chai in the afternoon while at work and the Java Chai when I got home a couple hours later), my memory of Moxo's was still pretty clear when I tasted Java's. They were similar in cake and frosting: both featured a lightly spiced cake covered in vanilla frosting dusted with a bit of the spice. Moxo's was a bit more creative in appearance, with a mini straw emerging from the frosting. 

Neither cupcake was particularly moist, but Moxo had a bit of an edge in that category. When I asked the guy behind the counter at Qik-N-Ez how often Java delivers the cupcakes and when today's had arrived, he told me they come twice a week and this batch had been in the store since Tuesday. Two days seemed a bit iffy to me, but he insisted they'd kept the cupcakes fresh in the refrigerator until they put them on display in a plastic case at the registers. I have to admit I was skeptical when he said they keep the cupcakes in the refrigerator. I've had bad luck with cake hardening in the refrigerator, so I usually store it in the freezer. (My one exception so far is Moxo, whose cupcakes I only eat fresh the day I buy them since I had a series of cupcakes from there dry out and otherwise lose their freshness in the freezer.)

I also noticed that the Java Express Chai's icing had become slightly crusty, although that doesn't bother me with frosting as much as it does with cake. Moxo's frosting was the restaurant's usual light, fresh and fluffy vanilla, which nicely complemented the spice cake. I had never tried chai tea, so I wasn't sure how well the cupcake represented the drink. My coworker and co-sampler Marilyn, who loves chai tea, reported that, while the cupcake didn't taste exactly like the drink would, the spices were reminiscent of the drink. That was good enough for me. 

One major difference between the two cupcakes was size; Moxo makes traditional-size cupcakes while Java deals in the jumbo variety. But the biggest difference of all, and the one that put Java's Chai a nose above Moxo's in my opinion, was the cream cheese filling in the Chai Latte. Delicious and just the right complement to the rest of the cupcake. It also helped offset the cake's dryness, as did the generous topper of frosting. 

I'm a sucker for a good filling, so I have to give props to Java Express for going the extra mile in that regard. Both bakeries need to work on being consistent with moistness and freshness of cake, but overall these were both quite tasty.

Bacon strikes again

It's not often you hear the phrase, "Breakfast for dessert." It applied to my choice of cupcake yesterday, when I took a break from Heavenly Delight cupcakes just long enough to make a long-awaited return to Cafe Moxo. It was Saturday, and Moxo had a spring/summer menu cupcake that I hadn't tried yet -- the Wakin' Bacon.

I'm not gonna lie -- I wasn't exactly looking forward to trying another bacon cupcake. The last time I tried one, More Cupcakes' Bacon Bacon Bacon during the Chicago cupcake crawl last July, I took a few bites and had to throw away the rest. The combination of vanilla, bacon and maple syrup very nearly tested my gag reflex. I'm a fan of pancakes and bacon with maple syrup, but that's not exactly the same as mixing it all together in a cupcake.

So I was wary as I had my Wakin' Bacon packaged up to go. Presentation-wise, it was pretty cute -- two small strips of bacon criss-crossed over white and yellow frosting made to look like a sunny-side-up egg.

As I strategized how to eat it, I debated taking the bacon off and eating it first, then tackling the cupcake. But  then I realized that taking it apart would defeat the whole purpose of the cupcake. Alas, it was time to be brave and take an all-encompassing bite. I have to admit, with that first bite I liked the flavor combination more than I had expected. The saltiness of the bacon sort of complemented the sweetness of the vanilla frosting, and the bacon bits baked into the cake were subtle. As I continued to work my way toward the middle, I discovered maple syrup soaking the cake. I had gotten that far, so I was committed to finishing, but the combination of the vanilla frosting, bacon and maple syrup was starting to get to me. Thankfully, Moxo's cupcakes are a smaller, more traditional size compared to More's jumbo cupcakes, so it wasn't such an undertaking to finish the Wakin' Bacon.

All things considered, this cupcake was one I never need to try again. I'm glad I did, though, because one of my goals in writing this blog is forcing myself to try new things, even if they're not my taste (or I think they won't be my taste). I know there are lots of people out there who love bacon cupcakes (my friend and former colleague Jayette Bolinski one of them), and for those people I would highly recommend Moxo's Wakin' Bacon.

Breakfast for dessert, baby!

So-so selection

This week's farmers market coincided with another group taste-testing day at work. On our afternoon break,  four of us gathered to split six Heavenly Delight cupcakes -- three that I had been storing in the freezer at home, one that I bought this morning and two that my colleague, Kathy, also bought today.

The freezer trio consisted of Rocky Road, S'more and Root Beer Float. Today's purchases: Elvis, Cheesecake and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. We noted, as we gathered all the cupcakes for cutting, that there was a lot of brown, beige and white.

I had tried the Cheesecake and Cookie Dough before, although I noticed something this time with the Cheesecake that I hadn't noticed last time: the graham cracker crust on the bottom of the cupcake. Great idea, but I thought it blended so much with the cake that it lost its distinguishing texture. I liked the creativity, though.

But on to the new cupcakes. First up: Elvis.

Banana cake with peanut butter frosting and a garnish of banana chips and peanut butter morsels, the Elvis ranked highest for me of the cupcakes we tried today, but it didn't come close to touching my all-time favorite HD cupcakes. For one thing, the cake's banana flavoring was artificial. (And we weren't sure if there was peanut butter in the cake -- it's possible, but it was subtle if it was there.) I love HD's peanut butter frosting, and that was the highlight for me. I'd rather have it with chocolate or peanut butter cake than artificial banana. If the cake had been real banana, that likely would have bumped it up several notches. I liked the banana and peanut butter together. 

I was curious about the Root Beer Float, which Kathy had tried before and liked a lot. Root beer isn't the first flavor I'd crave, but I enjoy one once in a while. The yellow cake had a brownish tinge, as if some root beer had been mixed into the batter, but we couldn't detect the flavor. Kathy said she tasted it more in the last one she had, so maybe it was just an off batch. My quarter of the cupcake had the root beer barrel candy garnish, and it was a bit jarring to bite into the hard, crunchy candy along with the soft cake and creamy frosting, which was drizzled with a root beer syrup. HD's vanilla frosting is always good and the cake was moist, but overall this was a cupcake I could easily live without.

I've never had any particular interest in rocky road ice cream, so when I saw the Rocky Road cupcake at the HD stand, I knew I was trying it only for the sake of the blog. Normally I'd pass over that type of cupcake, but writing this blog has taught me to try things that fall outside of my favorites. I've found some things I never expected to like, but I've also had to force down more than a few flavors or flavor combinations that nearly tested my gag reflex. HD's Rocky Road was chocolate cake with walnuts baked in, topped with vanilla frosting, walnuts and marshmallows. I normally shy away from cake with nuts, and although I didn't think this was a bad cupcake, it's one I wouldn't need to try again. We felt that the cake was a tad dry and spongy, but not to a fault.

Finally, we tackled the S'more. I knew as I tried this one that I would compare it to Cafe Moxo's S'more, which is my second-favorite cupcake from that eatery. In this face-off, HD couldn't keep up. All the appropriate ingredients were there: chocolate cake, marshmallows and graham cracker cookies, plus vanilla frosting. But it was hard to tell if there was anything other than vanilla in the frosting; Moxo's S'more is topped with a luscious marshmallow creme frosting (and filled with more of the same) that makes the cupcake. I'd pass on HD's version. 

This quartet of new flavors makes me want to revisit some of my old HD favorites and put the obligatory samples on the back burner for a while. I'm thinking it's time for a Reese's ...

Strawberry Shortcake showdown

For months, I've been wanting to do a side-by-side comparison between similar cupcakes. The stars just never aligned quite right until yesterday, when I was able to bring together a Cafe Moxo Shortcake cupcake with Heavenly Delight's Strawberry Shortcake.

As you can see, these two cupcakes look nothing alike. Moxo and HD have different cupcake styles -- Moxo with its tower of frosting and HD with its overflowing cake cup. 

I had tried Moxo's Shortcake last summer and liked it a lot. The vanilla frosting, light but rich, left me in a sugar-happy haze, and I was also a fan of the white cake and chopped-strawberry stuffing. This time, however,  I didn't get the quality of cupcake I was expecting. This Shortcake's cake was dry and stale-tasting around the edges, though the middle was better. I still loved the frosting, but the lack of fresh cake put this one in the negative category for me. 

Meanwhile, HD's Strawberry Shortcake lived up to HD's typical standards for moist cake and thick, luscious buttercream frosting. The Strawberry Shortcake lacked a filling, but I liked the combination of vanilla and strawberry frosting (and the pink glitter sprinkles on top didn't hurt, either). 

I have to point out that while Moxo cupcakes tend toward a more gourmet style, HD's are the kind of cupcakes you'd expect to come out of Grandma's kitchen, especially if Grandma likes to experiment with every flavor under the sun (as I can attest from having sampled nearly 40 HD cupcakes over the past year). Both of those approaches to cupcakes are stellar as far as I'm concerned, and a lot of times my taste depends on my mood. And I'm sure that if Moxo's cake had been fresher, it would have been a more serious contest. I can only judge what's in front of me, though. 

There's no doubt that, between these two, HD reigned. 

Just the right day for blueberry

There were too many great-looking new cupcake flavors to choose from at this past Wednesday's farmers market, so I just bought 'em all. Of course, most of them are in the freezer. But I did select one to try that day at work -- Blueberry.

This cupcake felt like an appropriate choice on a day when containers of fresh blueberries were available at several farmers market stands, and HD didn't disappoint. The vanilla cake was moist and accented with fresh blueberries. The blueberry buttercream frosting was scrumptious. And the ribbon of blueberry jam curled around the top was an attractive and tasty garnish. I've loved most of the fruit-flavored HD cupcakes I've tried, and this one was no exception. I'd definitely buy it again. I hope they'll put it in the rotation.

Other cupcakes I bought and have yet to try: Root Beer Float, Rocky Road and Strawberry. (HD has four strawberry varieties that I know of -- Strawberry Shortcake, Strawberry Delight and Strawberry Swirl in addition to the aforementioned. This particular one is strawberry cake with strawberry frosting.) I'm not sure when I'll get around to trying them, but stay tuned for a post about my new endeavor: Side-by-side cupcake comparisons. First up: HD's Strawberry Shortcake vs. Cafe Moxo's Shortcake.

Hot mama!

I'm usually not one for spicy food, so I wasn't sure what to think when I heard about one of Cafe Moxo's new spring cupcakes, the Hot Mama. It's chili pepper-infused chocolate cake with cinnamon buttercream frosting.

Although the cupcake overall was great quality -- fresh, with Moxo's typically great frosting -- I could have lived without the kick. And I was disappointed with the weak cinnamon flavoring in the frosting. I love cinnamon, and that was what I was looking forward to most with this cupcake. I think it's great that Moxo is doing something different, and I'd recommend the Hot Mama to anyone who likes heat in their food. I'll be sticking with strictly sweet cupcakes.

I also decided to try one of Moxo's Furry Friends cupcakes.

These are clearly for kids, but I couldn't resist the bright colors and simple recipe -- the four varieties of "Sesame Street"-inspired treats come in red (Elmo), yellow (Big Bird), green (Oscar the Grouch) and blue (Grover), the one I chose. Each came in chocolate or white cake, and I loved the clever touch of chocolate chips to accent Grover's eyes. I wolfed this one down after getting through only half of the Hot Mama. Without the mound of frosting topping most Moxo cupcakes, Furry Friends are ideal for a small indulgence that won't leave you with a bellyache or in a sugar coma. And they're great for a smile, too! I recommend them to kids AND grownups who are kids at heart. Like me. :-)

Give low-cal cupcakes a chance

After splurging on two Cafe Moxo cupcakes last week and not exactly making the best food choices over the weekend, I decided yesterday that it was time to head back to Grand Avenue Deli for a couple of D'Lynn's Delights' low-calorie cupcakes.

I tried D'Lynn's Chocolate Fudge several weeks ago, and although it was extremely dry, the frosting was decent. It was good enough to lure me back for seconds. I had been craving orange for several weeks, so I went with D'Lynn's Orange Creamsicle and added a Vanilla Bean for good measure (since they're low-cal, after all!).

I had a feeling the cake would be dry, considering that it's reduced fat. Anticipating the dryness helped, I think, because I didn't have the same expectations that I'd have for cupcakes from other bakeries.

While both cupcakes were dry, I realized as I sampled the Vanilla Bean that its density reminded me of a cake doughnut. It wasn't unpleasant once I made that association, especially in combination with the top-quality frosting. Thick and sweet, I never would have guessed it was low-fat or low-calorie. D'Lynn's owner Debra Swihart has said she uses yogurt and applesauce in her cake and tofu and spun sugar in her frosting, and that each cupcake has 60-65 calories. These cupcakes are pretty dang good considering the calorie count is that low. Imagine no more than 130 calories for two -- TWO! -- cupcakes! For that, I can forgive some dryness.

I do have to point out that I was a bit disappointed to find the Orange Creamsicle was made with yellow cake, and only the frosting was orange-flavored. I had hoped for a touch of orange in the cake, too. But overall, I was pleasantly surprised by this pair, and I'm looking forward to returning for the final two, Strawberry Cream and Caramel Spice. (Together! For 130 calories!)

Return to Moxo!

I had long awaited Cafe Moxo's unveiling of its spring/summer cupcake menu, and I finally got a chance to swing by and check it out this past Friday. I was able to try a new flavor (raspberry lemonade) and an old favorite (peanut butter, which I first tried several years ago). 

The raspberry lemonade cupcake had a base of moist white cake with a delicate raspberry filling, and it was topped with a generous cap of thick, creamy and subtly-flavored lemon frosting with a drizzle of raspberry sauce. This raspberry-lemon cupcake was delightfully fresh and light on the stomach. I expected lemon cake instead of white, but I think the vanilla cake worked well in this instance because it ensured that the lemon wasn't overpowering. 

The true highlight of the day, however, was Moxo's peanut butter. I remembered loving this one the first time I had it, but I wanted to try it again for the sake of this blog (and, well, because I knew I would love it a second  time!). Oh, wow. This is hands-down the best Moxo cupcake I've had. It's one of the best cupcakes I've tried, period. What I loved about this one versus some of the other peanut butter cupcakes I've tried (most of which have had a Reese's bent) was the simplicity in the combination of chocolate and creamy peanut buttercream frosting. Much as I love Reese's peanut butter cups, sometimes adding them to a cupcake can make it more complicated than necessary. Moxo's peanut buttercream frosting is so decadent that it would almost be a shame to cover it over with bits of candy. The flavor is such that it should be savored independently of any distractions (other than the bit of chocolate syrup and peanut halves sprinkled on top). The frosting works in perfect concert with the fabulously fresh chocolate cake, but who are we kidding -- I could eat a gallon tub of the frosting all by itself. For anyone who loves peanut butter, this is a must-have!

I'll take a real milkshake, please

I'm still working on the frozen stash of Sweet Art cupcakes, and last night I pulled out the Milkshake, which the bakery's website describes as swirled vanilla and chocolate cake topped with malt buttercream, ganache and an old-school cherry.

This wasn't a bad cupcake, although the cake, as typical for Sweet Art, was on the dry side. There just wasn't anything about it that particularly stood out to me as a quality that would make me want another. I didn't pick up on the malt flavoring in the frosting -- in fact, I assumed it simply represented the whipped cream on top of a milkshake. It was definitely a lighter, fluffier frosting. Again, not bad but not my favorite frosting texture. The whole cupcake, frankly, was a little blah. My favorite part was the "old-school" cherry on top. The chocolate ganache was a nice touch, too. Still, I'd skip over this one if I ever went to the shop.

I have one Sweet Art cupcake left to try, so we'll see how it goes. Chances are pretty good I'll try it this weekend. Then I'll be back to Springfield cupcakes -- perhaps Cafe Moxo, which has launched its spring/summer menu. The Moxo bakers have come up with some interesting new choices. Check 'em out here: http://www.cafemoxo.com/docs/Cupcake5-27-11.pdf.

Spring fever (and frosting)

When I stepped out my front door this morning and realized it was so warm at 8 a.m. that I didn't need a coat, I knew it was going to be the perfect day to sample a set of spring-themed cupcakes from TLCuppycakes. I had made arrangements for owner Tracy Cowee to drop them off, and she arrived mid-morning with the five springy cupcakes, including two brand-new creations for the Easter season.

Tracy's presentation never disappoints. This quintet was such a treat for the eyes that I hated to destroy them by eating them. 

Since I had ordered a quintet, I recruited my coworkers and fellow tasters Kathy Rem, Jayette Bolinski and Robin Desai to help me sample them. 

First up was the What's Up Doc. (You might be able to guess that it was carrot cake.) This one wasn't our favorite of the bunch. We thought the cake was on the dry side, although the spicy flavoring was just right. We loved the delicate cream cheese filling and the cream cheese buttercream frosting crowned with a cheery swirl of orange. Had the cake been moister, this one would have been a hit. 

The Sunshine Superman, a sweet-and-sour concoction topped by a fresh lemon slice, perked us up. The light lemon filling perfectly complemented the tangy lemon cake, and we loved that the flavor was obviously natural -- no artificial lemon in this cupcake. The subtle vanilla-lemon buttercream frosting was, literally, the icing on the cake.

My favorite of the day was also the simplest -- White Wedding Day, a white cake with vanilla buttercream frosting and little white candy "pearls" as a garnish. The cake was incredibly moist, and the addition of a light vanilla filling earned it extra points on our yum meter. The buttercream frosting was luscious. (A great comparison cupcake for the White Wedding Day is Cafe Moxo's I Do!, which I tried a couple weeks ago. I loved everything about it except the oversize, overly crunchy "pearls" used as a garnish. The smaller, softer "pearls" on the White Wedding Cake were so much better.) Overall, we felt this one was perfect, with just the right amount of vanilla flavor throughout, and would be the ideal choice for a tower of wedding cupcakes. When I finished my quarter, I wanted to steal Kathy's just to prolong my taste buds' delight a bit more.

We had decided to save the fanciest cupcakes for last, but we couldn't resist the Cadbury Cream Egg any longer, so we attacked that one next. (Robin had been looking forward to it all day.) We loved the idea and appearance of this one, but the taste experience didn't quite match up to the vision for us. The chocolate cake and vanilla cream frosting were good, and we liked the egg-white-and-yolk effect of the frosting and the mini-Cadbury egg perched on top. The problem was that the Cadbury egg baked into the cake remained hard and didn't blend well with the cake and creamy filling. The effect of the baked-in chocolate egg reminded us of the Rolo cupcake we tried from TL earlier this winter. The chewy Rolo inside the cake didn't soften and made biting into the cupcake a bit awkward. We did, however, love the creativity of both the Cadbury and the Rolo, and we salute Tracy for her adventurous baking spirit. 

The final cupcake turned out to be the grand finale: The Coconut Creme Bird Nest. This one charmed us immediately with its green-tinted coconut and pastel candy eggs. In this case the taste exceeded our expectations. The white cake and vanilla frosting each delivered a subtle taste of coconut, and the thorough placement of flavor left us thoroughly impressed. Some of us crowned this one the winner among the five, although it was second place for me, after White Wedding Cake. 

Our TL Cuppycakes group tastings are becoming a tradition, and it's one that I hope we can continue until we make our way through the TL menu. To browse the choices, visit http://www.tlcuppycakes.com/Flavor-Menu-and-Ordering.html.

Leap Day cupcake

This week's cupcake day just happened to fall on Feb. 29, Leap Day. I would leap great distances for cupcakes, and although I was only required to step through Cafe Moxo's front door to purchase the Bistro, I gladly would have bounded several feet to get my hands on that simple but scrumptious yellow cake with a mountain of chocolate buttercream frosting.

The Bistro has no fancy fillings or extravagant garnishes, but the falling-apart fresh yellow cake and airy chocolate buttercream frosting topped with a fistful of white chocolate chips combined for the type of taste sensation that makes you want more even if your stomach is protesting. When Moxo's cupcakes are fresh, they're divine. The last several I've tried have been so outstanding that I'm tempted to retry the few I bought near the holidays that disappointed me with the dryness or staleness of their cake -- namely the red velvet and the pumpkin spice. I'm unsure of Moxo's baking schedule, but I've often wondered if those particular cupcakes had been baked a day prior to when I bought them.

While I'm waiting for Moxo to unveil its spring menu, I plan to look elsewhere around town for some new cupcakes to try. D'Lynn's Delights, which originally resided at the southwest corner of Fourth and Monroe streets, has relocated to inside Grand Avenue Deli, 330 South Grand Ave. E. D'Lynn's makes five varieties of cupcakes available individually on a daily basis -- Vanilla Bean, Chocolate Fudge, Caramel Spice, Orange Creamsicle and Strawberry Cream, as well as an array of specialty flavors available by the dozen when ordered in advance. For the full listing of flavors, visit http://dlynnsdelightscafe.comcastbiz.net/14701.html.

Peppermint pizazz

It was another marvelous Cafe Moxo day. I had tried the Peppermint Swirl back in November, after refrigerating it overnight, and didn't have the highest-quality result. I knew I needed to try it again fresh, and I finally got that opportunity today.

The Peppermint Swirl was fresh and fabulous. The chocolate cake was soft, if not overly moist, and the touch of peppermint in the whipped vanilla frosting was flavorful without being overwhelming. Too much peppermint is the taste equivalent of a calf cramp. Painful!

A side note from Moxo: When I mentioned my blog to the young woman behind the counter, she told me that Moxo is planning to introduce several new varieties of cupcakes in April, including a bacon-maple cake. The bacon cupcake I tried at More Cupcakes in Chicago over the summer while fresh and high quality in its ingredients, was a flavor combination I ultimately could not handle. I suppose, in the interest of trying as wide a variety of cupcakes as possible, I'll give it a whirl. Sizzle, sizzle!

Simply sensational

Whew! It's been a busy long weekend. I'm lucky enough to be off work this Presidents Day and have a chance to catch up on my cupcake reviewing. I designated this past Friday as a cupcake day so I could sample a couple of Cafe Moxo flavors that are only available on Friday or Saturday. I liked the idea of trying the I Do! (white cake with vanilla frosting and wedding-inspired candy "pearls" -- Friday and Saturday on Moxo fall/winter seasonal cupcake menu) and the Chocolate Bombe (chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and chocolate sprinkles -- available Fridays only) at the same time since they're basic flavors with a sort of yin-yang relationship.

These are both visually pleasing cupcakes, and I love them as a pair. (I had been waiting all week for my cupcake fix, so I didn't feel a bit guilty for polishing off both in the same sitting.)

I tried the I Do! first, and I was delighted to find that it was freshly baked with soft, moist cake and Moxo's light, fluffy frosting. The only aspect of this one that I wouldn't say "I do" to again is the hard, crunchy candy "pearls" Moxo used as a garnish. They resembled tiny jawbreakers. I would warn anyone who has sensitive teeth or fillings to bite into this one with great caution (or even scrape off the "pearls" altogether). Sometimes less is more, with wedding dresses and wedding-themed cupcakes.

The Chocolate Bombe was equally delicious, without the hazardous garnish. Like the I Do!, the Bombe featured fresh cake and airy frosting. I loved the delicate chocolate flavor of the Bombe's icing -- it wasn't too rich or too chocolatey. In fact, it was perfectly subtle. I generally prefer milk chocolate over dark or overly fudgy chocolate, and the moussy quality of Moxo's chocolate frosting hit my sweet spot. If you want a chocolate cupcake without a pack of Rolaids, the Chocolate Bombe is for you.

Rock bottom

Cupcake day was all over the spectrum this week -- good, bad and mediocre.

I wound up with a trio to try yesterday -- one from Cafe Moxo and two from Java Express, my most recent discovery.

I was most excited to try one of the pair from Java, a cherry-almond cupcake with cherry pie filling and cherry-almond buttercream frosting.

It tasted fantastic. The yellow cake was fresh and moist (the batch had been baked that morning at Java), and the frosting was thick and rich. And then there was the fresh cherry pie filling. It was just the right touch. I ate only half of it because it was the first of three, and the Java cupcakes are jumbo-size.

I chose to try Cafe Moxo's Hostess With the Mostest next. It's exactly what it sounds like -- a gourmet version of the snack-cake classic.

The chocolate cake was reasonably fresh for Moxo, and the marshmallow filling was delightful. I'm not a fan of dark or bittersweet chocolate, so the ganache icing didn't thrill me. But overall it was a good cupcake, and it was in the upper tier as far as Moxo cupcakes I've tried.

I had saved the other Java Express selection -- chocolate peppermint -- for last because I didn't want the peppermint flavor to linger on my palate for the other cupcakes.

I knew something wasn't right when I ran into a struggle while trying to peel the paper lining away from the cake with my fork. My suspicions were confirmed when I went for the first bite: Hard. The cake wasn't just dry -- it clearly had been sitting out for more than a day at Java. Still, I wasn't ready to give up. After all, the frosting is my favorite part of any cupcake. So I dipped my fork into the pretty, pink-tinted whipped topping ... took a bite ... arrghhh! It tasted almost like plastic. When my coworker Kathy tried it, she reported an overwhelming amount of shortening. I was shocked, considering the quality of the two other cupcakes I'd tried from Java (the first was a lemon-raspberry that I wrote about in my last post). I had to throw away the majority of the chocolate peppermint. It pains me to toss out a cupcake, but it just wasn't edible.

Java Express still has a few cupcakes I haven't tried, and I'm eager to go back and sample the rest. I'm convinced that the chocolate peppermint was an isolated bad experience. It can happen to anybody. It does bring up a point worth stressing, though: Freshness is everything. I wish all the bakeries and shops would consider that.

Bugs Bunny would love this cupcake...

Today was a chilly, rainy, foggy, gloomy day in Springfield. I had to use my umbrella and dodge puddles to get this week's cupcake from Cafe Moxo on my way to work.

I wasn't terribly excited about the carrot cupcake on my agenda. I'd had too much dry cake from Moxo, and since carrot isn't my favorite type of cake anyway, I figured I'd just focus on the cream cheese frosting and make the best of the rest.

Well ... as it turns out, I had my second pleasantly surprising Moxo cupcake in a row (including the Snowballest Chance from my last post). The cake, which was packed with pecan bits, carrot shavings and coconut slivers, was moist and rich with flavor. The generous tower of cream cheese frosting was thick and buttery. All in all, this was one of my favorite Moxo cupcakes. And that's saying a lot, considering that I normally wouldn't even choose carrot. In comparison to the carrot cupcake from OMGosh Bakery in Petersburg that I tried with my coworkers Kathy and Jayette a couple weeks ago, which was dry with frosting that I felt had an odd aftertaste, this one was a star.

Soy City cupcake

This weekend, I took a trip to Decatur to help my friend, Kate, make her wedding invitations. Of course, when I make plans to go to a new place, my first thought is, "Can I find a new cupcake place to explore?" A couple of people had recommended a place called Lana's Cakewalk, so Kate and I decided to swing by and fortify ourselves for a few hours of paper crafting.

Lana's had a variety of baked goods to choose from: in addition to about 10 flavors of cupcakes, a pair of display cases were full of cookies (including several of the sugar/shortbread variety with differently flavored fillings) and other sweets. A specialty of the shop seemed to be the Mommy-Q's, consisting of fluffy vanilla frosting sandwiched between two thick slabs of cake (vanilla, chocolate, orange, lemon, spice, carrot and strawberry were among the flavors). I tried the strawberry and was impressed by the moistness of the cake. I can't recall any of the previous cupcakes I've tried tasting as moist as Lana's strawberry Mommy-Q. The frosting was light, creamy and fresh.

The Mommy-Q was just a prequel to the orange cupcake I also chose. (The cupcakes came in the same flavors as the Mommy-Qs.). Simple but pretty, the orange cupcake was topped with a thick vanilla buttercream frosting and orange sprinkles. After the spectacular moistness of the Mommy-Q, I was disappointed with the dryness of the orange cake. The frosting, however was delicious -- perfect flavor and texture.

Would I return to Lana's? If I were in the neighborhood, yes. However, I'd pass on the cupcakes and try another Mommy-Q or one of the cookies. (Kate loved the snickerdoodle she selected.)

Also this weekend, I sampled the Snowballest Chance, a Cafe Moxo cupcake I picked up while having lunch with my parents there on Thursday. Because that day was a no-sweets day (most days of the week, I abstain from sweets to balance out my cupcake sampling), I froze it for two days. In the past, I've had bad experiences with the texture of Moxo's light, airy frosting thickening after freezing, but I decided to take a chance. I was pleasantly surprised on Saturday after I had pulled it out and thawed it at room temperature. The chocolate cake, which I feared would be dry, was OK. The light, airy vanilla frosting, hidden beneath a layer of coconut, was fresh. And the marshmallow filling was thick and indulgent. I would rank this one high on the list of cupcakes I've tried from Moxo. Even though I can take or leave coconut, I found the entire confection sweet and delightful.

A side note concerning Moxo: I complained a month or so ago that the red velvet I tried there was dry as a bone -- the worst I'd tried at Moxo and possibly the worst overall. However, the day I went with my parents, my dad tried one and liked it. I suspect that my palate is more finicky because I've tried so many cupcakes in the past several months. To the average person, Moxo's "dry" cupcakes might not be so bad.

Pick-me-up cupcakes

It's been a rough week at The State Journal-Register, where I've been employed as a copy editor for 12 years today. The copy desk, which edits copy, lays out pages and generally serves as the last line of defense for accuracy in the newspaper, will be eliminated as the majority of our jobs are shifted to a central design hub near Chicago. Since this is a cupcake blog, I'm going to refrain from rehashing all the details of the situation. I'll just say that it made Wednesday's cupcake sampling that much sweeter because I really needed a treat.

My cake for the day was the Heavenly Delight Hot Chocolate cupcake that had been in the freezer since I picked it up with several others at the holiday farmers market Dec. 17 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. With most bakeries, I'd be concerned about leaving a cupcake in the freezer for that long. Not so with HD. Time and again, I've frozen HD cupcakes and pulled them out and thawed them to find a cake as moist and fresh-tasting as the day I bought it. The Hot Chocolate was no different. With chocolate cake and vanilla frosting covered in marshmallows, this one was spongy and delicious. It was basic -- no filling or flashy garnish other than the marshmallows -- but it was reminiscent of a mug of hot cocoa. I especially liked the cake, which was a milky chocolate as opposed to a fudgy chocolate. While it may not have been the most memorable HD cupcake I've had, it was a strong cupcake in terms of taste and freshness, and that counts for a lot when you realize how many dry, stale cupcakes are for sale out there.

The Hot Chocolate wasn't the end of my cupcake tasting that day. My coworker, Kathy, had visited Lisa's Bakery in Riverton (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lisas-Bakery/132255686885783) for a story, and she brought back four cupcakes to sample with our other colleague, Jayette. (The three of us have built a fun and frequent sampling habit, and it's one of countless things I'll miss when my time at the SJ-R ends.)

The offerings Kathy brought back from Lisa's included cherry, chocolate, lemon and apple spice. At first glance, we thought the cupcakes were pretty (the frosting on the cherry and lemon was dyed with food coloring in shades of day-glo pink and yellow), but as we dug in we realized that the artificial hues were a bit of a turnoff. I would have preferred untinged frosting topped simply with flavor-appropriate garnishes. (The cherry-flavored cupcake did sport a maraschino cherry.) Our favorites were the apple spice and lemon, although we felt the cake was dry in most cases and the frosting on the cherry and chocolate had a bit of a bitter aftertaste, not to mention a grainy texture. Overall, we felt Lisa's cupcakes would be fine for an event such as a child's birthday party, but if you're looking for gourmet cupcakes -- the type that the average person wouldn't necessarily be able to make in their own kitchen -- we suggest looking elsewhere.

Next week I'll be back to the Cafe Moxo winter lineup, although I'm not sure which of the remaining flavors I'll try. So many things are up in the air right now, but I'm hoping my cupcake tastings will help me focus on the positive while I enter this transition in my life. There's not much a little buttercream frosting can't cure, right?

Cupcake-palooza

I've been juggling cupcakes from three bakers for the past several days, and I have to say I don't mind one bit. My freezer was already holding a half-dozen from Heavenly Delight and Sugar Mama's this morning when I received my spur-of-the-moment three-flavor order from Tracy of TLCuppycakes in Petersburg. She had posted on her Facebook page two nights prior that she would be bringing a delivery of her Holiday Red Velvet, Cranberry Bliss and Snickerdoodle cupcakes into town along with some extras for anyone with a craving.

Since I discovered Tracy's cupcakes a month or so ago, I've become as hooked on her confections as my beloved Heavenly Delight, so I couldn't resist adding to my backlog. In light of the sheer number of cupcakes and the other sweets and holiday foods lurking around the office, I decided to up my usual indulgence by eating two full cupcakes and just part of two others. (Sugar Mama's peanut butter cupcake was calling my name from the freezer, so I plucked it out and brought it to work with me. Thankfully, SM's cakes are a bit smaller than some of the others bakers', so I didn't feel quite so bad about eating it in whole.)

OK, the whole truth? I ate way too much cake today, and to be honest I have a bellyache as I type this. But there's always tomorrow to hop back on the bandwagon of health.

But back to the cupcakes. I started my carb-fabulous day with that peanut butter goodie from Sugar Mama's, and it was quite a satisfying lead-in to the Wednesday sugar rush. The chocolate cake was pleasantly moist with some chunkiness that I think was either chocolate chunks or Reese's Peanut Butter Cup chunks baked in. The frosting, which was topped with a small peanut butter cup wedge, was unlike other peanut butter frostings I've tried in that it was stronger on the salty peanut butter flavor. There definitely wasn't as much sugar as in the others. I didn't mind it, though; not every frosting needs to be loaded with sugar, and I liked how the boldness and authenticity of the peanut butter's flavor came through. It struck just the right balance with the sweetness of the cake and the candy wedge on top. 

Next up was the much-anticipated TLCuppycakes Holiday Red Velvet. After my recent bad experience with a bone-dry Cafe Moxo red velvet, I was ready for something a little more promising. Based on my previous TLCuppycakes cakes, I had every reason to believe this red velvet would be the real deal. 

Presentation-wise, the cupcake was an eye-catcher: deep-red cake, fluffy tower of frosting and a dusting of white-chocolate shavings reminiscent of snowflakes. Biting into it, I knew I had found a red velvet to remember. Moist cake. Light, creamy cream cheese frosting. A touch of smooth, light vanilla cream in the center -- a delightful surprise. This was red velvet fit for royalty. I've tried quite a few red velvets from various bakeries during my cupcake journey, and this one ranks at the top.

By the time I got home from work, I was ready for a bite or two from the remaining TLCuppycakes varieties -- Cranberry Bliss and Snickerdoodle. 

Cranberry is a flavor I'd normally pass over in most foods or beverages, simply because the tart flavor is a bit strong for my palate. I'm glad I gave TL's Cranberry Bliss a chance, though. The orange-cranberry cake surrounded a light cranberry filling and was topped with white-chocolate buttercream and a garnish of toasted almonds. Despite cranberry not being my first choice, I enjoyed the flavor combination and the sheer quality of the cupcake as a whole. My observation, based on the TL cakes I've tried so far, is that the quality will be dependable even if not every cupcake variety is my taste per se. 

I'm a sucker for cinnamon, so I was pretty sure I'd be a fan of TL's Snickerdoodle. Sure enough, this was the cupcake I wish I'd gotten when I ordered the Cinnamon Sugar cupcake at Sprinkles Cupcakes on the Chicago cupcake crawl this past July. That cupcake, from a cupcake chain that originated in Los Angeles and has since opened shops on the East Coast as well as in Chi-town, was merely a cinnamon poundcake --  no frosting and not even a light glaze, which at the time I felt would have elevated the Cinnamon Sugar to greatness. TL's Snickerdoodle, with it's cinnamon-vanilla cake, light cinnamon filling, cinnamon-vanilla buttercream frosting and dusting of cinnamon sugar, had all the elements missing from that Sprinkles cupcake. The founder of Sprinkles is a judge on The Food Channel's "Cupcake Wars," and she could take a lesson from TLCuppycakes on this particular cupcake.

Heck, what's a little stomachache when it comes from a day of phenomenal cupcakes? 

Anything but velvet

Today was the day for eating excess at work, with our office potluck falling on the same day I stopped at Cafe Moxo for my weekly cupcake (it's worth noting that today is National Cupcake Day). Somehow, I  managed to find room in my stomach for a ridiculous amount of food.

But on to the matter at hand -- Cafe Moxo's Red Velvet cupcake.

Simply stated, the cake was horribly dry, possibly the worst of all the Moxo cupcakes I’ve tried so far. Terribly disappointing. Not even Moxo’s luscious cream cheese frosting could save this one. For one thing, there was much less frosting than on a typical Moxo cupcake -- not nearly enough to smother the heavy, almost crusty cake. How dry was that Moxo cupcake, REALLY? you may ask. Well, it was so dry that, an hour after eating it, the crumbs RATTLED inside the styrofoam bowl to which I had transferred it for sampling. I mean, we're talking little red velvet pebbles. It was so dry that it was more like cornbread than a cupcake. It was more desert than dessert.

OK, you get the point.

If this had been my first experience with a Moxo cupcake, I'm fairly certain that I would not return for a second. However, I have three reasons for continuing my quest of trying Moxo's whole menu: 1. The awesome frosting; 2. I finish what I start; and 3. I've had good cupcakes at Moxo.

Nevertheless, I may take a break from Moxo for a week or two. The holiday farmers market runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Artisans Building on the state fairgrounds, and Heavenly Delight is going to have a booth there. Just to be sure I'll be able to get the cupcakes I want, I called ahead this week and reserved four of the seasonal flavors that will be available: Gingerbread, Hot Chocolate, Sugar Cookie and Pistachio. Knowing I can freeze HD cupcakes, I'm looking forward to being able to savor them for a week or two, and maybe for a couple Cupcake Wednesdays -- if I can leave them alone that long!