Farmers market finale

It was a rainy, gloomy end to the Old Capitol Farmers Market today, and the end of my access to Heavenly Delight cupcakes for the season. Time to move on to Cafe Moxo for the winter.

I made the most of my last Heavenly Delight Wednesday, springing for a half-dozen cupcakes, half new and half repeats of some favorites. The new: Chocolate Carmel, Banana Flip and Lemon Drop. The repeats: White, Reese's and Pumpkin.

Lemon Drop is in the freezer with the repeats, but I splurged on my other two newbies. First up: Chocolate Carmel. This one is the sibling to one I really want to try, Chocolate Carmel Surprise.

Chocolate Carmel

The difference between the two is that "Surprise" has a caramel filling. That filling, I believe, would have helped to set Chocolate Carmel apart from HD's yellow cake with chocolate frosting, which I love and would choose over Chocolate Carmel. CC was good, don't get me wrong -- the cake was caramel-flavored and the frosting was HD's luscious moussy chocolate -- but the cake flavor didn't knock me off my feet, and I could have lived without the little caramel balls that HD typically uses to garnish its caramel-flavored cupcakes. I wouldn't buy it again unless I could try the "Surprise."

Banana Flip

Next up: Banana Flip. I fell in love with the name and was excited to finally try a banana cupcake from HD. I had a scrumptious banana cupcake with a stellar butter frosting at Sugar Bliss Cake Boutique on the Chicago cupcake crawl, and I was eager to see how HD would measure up. Along with its banana cake, the Flip sported vanilla frosting with marshmallows as a garnish. Whether or not the frosting had marshmallow flavoring added, I was never able to pinpoint. It did seem a bit sweeter than HD's regular vanilla frosting, but that could have been due to the marshmallows. I liked it, but not as much as the Sugar Bliss cake. I remember that cupcake being moister, and the butter frosting was definitely better suited to the banana cake. All in all, it was a good cupcake, but not one that I'll probably repeat in the near future. Maybe midway through next summer, after I've had a second chance at getting some of the selections I missed this year.

Next week: Moxo!

I-want-candy Wednesday!

It was great to return to Heavenly Delight this morning after missing last week due to too many birthday cupcakes from The Cup in St. Louis. Les had some great choices when I got there -- Butterfinger, Chocolate Caramel Surprise and a few others I've yet to try. I was tempted by the caramel but was wary because the other caramel cupcakes I've tried have been too sweet for my palate. So I went with Butterfinger, intrigued by the possibilities of a cupcake inspired by a candy bar that I loved when I was a kid but have drifted away from as an adult.

I didn't regret my decision. The Butterfinger was exactly what I've been jonesing for all week -- yellow cake with candy bits baked in and light chocolate frosting topped with candy clusters. This was the first yellow cake-chocolate frosting combo I've had from HD, and it hit the spot. When it comes to rich gourmet cupcakes, I tend to prefer my chocolate in partnership with some other flavor -- be it white or yellow cake or some non-chocolate frosting flavor. Gourmet chocolate cupcakes tend to be fudgy and made with semisweet chocolate, which I don't like as much as milk chocolate. However, HD's chocolate frosting is the kind I like -- light, moussy and milky.

Normally I force myself to wait until I finish lunch to eat my Wednesday cupcake. I don't know if it was the four-day fast from sweets I imposed on myself after my eight-day birthday binge, but I was so hard up for chocolate that I broke into the Butterfinger about half past 10 a.m. and devoured it in less than 5 minutes. Typically, if I cave in to temptation and taste a cupcake before noon, I at least save half of it for dessert. Not today!

A side note about the Chocolate Caramel Surprise: My friend and colleague Robin Desai also stopped at HD this morning, and she went for the one I passed up. Her take on it? Absolutely amazing. She reported that the "surprise," not surprisingly, was a soft, flowy caramel in the chocolate cupcake's center, tucked beneath a roof of caramel frosting. Can I just say that one is on my list for one of the remaining six weeks of the market, should it show up again. I don't think I could have gone wrong with either of my choices today, though.

Another great Wednesday!