Nuts for Nutella

I love Wednesdays. It's so great to have the farmers market back and know I'm going to be able to indulge in Heavenly Delight every hump day. It's always a little easier to get out of bed 10-15 minutes earlier than usual when I know the result will be a sweet treat, and I love arriving at the HD booth to find out which new and unexpected flavor I get to try.

When my husband Camille and I went to Paris two years ago to visit his cousin, Alain, and his wife, Severine, we learned about the French penchant for the chocolate-hazelnut spread Nutella. I had never tried it until Severine served it one morning with croissants. It was quite tasty, and we ultimately bought some here at home to use as filling in homemade crepes, too.

You can probably figure out where this is headed: Upon arriving at HD's stand yesterday, what did I find? Yep! Nutella cupcakes. I had never seen that variety from HD, or from any other bakery, for that matter, and let's just say I snatched up that bad boy.

Was it really that good? In a word, yes. The cake and frosting were both flavored with chocolate and hazelnut, and the cake was gooey-moist. I had wondered, as I often do about HD cupcakes, if there would be a filling, but I wasn't even disappointed not to find one. It wasn't necessary in this cupcake. I would try this one again in a second. Out of 30-some HD cupcakes I've tried, this one cracked my top 10.

Later last night, I realized I wasn't going to be able to wait to try my other HD selection for the week, Chocolate Chip. Much like HD's traditional Heavenly White cupcake except with chocolate chips baked into the cake and sprinked over the vanilla frosting, the Chocolate Chip was an easy eat, much like a really great chocolate-chip cookie. Another quality cupcake.

It's good to be a cupcaker!

Cupcake BONANZA!

I got more cupcakes than I bargained for this past Wednesday, and I'm not complaining one bit! First things first: With opening day of the Old Capitol Farmers Market that morning, I was able to indulge in my second new Heavenly Delight cupcake of the season -- German Chocolate.

I highly recommend this cupcake. With moist, milk-chocolate cake; smooth, creamy caramel frosting; and a topping of coconut slivers and chopped pecans, this was a pretty accurate take on German chocolate cake. Rich but not too sweet, it was just the right balance of all the ingredients. I would definitely try this again down the road, after I've had the chance to try more new HDs and repeat some of my dearest favorites.

I was expecting the HD to be my only cupcake of the day, until I got an awesome surprise in the afternoon -- a Facebook message from a fellow CrossFitter, Josh Becker, letting  me know he had gone to St. Louis and was bringing me a cannoli cupcake from Jilly's. I was so excited! I had been drooling over that cupcake for a couple of weeks, since Jilly's posted it on Facebook as one of its May cupcakes. 

This one was just as amazing as it looked. The mini-cannoli on top was divine, and my favorite part of the cupcake, which was chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream frosting trimmed in chocolate ganache and sprinkled with mini chocolate chips, was the ricotta filling that mimicked that of the filling inside the cannoli garnish. This creation, like many of Jilly's selections, is a good candidate for splitting with a friend or at least eating in two sittings. I split it with my niece, who also loved it. 

But that wasn't all. Josh had bought quite a few cupcakes while at Jilly's and was generous enough to insist that I take not even two, but three! I was beside myself to say the least. One was similar to a favorite of mine from Jilly's -- the Reese's Chunkage with vanilla cake (the one I've tried had chocolate cake). But the most unusual and unexpected of the three was the Chicken and Waffles. Yep, you read that right. Another May specialty, the Chicken and Waffles is made of vanilla-corn cake and is topped with maple buttercream frosting, a chunk of oven-fried chicken, a wedge of Belgian waffle and maple drizzle. 

I decided the best strategy to trying this trio would be to tuck away the Reese's for later, since it would freeze the best, and try the chicken cupcake fresh. 

My photo doesn't do justice to the craftsmanship of the Chicken and Waffles cupcake. It was quite a thing of beauty before I took off the chicken and waffle to eat separately. Yep, there was no way I was taking a mouthful of cake, frosting AND chicken. (I did eat the chicken and waffle together, and the chicken on its own was surprisingly tasty, considering that it wasn't heated.)

I could only manage a small portion of the cake and frosting, as I was sampling it in the same sitting as the cannoli. But the frosting was extremely sweet -- too sweet for my taste. I can handle maple syrup on pancakes, waffles or French toast, but I'm not a fan of it as part of a cupcake. I loved the vanilla-corn cake, though. It was a lighter, smoother and less dense version of cornbread and easy to eat plain.

Jilly's cupcakes tend to be the culinary equivalent of Donald Trump -- filthy rich and best in small doses. The ingredients are the highest quality and undoubtedly please the pickiest of palates. I've liked or loved most of the Jilly's varieties I've tried, but sometimes I wish they came just a little smaller. 

Thanks again, Josh, for your generosity with the sweet treats!

Banana no pudding

Thursday night was the long-awaited return of the farmers market to Springfield (the Illinois Products Farmers Market, that is -- the Old Capitol Farmers Market, which runs on Wednesdays and Saturdays, starts this week). It was also the long-awaited return of Heavenly Delight cupcakes. Anyone who's read my blog consistently knows that I spent last spring-fall sampling HD cupcakes on a weekly basis. The bakery, based in Windsor, has a pretty good lineup, and they usually bring about 10 flavors to the market each week.

The 2012 premiere brought one HD cupcake I hadn't tried -- Banana Pudding. My first thought upon seeing this one and reading the name: creamy filling!

Wrong.

Not only was there no creamy filling, there was no filling at all. I can't lie: I was a little disappointed, although the cupcake was quite tasty anyway. The cake was moist (though hard to tell if it was made with real banana or artificially flavored), and the frosting was thick, creamy and banana-y. The mini-vanilla wafer on top was a nice touch, although it was soft by the time I ate it. I don't know that I would get this one again if I had choices such as the Snickerdoodle (cinnamon divinity -- my second-favorite HD cupcake after the Peanut Butter Cookie).

Welcome back, farmers market!

Strawberry surprise

Feeling the need for low-fat cupcakes again this week, I decided to hit up D'Lynn's Delights in Grand Avenue Deli for the final two flavors I needed to try: Strawberry Cream and Caramel Spice. I had tried Strawberry Cream a year or so ago and remembered liking it, so I was curious how it would measure up against the other D'Lynn's cupcakes I'd tried, all of which had been dry and obviously "diet."

Deciding to save what I suspected would be the best for last, I dug into the Caramel Spice first. It turned out to be similar to the others I'd tried -- the spice cake was dense and dry, although the flavor was pretty good.  The frosting was thick and delicious, as D'Lynn's frosting has been on all the cupcakes I've tried. And the mini caramel candy on top was a nice touch. Although I'm not a fan of chewy caramels and avoid them in favor of the smooth, flowy kind of caramel in, for instance, a Caramello bar, I liked the extra effort to dress up the cupcake. Without the garnish, I would have had a hard time identifying the cupcake as caramel because I didn't think the flavor was particularly detectable in the frosting. It tasted more or less like vanilla to me. Overall, I would rank this one toward the bottom of D'Lynn's selection, just above her Chocolate Fudge, which was especially dry and stale-tasting on the Saturday afternoon I bought it a couple months ago.

Moving on to Strawberry Cream was the best decision I could have made. It was as if this cupcake had come from a different bakery. The white cake was light and fresh and moist, with a delightful filling of cut-up strawberries. The texture of the cake was such a departure from the other cupcakes I've tried there that it made me wonder if the others had just been sitting around longer. The frosting, colored a pleasant pink, might have had strawberry flavoring added to it, or it might have just been vanilla. I couldn't tell, and I didn't care that much because the cupcake as a whole was so tasty. Had I not gotten it from D'Lynn's, I would have had no idea it was a low-fat cupcake. I highly recommend this one off of D'Lynn's menu. Don't even waste your time with the others, unless you don't mind your cupcake tasting more like a cake doughnut. (And that's not to say I hated all the others -- I thought the Orange Creamsicle and Vanilla Bean were decent, considering the calorie content -- D'Lynn claims around 70 calories per cupcake.)

So, all you dieters, go ahead and spring for a Strawberry Cream!

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!