Delilah BakeryThe much hyped
2009 L.A. Cupcake Challenge sponsored by
Nesquik happened yesterday and in two words: 5 stars. I had so much fun. And not just because I brought a whole posse with me. My mom flew in for the weekend, my sister and her fiance attended, my first cousin and her boyfriend, and a bunch of friends and coworkers.
Part of the ballot
My coworker's shoeIt took place at the
Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, a perfect venue for the occasion. There was plenty of space to roam and sit and the cupcake booths lined the perimeter of the ballroom. The Nesquik bunny was there, posing for photos and handing out regular and mini sized versions of Chocolate and Strawberry Milk. A photobooth was stationed at one corner of the room allowing for unlimited corny photos with friends to be taken.
My sister Beth and me with the Nesquik Bunny
Flavor FeelingsI attended last year's Cupcake Challenge and learned a few things to make this year's experience more enjoyable (which seems hard to do when last year's was awesome). Namely, I learned not to eat whole cupcakes if I wanted to make it through all 37 flavors. And as a judge this year, I felt it my responsibility to try every single cupcake if my vote was going to be fair. Slow and steady wins the race. I was there the entire 3 hours in order to eat so many sweets. But I did it.
And on top of that, I broke my own rule: I fell in love with two cupcakes and ate the entire darned things, not sparing the tiniest crumb. The first time that happened, it was for
Susie Cakes' Pineapple Upside Down Cake, and the second time, it was for
Buttercake Bakery's Chocolate.
Susie Cakes Pineapple Upside Down - out of this world!
Buttercake Bakery Chocolate - again, out of this world!While those were the only two cupcakes I gobbled up completely, there were plenty of others that caught my attention...The Lavender cupcake from
Melli Belli was wonderfully moist and full of lavender flavor. The Coconut cupcake from
Blue Cupcake made me want to order a full-sized 9 or 10-inch round layer cake for my next party. And the Chocolate Dipped Strawberry from
Charmed Cupcakes had a perfect crumb, a strong chocolate flavor, and yummy pieces of strawberry in the cake, not to mention an attractive presentation with star-shaped chocolate candies stuck into the frosting.
Miss Priss Cupcakes had an excellent banana chocolate chip cupcake named Monkey Bites and was, in my opinion, one of the prettiest ones to look at.
Oinkster/Boho's Chocolate Bread Pudding was certainly memorable, though denser than I'm used to for a cupcake. As for booth decor, I was really impressed with
Delilah Bakery's outdoor garden motif. All in all, it was an amazing afternoon of cupcake overload.
Melli Belli Lavender and Gingerbread cupcakes
Blue Cupcake Coconut and Chocolate cupcakes
Blue Cupcake Coconut cupcake display
Sugar Jones Blackberries & Cream
Miss Priss Cupcakes Monkey Bites
Two Parts Sugar Raspberry Red Velvet
Hotcakes Bakes Strawberry Cupcakes
Oinkster/Boho Chocolate Bread Pudding
Charmed Cupcakes Chocolate Dipped Strawberry and Red VelvetAnother important lesson I learned from last year is that bringing Tupperware is a VERY good idea. Many of the booths had leftover cupcakes at the end of the event and were happy to fill your boxes and bags if you had them. Plus, it's such a shame to throw out half of a wonderful cupcake simply because you can't eat 37 full cupcakes in one sitting. So Wise Marni brought a container this year and saved halfsies and a few more wholes for the road. I'll need a week to recover from the sugar coma, but then I'm sure I'll be able to dig right in.
Someone's makeshift "Tupperware" filled with whole cupcakes
Hats off to another successful Cupcake Challenge. It was well organized and the quality and range of bakeries was impressive. It's no wonder the place was packed, tickets were sold out, and blogs and
news organizations spotlighted the event.
One of many trips to the booths
Judge's WardrobeIn
my last blog post, I asked you if it would be ok for me to wear the same shirt as I wore last year. The shirt read, "Make Cupcakes Not War." Many of you said it would be just fine and I was all set to wear it again, but with some time to spare hours before the Cupcake Challenge, I decided to return to
Johnny Cupcakes on Melrose in West Hollywood and find myself a new wardrobe.
First of all, I decided on a really fun one - no words this time, just an image of stemmed flowers but with cupcakes as blossoms. I'm glad I decided to change shirts; I spotted a handful of people at the event with my last year's shirt.
Also, I can't get over how FUN this
t-shirt store is! The place is decorated like a bakery, even though there's nothing edible inside. Glass display cases show off t-shirts, and retro ovens line the walls and randomly open so fake steam can blow out. You have got to visit their store sometime, and at the very least, visit
their cool website designed to be an oven. I'm hooked on Johnny Cupcakes and will probably end up there again for a 2010 L.A. Cupcake Challenge costume change. :-)
Johnny Cupcakes store on Melrose in West Hollywood
Retro ovens on the wall at Johnny Cupcakes open randomly and let fake steam out!
**Update: Winners have been announced! See my next blog post.
