There's something about cupcakes that makes me impulsively want to pick one (usually two) up. Maybe it's their portable size or their deceptively yummy descriptions, but it's been a temptation i've been unable to control particularly since J hasn't been around to remind me to "walk away..." So I thought I'd give a low down on all the cupcakes I've had in NY over the past few weeks and show something for all the taste-testing I've done.
Molly's Cupcakes: This might be my favorite so far. Molly's does fancy cupcakes in that they are usually stuffed with some kind of filling, which makes eating them more interesting and closer to a dessert than a cupcake. The one on the left is the birthday cake, with bits of birthday cake batter in the center, and the one on the right is the creme brulee, which has a slightly crispy burnt sugar top and is filled with custard. The birthday cake's frosting was too creamy (I would have preferred something more sugary) but the creme brulee cupcake was really unique and light, but satisfying at the same time with the custard providing a pudding-like texture to the cake. The one thing I didn't like was that the packaging didn't hold the cupcakes upright very well and the frosting got kind of all over the place. Overall score: 4/5
Crumbs Cupcakes: Crumbs has become prevalent throughout New York, and it's not uncommon to see one every several blocks in Midtown. Unfortunately, this means I get to walk past Crumbs every single day on my way to work, and apparently their strategy of using repeated reinforcement to attract customers worked on me, because I wandered after months of restraint and picked out an apple cobbler cupcake. According to the website, this is described as: Apple cinnamon cake with apple preserves filling topped with vanilla cream cheese frosting and covered in streusel crumbs. Sounds delicious right? Well no, it was kind of a disappointment. The icing was too blandish and the cake was enormous, so it kind of went limp and fell apart after I cut through and scooped up the apple filling, which was arguably the best part after the streusel topping. Must avoid from now on. Overall: 2.5/5
Two Little Red Hens: I had heard about these cupcakes as one of the originals way back when I first moved to NY, but never thought about trying since it's all the way on the upper east side. However, when I realized they were being sold at Dean and Deluca, I knew I had to try. Unfortunately, I didn't know they came in mini-sizes in the original store (Dean and Deluca only carried the bigger ones that day), so I left the store with a box that literally weighed half a pound with the red velvet and Brooklyn Blackout, two flavors that are being raved about constantly on yelp. Unfortunately, I am not a fan of XL cupcakes, and the Brooklyn Blackout (while insanely indulgent), was way too intense for me to finish more than a few bites. The red velvet also was mediocre with an interesting, somewhat tangy and creamy cream cheese frosting.The packaging also left much to be desired and resulted in a messed up Brooklyn Blackout (although this might just be how Dean and Deluca packs it). Needless to say, I will not be making a trip up to the UES for these anytime soon. Overall: 3/5
Sprinkles: My first encounter with these was at the Dylan's Candy pop-up store near Bryant Park where they also were selling Spinkles cupcakes on the side. I wasn't too impressed with the red velvet (left), but the chocolate marshmallow was surprisingly light and unique with a fluffy marshmallow icing topped with chocolate ganache coating:
This past weekend, I ventured over to Sprinkles again because my buy 1 get 1 free coupon was expiring and decided to try the seasonal flavors: chocolate chip cake with raspberry frosting and caramel cake with salted caramel frosting. I liked how Sprinkles did a good job with the packaging so they wouldn't fall over in my bag. I also like how the frosting they use is sugary enough so that the frosting doesn't smear:
The verdict? I really liked the raspberry cupcake because the frosting had a sharp, tangy berry taste which made it stand out from the typical sugary sweet frosting. I also liked the chunks of chocolate chip inside the cake batter. The salted caramel one was good too, with a hint of sea salt that paired nicely with the caramel, but I thought it was a tad too sweet. The cake for both was moist and reminded me of birthday parties when I was little where moms would bring cupcakes in to celebrate. Overall: 4/5
J, I think I need a recording of you telling me to walk away...
