If there's one skill that I excel at in the kitchen, it's baking. And if there's one dessert that I specialize in, it's cupcakes. I love baking. For me, baking is the manifestation of love in the form of food. I do my best baking for special occasions, for those moments filled with love and celebration, like birthdays and holidays. There's something particularly special about cupcakes that goes beyond the trendiness; something innocent, sweet, and perfectly small. This makes cupcakes my number one dessert choice for celebrating birthdays in our home.
Today, I unfold my cupcake recipe that I created when my oldest turned two. A vegan cake recipe that I perfected because of his egg allergy, topped with decadent butter cream frosting. Fortunately, he's outgrown his allergy, but I continue to bake cupcakes with my special recipe for every birthday. Our family cupcake tradition continues today as our youngest turns three.
Because of this recipe, and my love for baking cupcakes, I am absolutely a cupcake connoisseur.
When The Cupcake Cruiser - Fort Collins' first dessert food truck - began baking in April of 2011, I was excited to have another sweet treat option in town. Owners, Kati Anderson and Matt Kenfield are the perfect example of how to use social media for food trucks, often updating facebook, twitter, and their website with schedules and announcements on where they are. They also give the heads up on what flavors they are offering that week - which are often very creative, and frequently rotate. My mouth waters every time I see their updates pop up on my lap top.
I've stopped by the Cupcake Cruiser a couple of times, picking up a half dozen or so cupcakes. I've tried many of their flavors. While they bake them from scratch using locally sourced ingredients - like dairy and eggs from Royal Crest Dairy, and spices from Old Town Spice Shop - to me, the cupcakes have a similar flavor to boxed cake mix. It's so similar in texture, taste, consistency - one could be easily fooled. I can make a much better cupcake at home, without a doubt.
Because these are fun cupcakes, many of them are decorated with funky and chunky toppings, like chocolate chips, cookie bits, and sparkly sprinkles. Truthfully, they also look like cupcakes the average home baker would make. While the decorating is cute, I think it takes away from the flavor of the frosting. Just a heads up too, if you get one with sprinkles, it leaves a waxy film on the roof of your mouth.
As a cupcake connoisseur, I know how challenging it is to bake cupcakes in this altitude and arid climate, and I definitely have respect for the Cruiser's ability to make a moist fluffy cake. I'd grab one if they were parked at a brewery while having a fun time with my friends, but because of the boxed flavor, I wouldn't necessarily seek them out. read more
