cupcakes

The Cupcake Chronicles

Here’s the thing. I have a slight obsession with cupcakes.

In the realm of food my favorite thing is dessert. Now I’m all for a good cookie or some tasty ice cream but when it comes down to it my favorite things are cakes and pies. Love! them! Truly I do. I’m the type of person that goes to a wedding just for the cake. So when it comes to cupcakes my heart skips a beat. It’s like a perfect little portable bit of sunshine covered in frosting.

Cupcakes are now a phenomenon and cupcakes shops and bakeries specializing in cupcakes are popping up everywhere. Each one touting that they have the best. Well I’ll be the judge of that! I’ve made it my mission to try every cupcake in New York City or any city for that matter. I’ll share with you my adventures.

My Rating Scale
Before I get started I have to clue you in on how I judge a cupcake.The cake:: Cupcakes are “mini” cakes and because of their size, unlike a large cake, they will dry out and get crumbly and hard faster. Any cupcake that last more than 3-4 days probably has preservatives. A cupcake in it’s first 24 hours is it’s moistest. If a cupcake is dry it’s either a really bad cupcake or is going on it’s 2 or 3rd day. A good bakery doesn’t let you go home with a cupcake past it’s 2nd day. The icing::A perfect icing is hard to achieve. It’s all about the perfect balance of butter, milk, sugar, and flavoring. It seems simple but it’s not. Some people will try to take a shortcut using shortening or miss the mark with too much sugar or not enough.The flavors:: The key to this cupcakes craze is offering classic flavors like vanilla or chocolate and then expanding to some more adventurous flavors like red velvet or german chocolate. Right now there is a big competition on who has the best red velvet cupcake. I’ll try different flavors and judge them independently of a classic flavor.

Just for fun I’ve instituted by own rating scale

Bad cupcake::Don’t even bother
An Okay Cupcake::If you’re there and you’re hungry, give it a try
Your Average Cupcake::Not bad, but not the best
A Tasty Cupcake:: You won’t regret trying it
The Perfect Cupcake::Pure cupcake genius

First up in the queue:: Eleni’s New York and Billy’s Bakery.

After another soul-depleting job interview, I dragged myself down 9th Ave in Chelsea and decided to cheer myself up with some cupcakes. Not as good as the new riding boots I’d like to get to put a smile on my face but definitely much cheaper. First I happened on the Chelsea Market, which houses many cute restaurants and bakeries including the well-known Fat Witch Bakery who are known for their brownies. But today was not a brownie day.

Eleni’s
75 Ninth Ave at 15th Street (in the Chelsea Market)
Prices: $2.95-$3.95

This was my first time to Eleni’s. From the look of the shop and the website, Eleni’s is trying to make a name for itself based on the cookies. They have pre-packaged themed decorated cookies, as well as, plain sugar and chocolate chip cookies. There was actually a lot of things to choose from. Regardless of this fact I focused on the goal….cupcakes. The website shows of a list of fancy names for the cupcakes but I didn’t see these names on display in the store. They kept it basic and to the point. “Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream” or “Oreo Explosion”. Since it was my first time I decided to stick to one cupcake just to get a sense of their taste, texture, and icing. I chose the chocolate with vanilla buttercream and coconut.

The verdict: Eleni’s claim to fame is their cookies. Not cupcakes. This cupcake is going on it’s 2nd or 3rd day because it’s dry and crumbly. Even seeing beyond the dryness, the cake is not compelling. Just a generic chocolate cake. Growing up I hated buttercream icing because most times it tasted like sugared butter. It was only until I experienced great bakeries that I knew that buttercream could be good. The icing on this cupcake taste like sugared butter. It’s super sweet butter. There is a hint of vanilla flavor… I think. Every time I taste the icing I think I detect some vanilla and then I’m overtaken by the taste of butter and sugar granules. I like Pillsbury or Hines pre-made icing better. The sweetened coconut in the icing just sent me over the top into a sugar coma in a not-so-good way. A pretty cupcake but in my opinion, not worth the $2.95, especially since I only ate half of it.

(It may have been a bad day or a bad selection on my part. )

Next I moved on to…..
Billy’s Bakery
184 9th Avenue between 19th & 20th St (Chelsea) & 75 Franklin Street (Tribeca)
Prices: $2.25-$2.75

Billy’s is my type of bakery….cupcakes, cakes, & pies. They have brownies, breakfast items, and coffee but really it’s about the cakes & pies. My first time at Billy’s was a little overwhelming. It was crowded and there was so much to choose from that I just bought 2 basic cupcakes and kept it moving. This time I decided to try 3 cupcakes: A classic chocolate with chocolate buttercream, carrot cake, and red velvet. As far as the interior goes, Billy’s is a small place with a few tables and 2 benches outdoors. It’s welcoming. For your viewing pleasure, they ice the cupcakes in the window.

The verdict:
Billy’s is actually one of the places where I plan to try the whole menu. Once I make my way through the cupcakes, I’m moving onto the pies and cakes. It’s a good bakery. The ingredients are good and the items are always fresh.

Carrot Cake It has a nice cream cheese icing. It’s sweet and balances nicely with carrot cake which in true classic form is not too sweet. The icing however is sweet enough that given the amount on the cupcake, over the course of eating the entire cupcake it may get to be a bit much. Take off half the icing and you have a perfect balance. The carrot cake is great. Moist, flavorful, and filled with carrot, walnuts, and raisins. The balance of these things in one little cupcake is on point.

Classic Chocolate w/Chocolate Buttercream I have to say this is one of the best buttercream icings I’ve ever had. It’s well blended and light. And unlike many, this chocolate buttercream actually tastes like it has chocolate in it without being overwhelming and fudgey. The cake is moist and has a very light sweetness which is best since the majority of the cupcake’s sugar content comes from the icing.

Red Velvet This cupcake is a cross between the previous two; chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. Overall a good cupcake but just like the carrot cake cupcake, just a tad too much frosting.