Looking Back: 2011

Happy New Year! How many of you celebrated all night long and did the countdown? We did. That is why we thought it would be best to have this post scheduled. ;)

We missed doing this in 2010 (we did it for 2008 and 2009), but we're bringing it back. Here's a look back at our favourite posts of 2011.

Howard's Top 3 Favourites:

1. Home Cooking: Sylvia's savory dinner because it's the best savory dinner she's made for me (even though it wasn't exclusively for me). 
2. Lady M Confections and Ladurée and Sucré: NYC in the rain because we made the day fun even though it could have easily been miserable. 
3. Kurt and Diana: KD's wedding because it was our first mass undertaking and we were able to pull it off with success (I hope).

Sylvia's Top 3 Favourites:

1. Lemon Soufflés: An impressive, delicious, and difficult dessert to master? Challenge accepted! I got to learn from my mistakes and gain an understanding to the not-so-secret creation of soufflés.
2. How: Pinwheel Cupcakes: This was something that I wanted to make for awhile, the idea danced in my mind for a couple of months, and they turned out quite nice! Whimsy!
3. Calvin and Hobbes Birthday Cupcakes: Fun. These were so fun to make and blog about.

We also wanted to start 2012 with a giveaway. We feel that this is the time of year when we all feel the most ambitious. Maybe this year you'll make healthier desserts or cook like a Michelin starred chef?

BabyCakes
Vegan, (Mostly) Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes from New York's Most Talked-About Bakery
Written by Erin McKenna
For confectionists of all kinds, delicious alternatives lie within: Red Velvet Cupcakes, Chocolate Shortbread Scones with Caramelized Bananas, Strawberry Shortcake, and BabyCakes NYC’s celebrated frosting (so delicious it has fans tipping back frosting shots!), to name just a few.

Momofuku
Written by David Chang and Peter Meehan
Momofuku is both the story and the recipes behind the cuisine that has changed the modern-day culinary landscape. Chang relays with candor the tale of his unwitting rise to superstardom, which, though wracked with mishaps, happened at light speed. And the dishes shared in this book are coveted by all who've dined - or yearned to - at any Momofuku location (yes, the pork buns are here).


Giveaway Regulations and Conditions: 

• The New Year Giveaway is open from Sunday, January 1, 2012 to Thursday, January 12, 2012. Entries submitted after 12 midnight EST on Thursday, January 12, 2012 will not be considered. 
• There are three ways to enter, you only have to do one:
  1) Post in the comment section below:  I want to spend my new year reading ______________. (Fill in the blank with the title you would like to win.)
  2) Post on A Baked Creation's facebook page: I want to spend my new year reading ______________. (Fill in the blank with the title you would like to win.)
  3) To enter via twitter, tweet: I want to spend my new year reading ______________ with  @abakedcreation (Fill in the blank with the title you would like to win.) 
• Please leave a way for us to contact you.
• Winners will be randomly chosen and announced here on A Baked Creation. 
• The winners will have 7 days to claim their prize. If we do not get a mailing address, the prize is forfeited.
• This contest is available to residents of Canada and the U.S.A. only! However, if you have friends and family with a Canadian or American mailing address, feel free to enter. There will be four different winners, one for each book.
• Disclaimer: The giveaway copy of BabyCakes and Momofuku were not sent to us by the publisher.
• UPDATE: Winners have been chosen and notified! Congratulations to Rosebud5192 who will be receiving a copy of BabyCakes. Congratulations to Cat who will be receiving a copy of Momofuku.

Best of luck!

NYC Cupcake Tour: Day 1

Hello... *awkward pause* this is really late isn't it? I was quite exhausted from my trip and then caught an unwanted bug that's been going around. But no fear, here is the recap from my trip! I did managed to visit quite a few bakeries during my short stay in New York City. Please remember, these are based on my own experiences and are in no means an overall critique of the bakeries. This was merely for fun! Now, let's get this trip started:

Billy's Bakery

75 Franklin Street
New York, NY 10013

Okay, my first cupcake bakery! Billy's Bakery did not disappoint my expectations at all for my first taste in New York. Love the store front, the colours, the design, and the atmosphere. The service was fantastic and was greeted with a smile. It is so comforting to see a bakery case full of pretty little cupcakes. The hardest part in each bakery was choosing the 1 flavour to eat. Yes, just 1. There was no way I would have been able to try them all! Their Yellow Daisy Cupcake with Vanilla Buttercream Icing caught my eye and there was only one in green buttercream left. Come on, I had to have that one then!

Flavour tried: Very good! The yellow cake was delicious!
Frosting: Pretty sweet frosting, but the right amount for the cupcake.
Presentation: Cute and plump frosting in a pale pastel. Can't go wrong there and the sprinkles' colours complemented the frosting's green. A very good dessert and snack size.

Got some looks and snickers from two customers sitting inside. They could probably tell that I was a tourist as I snapped photos. But, you know what? I don't have the luxury of swinging by Billy's Bakery whenever I feel like it, so I am going to take a bunch of photos and savour my visit!

Baked by Melissa
529 Broadway
New York, NY 10012
(Pick-Up window on Spring St.)

I wasn't sure if Baked by Melissa would be available for stroller-bys to order cupcakes. The website kept saying pick-up window, so I wasn't sure if I had to order their minimum 100 cupcakes to have a taste. Thankfully, you can just order these mini cupcakes at the window. Customer service wasn't as pleasant as the previous bakery - in fact - it was very confusing. Was told there was only Tie-Dye and Red Velvet left, but as I let other customers order first as I decided, they were ordering other flavours! So it wasn't just the two flavours left. Weird!

Baked by Melissa's Miniature Stuffed Cupcakes Menu

Red Velvet, Cinnamon, and Peanut Butter Cup

Flavours tried: Red Velvet, Cinnamon, and Peanut Butter Cup. First Red Velvet tried from a bakery! Still not sure what it is... is it chocolate cake with red dye? Cinnamon and Peanut Butter Cup were good!
Frosting: You can tell the frosting was quickly piped on, but they tasted good and matched the fillings inside and the cake.
Presentation: Mini cupcakes are already cute. They were served in a big cupcake liner. The cupcakes themselves didn't have the liners - very convenient to pop them in your mouth as a snack!

Babycakes NYC
248 Broome Street
New York, NY 10002

Yes, the famous dairy free, gluten free, egg free, soy free, refined sugar free bakery! With all that 'free' this was the most expensive cupcake I tried. Not complaining, because I understand that the substitute materials are not cheap! Very warm and homey bakery, I love places that don't hide the back where the magical baking happens. It might be just me, but I feel so happy seeing piles of baking pans, bags ready for piping, and trays of baked goods.

Babycake's display case

Vanilla with Chocolate-Fig Ganache and Cinnamon-Nutmeg (Gluten Free)

Flavour tried: Vanilla with Chocolate-Fig Ganache and Cinnamon-Nutmeg (Gluten Free). Love trying out new and unique flavours and this one did not disappoint! The cupcake's texture felt a bit dry, but the ganache filling helped even things out.
Frosting: Umm, it is cinnamon and nutmeg - YUM!
Presentation: Did not have the little piped flower like the regular flavours, but still a good-looking cupcake.

sugar Sweet sunshine
126 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002

Oooo, a line-up! This bakery was busy with people ordering their cupcakes. Luckily, the service was good and the line went quickly. Next, got a table and dug into the cupcake. I'm glad there was a few tables and seating here, after trekking from bakery to bakery, you do get tired and like to sit down to enjoy the cupcake! Plus tables make it easier to snap photos of the cupcake I just got. =)

Flavour tried: Lemon Yummy. It was lemon cake with lemon buttercream. Not enough lemon flavour in the cupcake.
Frosting: Their lemon buttercream was sweet and could have had more lemon flavour to it. But it was still yummy!
Presentation: Quick swirls with a dash of sprinkles.

Lemon Yummy: Lemon cake with lemon buttercream

Way more photos posted on our facebook page!

>>> NYC Cupcake Tour: Day 2