phoenixville's newest baker, iced by betsy

In a country with an inexplicable spread of cupcakeries multiplied conveniently throughout almost every town's borders, it comes with a complete surprise that Phoenixville had yet to debut its own local business booming with personal-sized morsels of cake.

However, striving to fill the delicious void for mini-cakes in our nearby neighborhoods is Betsy Gibbons of Limerick, who premiered Iced by Betsy three weekends ago at Phoenixville Farmers' Market.

Gibbons, a serious cupcake baker since late 2008, recently moved to Pennsylvania in October of 2009. Previously, Gibbons and her husband, Russ, wheeled their sugared inventory at Alpharetta Farmers Market of Georgia, a suburb based outside of Atlanta.

"I always loved baking, not as a business, but for pleasure," she confessed. "My husband and I moved to Georgia in September [of 2008] and since I was a teacher, I knew I had to find another way to express my creativity."

Continue reading 'bout Betsy's sugary-sweet baking journey here.

To conclude, a fine example of Iced's graduation cupcakes, now available for custom orders.

health-conscious creations of babycakes

 

With extreme whiffs of cake batter sweetly intoxicating your exterior scents immediately upon stepping foot into the petite, pink bake shop, smells alone define why Babycakes has, since it's sugary entrance onto the city baking scene, received its excess amount of talk.

Always an advocate for mixing and mashing health-conscious substitutes in your most favored dessert bites, the vegan and gluten-free bakery has become  the master of such marvels, and the intense envy of many looking to do the same.

However, with all the well-known hype, a visit to Babycakes and all its delicious glory, can be a bit overwhelming with many urban dwellers thinking about these sweet treats with an admirable longing like myself, and all packing into the tiniest of sugary shops.

My lady friends and I, patiently pumped into the cutesy cake shop like sardines, selected each a different delicious option to experience, and after the many scrumptious bites, knew our wait was worth it.

I opted for the fresh on-the-shelves Wonder Bun, a variation of their Skinny Bun for gluten-free dietary restrictions that propels agave nectar and cinnamon in a delicate swirl, easily crafted into an addicting sweet bun. My female friends choose a lemon cupcake, a mocha cupcake with the best coffee-infused icing out there and a chocolate truffle. 

All delicious decisions were prepared with pin-point perfection and I'd easily wait in that sassy sardine box time and time again!

Babycakes, 248 Broome St., New York, NY 10002, (212) 677-5047

crafting celiac awareness through cupcakes + cocktails

For those of you who have never tried my baked goods, here's a lil' known fact: I obsess over the idea of sneaking my sweet treats with all things healthy, always keeping in mind I will not compromise any of my flaunt-worthy flavors for lesser-worthy ingredients. 

An adoring fan of vegan baking, one of my most prized baking books is Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, finding never-ending inspiration from the green-goodness goddesses Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

Luckily, Philadelphia has recently had an energetic emergence of vegan sweet treat boutiques, as well as those promoting limited diets like gluten-free and allergen-friendly, so it seems now everyone can have their cake and satisfyingly eat it, too!

Conveniently, last week at APO Bar + Lounge many of the area's niche bakers, including many newbies, gleefully gathered together to whirl awareness for celiac disease (those suggested for a gluten-free lifestyle). Inevitably so, the pinch-percent couture of their cupcakeries flooded the front space of the dimly lit bar, as the 13th Street locale offered pairings of sweetly swirled cocktails.

My cocktail choice? The Pear Bear, which as seen above, splashed pear vodka, orange bitters and sparkling wine amongst squeezes of fresh lime and squirts of agave nectar. Two petite glasses of this fruity freedom had me pleasantly giggly like a schoolgirl, but that could have also been posed from my multiple cupcake-infused coma.

The delicate bites of the lady-friendly affair were provided by the pretty participants of Sweet Freedom Bakery, A Cupcake Wonderland and Virago Baking Company, and I have to suggest that the gorgeous galore of mini-cakes paired with my tart punch crafted an enjoyable evening for all, limited-and-not-so-limited tastebuds included.

All proceeds benefited the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness. 

the oh-so-prettiness of philly cupcake

It is a fact that I never possessed the girlishness of the typical young female. Raised amongst two older brothers, I would beg for a male-themed toy box pumped with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, GI Joes and most definitely, Star Wars statues. 

Of course, my mom purged my pleas by humoring me with  female-friendly, hand-held presents that captured my requests, sort of.  This meant that I was the proud owner of action figures and dolls of Princess Leia and TMNT's April, but that didn't mean I hadn't stopped enviously eyeing my siblings' stash.

However, this all being said, my complete tomboy upbringing is utterly disregarded once I cross the entrance way to a cupcake boutique. Honestly, I have never been this gushy and girlie at any point in the 24 years of my youthful life.

The pink presence surrounded by a baker's pinched perfection is hard to not smile upon, and the whiffs of your soon-to-embrace sugary coma could create a naysayer to even giggle a dozen optimistic breathes.


Among the city's handful of new baking boutiques lays the lovely lady, Philly Cupcake, situated in a neatly arranged nook flooded with vibrant cupcake prints and vintage Victoria Secret cabinets. 

Pleasant in pinks and pastels, the cupcakery crafts dozens of darling mini-cakes, both equally delicious in taste and display. Although it is obvious to attend a baking establishment at its early opening hours, I did the opposite, with a visit in the evening among a selection of sweets that were quite slim.

However, being Ms. Indecisive, popping in at a time that neared closing enabled me to make a decision just a few minutes sooner, which was a Green Tea Cupcake with Honey Buttercream Frosting (above).

Fluffy and light, intoxicating and flavorful, my cupcake choice was not only intensely interesting, but it also an exciting experiment for my flavor palate. As the tantalizing tastes journeyed through my degrees of dazed 'buds, I couldn't refuse to think I was like a little kid cutely adoring life's sweetest things.

And, I most definitely will not forget to mention other necessary notables of the cupcakery, which include: The Coma, a flourless chocolate mini-cake with cocoa buttercream and ganache; The Twix Dream, chocolate cupcake with Twix chunks and caramel buttercream; and The Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cupcake with a crunch icing drizzle.

give the gift of foodie prints

Food is permanently on my brain, which creates me to forever eat, drink, speak, squeal and gush over anything that's relatable to edibles. And, while some people wear their beaten hearts on their sleeves, I suggest it being better to wear the print of your last night's dinner proud-and-true on the outside of you.

Below, for the holiday season, I've compiled a handful of top-notch foodie pleasures, made locally and not so locally, to promote your adoration to eats, aplenty.

Dressing on the Side crafts cutesy limited-and-exclusive pen and ink designs from Arizona that, just like the one shown above, are ideal for those who are truly a foodie at heart. Being burger-obsessed, I gush at the above print, and could also sport any of her other designs, including the "Cupcakes are Cool" t-shirt and the "You Are What You Eat" with a pie slice symbolic of an "A".

Girlscantell is Philly-based and beautiful, inking attractive sketches on totes, coasters, oven mits, and much more. My favorite of her designs is her Kitchenaid mixer print, fully equipped with all the necessary attachments. Coming from a girl who welled up at the sight of her own icy blue Kitchenaid, it is a must-have for any baking space, and also, any item promoting it's fancy-schmancy machinery, is also a pleasured treasure to own.

Let's Get Healthy, a Josh Reames project, has sculpted screenprints that revolve around food, and furthermore, encourage the slow food movement. The Dinner Party t-shirt is a chaotic swirl of our kitchen's favorite cutlery, and comes printed on varying colors and sizes of v-necks. Also appealing is the store's "Ugly Organs" messenger bag that's durable and screams of good health. All funds raised from the shop's sales go to help to provide food, medical attention and education to children in the Philippines at the Gugma Child Development Center.

Mike Geno, another Philly-based artist, makes me proud by promoting his love for meat at large, especially his fascination with bacon. His bacon cards, which remind me of a statement a dear friend said to me recently ("you are the bacon to my cupcake"), are adorable and smile-creating, as are his various other meat paintings and pieces, such as other favorite, the heart-shaped "Bacon Love" print.

Sara Smedley is from PA Dutch Country and crafts textile prints on sturdy tableware and aprons. Her line of "butcher’s aprons" are partially inspired by what her grandfather wore when he cooked. Her modernized-looking kitchen companion is also sourced from a style similar to what Julia Child wore and quotes the French Chef saying, “It's a working apron, not a dainty thing. ‘Dainty’ doesn’t look professional in the kitchen.”

ChezSucreChez may not follow the print-based formality of this post, but it doesn't matter, because her monogrammed and cross-stitched pieces are excitingly adorable. Her Strawberry Sachet, popped with six lavender sewn berries inside, not only looks cutesy, but smells mighty fine, too. Also, she lives around my neck of the woods (Berks County, Pa), and I am quite pleased to have such a handsewn artist, locally.

an ode to apples and cheese, please

As an obvious lover of apples and cheese, it seems very appropriate to share the above artist's representation of my top food love!

Sketched by Cakespy, the Seattle-based illustrator and freelance writer, food blogger and exceptional baker, Jessie Oleson regularly produces food-friendly images paired with quirky edible-and-informational tidbits.

The Queen of cupcake love, she also sells sassy screen prints of her cake spies, including the top-notch investigator, Cuppie. I happily obtained a tee a few months back, detailing hipster baked goods waiting for the subway in the super-hip Williamsburg neighborhood of New York City.

maple-sugar bacon cakes topped with candied bacon

Consider me jumping on the bandwagon.

I love cake. I love bacon. I love people combining both for the love of cupcakes. And now, I am one of those people. The satisfaction of merging some of best options from your breakfast platter into a mouthwatering sweet treat is quite possibly, one of the best dessert options currently on the market. Or, maybe one of the most creative to enter the baking world in the last decade.

Either way, be sure to sink your grubbing, grease-loving snaggles into these spongy bites.

Maple Sugar Bacon Cupcakes

4 1/2 tablespoons of butter, room temperature
6 strips of bacon (later minced into 1/4 cup), plus 1/2 tablespoon of bacon drippings
1 egg
5 tablespoons of brown sugar
4 tablespoons maple syrup
1 1/4 cup of self rising flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
tiny tiny pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup of milk


Preheat over to 350 degrees.
Cook about 6 strips of bacon, reserving the drippings to be later used. Place in the fridge to solidify. Dice the cooked bacon into tiny bacon bits, about a 1/4 cup. Beat the butter and solidified bacon fat until fluffy. Add the brown sugar and maple syrup and beat until combined. Add egg, continue beating. Sift the flour, salt, baking soda and powder together. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients, alternating between some of the milk, and ending with the dry. Combine thoroughly. Fold in the bacon bits. Splash in more maple syrup if needed for taste. Fill cupcake papers 2/3's full and bake for 18-22 minutes.

Maple Sugar Frosting

4 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of maple syrup
1 cup of powdered sugar

Combine the syrup and butter until fluffy. Slowly add sugar until light and well-combined.

Candied Bacon Topping

2 tablespoons of maple syrup
2 tablespoons of brown sugar

Take two strips of cooked bacon. Coat slices with maple sugar and then, rub brown sugar over the entire surface. Bake for about 5 minutes at 350 degrees until bacon is shiny, crunchy and resembles hard candy. Remove from oven and wait until pieces are cool. Break into small slices for some adorable cake decor!