Name: Brownie
Age: Old enough to eat a Bourbon Cupcake
Location: Brooklyn
Occupation: Media
URL: http://www.blondieandbrownie.blogspot.com/
What inspired you to start your blog Blondie and Brownie, and what is its mission?
Blondie and I share a mutual love of food and baking. When we discover something that we think is really great, we want to share it with everyone. One of our friends told us we should start a blog about our various food adventures and for awhile our nonexistent blog was sort of a running joke between us. Then one day we decided that we were eating all of these great things anyway, so why not just write about them?
Our mission is to seek out the delicious wherever it may be found. And, as Blondie reminds me, to introduce her to new foods. I was pretty excited that I got her to try raw oysters. She was not a fan. Oh well, more for me.
What's been the most fun food adventure you've had with the blog? How do you divide up which foods you'll cover?
Our most fun adventure so far was probably our Tartan /Astoria Day when we hit up the Tartan Parade in Manhattan then headed out to Astoria for Chilean Hot Dogs and Empanadas, Loukoumades and NesFrappes, Cannolis, Cupcakes from Martha’s Bakery, and Huaraches from the Taco Truck. It was one excellent day of eating. In terms of dividing up what we cover, we do a fair amount of food adventuring together and whoever has time or has the stronger opinion does the write up.
Why is writing about food important to you? What kinds of criteria do you us to decide which things you'll write about on the blog?
For me food is tied up with family and friends. Old traditions and new traditions. We all need to eat and the wonderful thing about food is that it has the power to bring people from different backgrounds together.
I’m an obsessive food photographer and I’m getting Blondie into it now too. I take a lot of pictures of the foods that I make and eat and from there Blondie and I decide which ones we want to write about. We pretty much write about things that we’ve discovered that we love, but we’ll also write about our kitchen experimentations or places that we’ve tried that in our opinion are overrated. I’m a born and raised New Englander and right now I’m on the quest for the best Whoopie Pie. If any readers have Whoopie Pie tips, I’m all ears! Hmmm…I wonder if I could make a whoopie cupcake…
Do you feel part of a local food blogging community?
Being in New York there is a nice sense of camaraderie amongst the local food bloggers. I’ve had a chance to meet the lovely ladies from Cupcakes Take the Cake and Zach from Midtown Lunch, another favorite blog of mine. And Blondie I have also met up with NYC Food Guy and Food in Mouth, a couple of guys whose blogs we regularly read.
You've been tasting cupcakes all around New York, as well as other foods. Which are your favorites of the cupcakes you've tried? What foods go best with cupcakes?
Mmmm. I’d have to say that I really enjoyed the Lemon Lemon Lemon cupcake I tried at Batch, it was light and sweet and tart all at the same time. I love pretty much all of the cupcakes from Sugar Sweet Sunshine. Cakeman Raven makes an excellent red velvet cupcake. In terms of what foods go best with cupcakes, I’d have to say…more cupcakes. Besides that nothing beats a glass of cold milk (or a latte).
You're also a baker, and recently won 1st place in the exotic flavor category at the 2008 Cupcake Cookoff for your spicy gingerbread cupcakes with Tahitian vanilla frosting. How did you come up with the recipe? What do you think set yours apart?
I have a co-worker who adores gingerbread so I’m always trying to think of new gingerbread creations to bring in to work. My recipe for the cupcake cookoff was inspired by her. I think the spiciness of my cupcake set it apart. It’s not a terribly sweet cupcake and after tasting all of the other cupcakes (I think mine was pretty far down the list), they were probably ready for something a little different.
How often do you bake and what kinds of cupcakes do you like to make? How do they differ from the kinds you like to buy?
I like to bake at least once a week. I probably bake more exotic cupcakes than I buy—not really on purpose, it just works out that way. I guess since I’m a baker when cupcake inspiration strikes I usually hit the kitchen instead of going in search of a cupcake I can purchase. I especially like making Root Beer Float Cupcakes. I just joined the Daring Bakers and last month’s challenge was an Opera Cake. I decided to do a cupcake version of the cake and I have to say that I was quite pleased with the results.
What's your dream cupcake that you've never had (or heard of) but would like to try?
I’ve seen a lot of delicious cupcakes on Cupcakes Take the Cake, but the one that still sticks out in my mind the most is the Chocolate Graham Cracker and Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes from Trophy Cupcakes in Seattle. Oh man, those look amazing! I have a business trip out in Seattle in September and I know that I’ll definitely be dropping in to sample their wares.
What's the key to a good cupcake? What's the biggest complaint you've had about the not-so-great cupcakes you've tried?
For me the key to a really good cupcake is all about balance. Some places make an excellent frosting. Other places, an excellent cake. But to have a great cupcake you need both together. My main issue with some of the “lesser” cupcakes I’ve tried has been that typically they are dry. Dry, dry, dry as the Sahara Desert dry. Not tasty. I can’t stand cupcake places whose renown is based solely on their delicious frosting. I love frosting as much as the next person but if I’m paying $3.00-$4.00 for a cupcake, I want the cake to be amazing too.
And now for some personal questions…
How often do you eat cupcakes?
A least a few times a month.
What's the best thing about eating cupcakes?
A cupcake has all of the deliciousness of cake packed into a handheld snack. And the cupcake form really lends itself to endless variety. One of my favorite things about baking is sharing the finished product with friends and a cupcake is just the perfect sweet treat to hand out.
What's your favorite type of cupcake?
I’d have to go with the classic vanilla cake and chocolate frosting combo. I enjoy the more exotic cupcakes for sure, but the vanilla/chocolate combo is an old standby that I always return to. Red velvet is a close runner up.
How do cupcakes compare/contrast to other baked goods for you?
In the pantheon of baked goods I’d rank cupcakes, then cookies, then cake, then pie. I’m also a sucker for that extra crumbly New York Coffee Cake.
Is there any innovation you'd like to see made to the cupcake that would improve it for you?
It’s hard to think of ways to improve upon the cupcake. I do like the new Reynolds shaped cupcake liners. I’ve seen star and heart shaped ones, I don’t know if they have any other shapes in the works but more shapes would be fun. Oh, I’d also like to see more cupcakes with different fillings.
Do you bake your own cupcakes? Or (even better) have someone who bakes them for you?
I mostly bake my own cupcakes. But I love when anyone bakes one for me (hint, hint Blondie).
What's your first cupcake-related memory?
I don’t know that it’s my first cupcake memory, but I fondly remember the ones my mom made for my 9th birthday. She baked the cupcakes in wafer cones and then frosted and topped them with sprinkles. They looked just like ice cream. No one in my elementary school had ever seen cupcakes like that. They were a total hit. My popularity in the 3rd grade soared and was not again matched until I debuted the hot pink slap bracelet that I bought on vacation.
What's the most fun you've ever had with a cupcake?
Decorating my entry for the Martha Stewart’s cutest cupcake contest was a lot of fun. I decided to make mine look like a Chow Chow so I gathered some reference photos and sketched a Chow Chow dog cartoon that I then used for reference when I painted the frosting on my cupcake. I was super excited when Martha selected it as one of the winners. I actually found out that my cupcake had been shown on Martha from the Cupcake Takes the Cake flickr group message board before I got the official word from the folks at Martha Stewart.
Do you have anything else to add?
Thanks guys for all of your hard work creating and maintaining one of my favorite sites! Hooray for cupcakes! And hooray for Cupcakes Take the Cake!
Comments