Thursday, July 16, 2009

In search of the perfect cupcake

Not satisfied with our first cupcake experience at Crumbs, off we went through the Lower East Side and East Village exploring a previously unfamiliar area to both of us. Though we were not specifically looking for cupcakes, we did find two noteworthy bakeries - Sugar Sweet Sunshine and Butter Lane.

Sugar Sweet Sunshine was, as the name indicates, a ray of sunshine in our young cupcake journey. Fair prices, a delicately soft, moist cake and a not-too-sweet, but just-sweet-enough buttercream icing made this $1.50 treat a welcome sight. The Bob, a yellow cake with chocolate almond buttercream was delicious, so much so that we talk about going back almost daily. Our next venture to the LES will undoubtedly yield expanded waist-lines as we stuff ourselves on these delicate clouds of sugar sweetness. 126 Rivington Street (212) 995-1960 www.sugarsweetsunshine.com

Another standout cupcake shop is Butter Lane at 123 East 7th Street. This tiny shop in the middle of a quiet street offers local, organically sourced ingredients including real vanilla beans and local, organic dairy. You mix and match the bottom cakes (vanilla, chocolate, red velvet) with an American or French buttercream icing. American buttercream icing is the most common type of icing and does not require the addition of eggs - its main ingredients are powdered sugar, butter and milk, while French buttercream is made of granulated sugar, butter and eggs. The consistency of the French meringue icing is quite different than the American, but a smoother, more creamy texture makes for a nice contrast with the standard cupcakes found in the city. On par with the other prices in the city - $2.50-3.00 each.

No comments:

Post a Comment