CupcakeCamp 2011 in the Somerville Patch

Hundreds of Locals Attend Cupcake Expo in Somerville Wednesday Night

• By Clara Ciminelli

On Wednesday night over 770 cupcake lovers flocked to the Center of the Arts at the Armory in Somerville for the second annual CupcakeCamp Boston. Twenty local bakeries and fifty amateur bakers from around the Greater Boston area came out to peddle their delicious wares.

Event founder Elizabeth Ginsburg put it simply: “CupcakeCamp Boston is a free and open gathering of cupcake enthusiasts,” she said. A blogger for FreeFoodBoston, Ginsburg first experienced CupcakeCamp in New York City in 2009 and decided she wanted to bring the event to Boston. Camps are held in various cities across the country, and anyone can volunteer to organize one for their community.

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It's Here!

Are you ready? The fun starts at 7pm tonight.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Jen @ BeantownBaker.com

How long have you been baking?
10 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
That's a tough one. I definitely go through phases. Right now I'm on a big layer cake phase, because they're complicated and "special" but I love a great brownie recipe any day of the week!

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Hard to say... Maybe my first yeast bread just because yeast used to scare the crap out of me.

What is your favorite ingredient?
My homemade vanilla extract

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Cooks Illustrated



Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Beantown Baker

How long have you been blogging?
Almost 4 years

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
I think I'm known for my cupcakes (and the snapware container that I carry them in!)

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@beantownbaker

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes

Feel free to include any additional information about yourself, your baking, your favorite baking story, etc
My Hubby recently took a new job. I ran into his old boss the other day. His old boss said he thinks the group misses my baked goods more than they miss Hubby. I promised not to tell Hubby that story!

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Mindy Langweiler

How long have you been baking?
About 10 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Anything sweet!

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Baklava...don't think I'll ever get the hang of it!

What is your favorite ingredient?
Sugar!

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Hello, Cupcake!

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Sugar High



How long have you been blogging?
2 months

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
Fun cakes and cupcakes

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Joyce (aka BCAllegra)

How long have you been baking?
Since 5th grade

What is your favorite thing to bake?
It changes from month to month - I'm currently into scones! For April, I'll obviously be trying some new cupcake recipes and I'm thinking about desserts for Easter, perhaps even a coconut cream pie?

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
I've been on a mission to conquer cheesecake in the past couple of years - an ancient oven in the past resulted in scorched exteriors and undercooked centers. Recent attempts have resulted in more of a mousse-y texture - I vow to make the firm, silken cheesecake of my dreams this year!

What is your favorite ingredient?
I love almond flavoring as a special ingredient for cookies and glazes

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Google! It helps me discover other baking blogs . Obviously, Smitten Kitchen and The Pioneer Woman are also favorites, and locally, Beantown Baker!

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Boston Chomper

How long have you been blogging?
2.5 years



What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
As boring as it sounds, I think I'm really known for my cookies. I like to say I have the repertoire of a really good bake sale mom - my most requested cookies are oatmeal cranberry cookies; cranberry, pistachio and white chocolate chip cookies; ginger hermits; and chocolate chip blondies.

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Chocolate Black Bottom Cupcakes (old favorite)
Brown Sugar Praline Cupcakes (new recipe)

Feel free to include any additional information about yourself, your baking, your favorite baking story, etc
I've been called the half-Asian Martha Stewart by friends and family.

Actually, it's because of my Korean mother that I was inspired to bake -Simply because she is incredibly bad at it! I say this with love and without blame, realizing that she didn't grow up with American sweets.

I started baking in the fifth grade for class projects. Imagine cupcakes with pyramids on top (in actuality, red hots forming a triangle) to accompany a report on Egypt. Pitiful, I know. Despite this unauspicious start, I did progress to making Swedish nut wafer cookies (from the Fannie Farmer cookbook) for a report on - you guessed it - Sweden!

Fast forward to the present. Baking is such a big part of my life that my then-boyfriend, now-husband proposed with a cake, decorated to match my blog and with the words "Will You Marry Me?" across the top.

So that's me in a nutshell - half-Korean, avid baker, newlywed and blogger!

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Kat Keenan

How long have you been baking?
3 Years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Any type of cake with fondant- I make homemade fondant from a recipe that I found online, which uses a bag of marshmallows instead of the gelatin... so the fondant tastes as good as the cake!

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Baklava- a Mediterranean pastry made of layers of filo pastry dough filled with chocolate, butter, and chopped nuts, or syrup and honey. This recipe was tricky because you had to make sure none of the layer of filo dough ripped... but it ended up turning out great

What is your favorite ingredient?
banana


What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Hello Cupcakes!

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Kat Eats Cake

How long have you been blogging?
only 3 weeks

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
Cake pops!!!
Little bit size cake balls rolled up, covered in chocolate, and placed on a stick YUM

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Chocolate Oreo cupcakes- filled with a creamy marshmallow filling
Decorated with Oreo sunflowers

Feel free to include any additional information about yourself, your baking, your favorite baking story, etc
Im a 16 year old amateur baker:
Here is another one of my creations- "Cookie Dough Filled Cupcakes"
Chocolate chip cookie dough cake, filled with egg-free cookie dough, topped with brown sugar frosting, and a giant chocolate chip cookie

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Nina Colon

How long have you been baking?
1 Year

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Apple Crisp, It's so delicious and comforting and makes the entire house smell absolutely amazing.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Crusts, something about the delicate nature of the butter and flour and trying not to have everything stick but also not too dry is a bit challenging but so amazingly worth it when you get it right.

What is your favorite ingredient?
Butter!

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
I love The Silver palate cookbook.

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Kitty Cupcakes

How long have you been blogging?
About three months or so.

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
Chocolate Croissants. Once I've mastered them, that is. ;)

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
I'm bringing traditional cucpakes, Red Velvet Cupcakes, Vanilla Bean Cupcakes, and Chocolate Peanutbutter Cupcakes.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - josiebean

How long have you been baking?
all my life :)

What is your favorite thing to bake?
cupcakes! of course. but also regular cakes, cookies, brownies, and the occasional pie.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
homemade apple pie. not the actual filling, but just that damn crust. when i finally put it all together it came out amazing, though. hard work does pay off!

What is your favorite ingredient?
alcohol!

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Google is a wonderful haven of new recipes

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
what's on the scene, josiebean?

How long have you been blogging?
on and off for like, 3 years?



What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
i'm honestly not the best baker, and to be truthful i wouldn't even call myself the biggest cupcake fan (i know, huge gasp). however i do love the way cupcakes look and all the creative spins you can put in making them. thus, my love for making baked goods and trying out new recipes for cupcakes would probably be my forte.

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@josieboston

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
probably my Kahlua cupcakes with a Kahlua infused chocolate ganache and/or my devil's food cupcakes with a hidden Reese's pb cup inside and homemade pb frosting.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Tata Treats

How long have you been baking?
3 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Cupcakes of course! I also love to make pasta.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Well once I made this really hard Italian pasta meal with my family it was a lot of fun!

What is your favorite ingredient?
Chocolate

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
The Hello Cupcake Series

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
CUPCAKES :)



What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
My famous Boston Creme Cupcake

Feel free to include any additional information about yourself, your baking, your favorite baking story, etc
I run a small local cupcake business in the Boston suburbs. I'm 11 (turning 12 the day after cupcake camp) and I have always loved baking pastries. My grandmother is a cake decorator and has always been an inspiration to me. My family has helped me every step of the way. My future will definitely be in baking. My business is called Tata Treats (my last name is Tata) and I can't wait to come to Cupcake Camp.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Cara

How long have you been baking?
As long as I've been eating

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Regular ol' chocolate chip cookies. Can't beat the dough! Unless you add oatmeal, of course. I'll go with oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Probably the chocolate cupcakes with champagne buttercream I made for a friend's engagement party. Sounds easy enough, but I'm very picky about my chocolate cake and wanted to get it just right. (There's a lot of not-very-good chocolate cake out there.) If you asked my husband, he'd say the Bailey's chocolate mousse cake we made for St. Patrick's Day one year. This was before we owned a stand mixer, and the poor guy went through a tough workout whipping that mousse!

What is your favorite ingredient?
chocolate

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Epicurious and Eating Well

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Cara's Cravings

How long have you been blogging?
4 years

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
The brownies I make for Passover, which are made with almond meal instead of flour - they're incredibly rich and delicious. Not only the best Passover brownie ever, but quite possibly the best of any brownie, ever!

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@carascravings


What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Bailey's Mint Chocolate Chip (mini) Cupcakes

Feel free to include any additional information about yourself, your baking, your favorite baking story, etc
Fitness and healthy food are staples in my life, and most of the recipes on my blog are original, healthy recipes utilizing wholesome, clean ingredients and bold flavor combinations. I love to eat, and it's my mission to show the word that eating healthfully doesn't need to be boring! But, I also have a huge sweet tooth - probably the biggest one you'll ever meet. When I bake, I don't mind going all out with real sugar, butter, etc - but I only do it on special occasions, when I have the opportunity to share with others. This is why I'm happy to be participating in Cupcake Camp.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Sara N

How long have you been baking?
6 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Anything with the word "cake" in it. Cupcakes and cake are my specialty.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
I do a lot of amateur cake decorating and made the Shrieking Shack from the third Harry Potter book for a friend's birthday. While the actual cake was simple, the detail that went into making the cake look like a creepy building was a challenge! But the hard work paid off. I submitted a photo of the cake to the WB to be printed on a Harry Potter mug and they loved the image so much, they're showcasing it in the Harry Potter museum on set in LA!

What is your favorite ingredient?
High quality vanilla extract

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
SmittenKitchen.com

Do you have a blog? If so what is the URL?
Chomp Zone

How long have you been blogging?
A few months

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
I'm definitely the "cake girl."

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@saranoonan


What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
"Hamburger cupcakes (don't worry, they're meat free!). This is a combo of vanilla cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes stacked in burger form. Complete with frosting condiments.

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Michelle

How long have you been baking?
5 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
I love to bake cookies, especially decorated sugar cookies, and my favorite, the chunky Lola cookie from Flour.

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Doughnuts, hands down. I was always afraid of frying anything, and by making doughnuts, I conquered my fear.

What is your favorite ingredient?
Vanilla Extract

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Organic and Chic: Cakes, Cookies, and Other Sweets That Taste as Good as They Look

Do you have a blog?
Savory Favorites

How long have you been blogging?
About 1 year

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
I am definitely known for baking cupcakes, though no specific kind. My friends at work are always asking what I will bring in next to share, but are always asking for cupcakes.

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@michellet11

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Pancake cupcakes with Maple Bacon Frosting

Meet the Amateur Bakers - Erin from The Sweetest Times

How long have you been baking?
About 2 years

What is your favorite thing to bake?
Everything! Cupcakes and cakes are probably my favorite - I love frosting! But cookies are fun too, and less time consuming!

What is the most challenging thing you've ever baked?
Chocolate Espresso Souffle - it did NOT turn out well :)

What is your favorite ingredient?
Can I name 2? Chocolate and Peanut Butter!

What is your favorite cookbook or recipe resource?
Joy of Cooking and The Pioneer Woman



Do you have a blog?
The Sweetest Times

How long have you been blogging?
2 months!

What is the one baked good you're know for or would like to be known for?
I don't think I am known for any outside of my family, but I'd like to be known for cupcakes (I'm a little obsessed, if you haven't noticed)!

Are you on Twitter? If so, what is your Twitter name?
@SweetestTimes

What will you be baking for Cupcake Camp?
Girl Scout Thin Mint Cupcakes

King Arthur Comes Home: Back to Boston for Cupcakes

As many of you know, CupcakeCamp Boston has partnered with King Arthur Flour this year to put on a show-stopping event. Enjoy today's guest post from King Arthur Flour editor and recipe developer Susan Reid. Be sure to check out Susan's baking and cupcake-decorating demo next Wednesday at CupcakeCamp.

You may or may not know that King Arthur Flour is the oldest flour company in America. The company started on Boston’s Long Wharf in 1790. That’s when a guy named George Washington was the country’s president. It’s also before there were such things as cameras.

At that time, it wasn’t uncommon for the flour available (all of it was imported; the Midwest wasn’t quite settled yet) to be “stretched” by additions of things like ground bone and chalk. Yuk.

Horse-drawn wagon with barrels for flour being loaded on the wharf in Boston.

Flour was sold in 196 pound barrels, or in fractions thereof.

In case you’re wondering, at these prices, a 5 pound bag of flour would cost you $.17.

The company was founded on the principle that people would be willing to pay a few pennies more for quality and purity they could trust; we still live by that principle every day, 221 years later. The company is 100% employee-owned now, so everyone you deal with at King Arthur has a stake in making sure you’re happy with our product and with us.

Allow me to introduce myself: I’m Susan Reid, and my job at King Arthur Flour is to edit, write, and manage the circulation for our paid baking newsletter: it’s called The Baking Sheet.

I work in our test kitchen, where my efforts range from the sublime

to the humbling.

I do demonstrations and television and video appearances from time to time.

On April 13th, I’ll be throwin’ down about cupcakes at CupcakeCamp Boston. I’ll show you some groovy decorating ideas, we can talk about flavors, frostings, flours, technique, and any other baking problem or question you have on your mind. I did some cupcake calisthenics today to warm up. I started with my favorite coconut cake recipe, which uses our coconut milk powder. I baked some of the batter in our zebra cupcake papers, and some “commando.”

I was planning to make a top that echoed the pattern of the paper when the cupcake was done. So, black and white, coconut and chocolate, here we go. Once the cupcakes were cooled, I used some of our Super Simple Chocolate Frosting to stick a naked mini cupcake upside down on top of one of the big bases.

I took another mini cupcake and used a pastry tip to cut it into a tapered top.

Time for a frosting swirl.

And some more….

Now for the crowing glory: I believe decorations should be tightly linked to the flavors involved; since the cupcake is coconut, I reached for some of our large flake coconut to make zebra stripes above as well as below.

There she is. A towering, tasty treat. There will be more where this came from at the Armory next week. For King Arthur, it’s back to the beginning, near the place where it all began for us more than two centuries ago. Hope to see you there.

Meet the Bakers: VCVC Cupcakes

I've got another bakery to introduce you to today. Today's Meet the Baker profile is featuring VCVC Cupcakes. VCVC Cupcakes is based in Melrose, MA and Cathy is more than happy to work with people to customize their cupcake order.



Cathy brought me a dozen cupcakes to taste. I got coconut creme, peanut butter me up, and
pumpkin butterscotch with pumpkin rum buttercream. The cupcakes came in a brown box with a VCVC Cupcakes sticker on the top. I like the pink and brown logo - so cute!



As you can see, the coconut creme cupcakes had a beautiful fondant flower on the top of each cupcake. The cupcake and frosting weren't overly coconuty. It was more of a subtle coconut cupcake, which I appreciated.



The pumpkin flavor had a strong flavor of rum in the frosting. I love rum so I really enjoyed it. Sometimes when alcohol gets added to frosting, the flavor get dilluted by the sugar.



The peanut butter me up cupcake is for the serious peanut butter lover. It had a half of a peanut butter cup on the top of the cupcake and whole peanut butter cup baked into the chocolate cupcake. And of course, the frosting was a peanut butter buttercream.



VCVC Cupcakes can be found at their website, on Facebook, or at their blog. Be sure to check them out at Cupcake Camp on April 13th.

And, check this out! VCVC Cupcakes is on Eversave - $18 for a dozen creative made-to-order cupcakes from VCVC Cupcakes ($36 value). Click here to get in on the deal.

Meet the Bakers: Cupcake Mojo

Today I'm going to introduce another one of the professional bakers who will be attending Cupcake Camp. Today's Meet the Bakers feature will highlight Cupcake Mojo. Cupcake Mojo is a mother-daugther duo who call themselves Cupcake Queens who are obsessed with cupcakes. They are from Weymouth, MA and are hoping to open a shop soon.



As I mentioned, Cupcake Mojo is a family operation. Even their name has some meaning. The initials CM for Cupcake Mojo just happen to be the same as their names, Christina and Maureen. CM supports local events and charities in need and love the joy baking cupcakes brings to people.



I had the opportunity to taste some of their cupcakes. Maureen dropped off some of the Strawberry Margarita and Nana's Whoopie Cakes. Be sure to check out their extensive list of flavors on their website.



The cupcakes came in a white bag with a Cupcake Mojo sticker on it. The handles were tied together with a few pieces of different colored ribbon. I was impressed with the packaging. Once I took the cupcake containers out of the bag, I found two clear plastic containers of 6 cupcakes each. Each container was sealed with another Cupcake Mojo sticker. I like the clear containers because you can see what you're getting in to.



My mom and I headed out to dinner shortly after Maureen dropped off the cupcakes. We didn't end up tasting the cupcakes until the next day. Since the cupcakes sat out on the counter, the strawberry margarita frosting melted a little bit. It was still delicious.



My mom and I sat down to try the cupcakes and we were both really impressed. The strawberry margarita cupcake definitely tasted like a margarita. The frosting was great. I could have just eaten that frosting with a spoon!



The Nana's whoopie cake had a LOT of frosting on top of a fluffy chocolate cupcake. It was also really tasty.



Cupcake Mojo is growing and will cater to specific needs. Check them out at www.cupcakemojo.com, on Twitter @cupcakeMoJo, or on Facebook. Be sure to check them out at Cupcake Camp on April 13th.

King Arthur Flour and Lovin' Spoonfuls, Two Great Partnerships

We are very pleased to announce that this year CupcakeCamp Boston is partnering with two wonderful organizations. First, are thrilled to have King Arthur Flour as the official sponsor of CupcakeCamp Boston 2011. Any home baker will recognize King Arthur Flour as the gold standard when it comes to not just flours but just about any ingredient needed for baking. King Arthur Flour is deeply rooted in New England culture and we could not ask for a better partner. King Arthur Flour will be on hand at the event with tips, treats and prizes. You can look forward to a guest post next week from the folks at King Arthur with more details about the company and what you can expect from them at CupcakeCamp.

And because we are all about giving back, all proceeds from the event will benefit Lovin' Spoonfuls, an organization that works to collect unused food from Boston restaurants and grocery stores and deliver it to people in need. While CupcakeCamp is a free event, we are asking every attendee to donate $5 to be given to Lovin' Spoonfuls. CupcakeCamp is committed to supporting Lovin' Spoonfuls in its mission to eradicate hunger in Massachusetts.

Meet the Bakers: Mix Bakery

A little over a year ago when planning the first CupcakeCamp, I discovered a Boston-based business called Mix Bakery. The creator of Mix Bakery, Kelly, enthusiastically replied that she'd be happy to come, and showed up at the event with the most amazing vanilla cupcakes and s'mores cupcakes. Throughout the year, I've been able to sample more Mix Bakery creations at birthday celebrations and events and each time I try them serves to reaffirm that these are some of the best cupcakes in Boston.

For Kelly's Meet the Baker profile, I thought it would be fun to take a peek behind the scenes and see what goes into making these much-loved cupcakes. I was thrilled when Kelly agreed to have me spend a morning baking up some cupcakes in her kitchen.

Kelly's classic varieties are delicious, but one my favorites that she makes is the s'mores cupcake, and she set about making that one first. One of the primary reasons I am so obsessed with the s'mores cupcake is because it has a graham cracker crumb crust. Graham cracker crust are one of the best dessert components ever created, and adding one to a cupcake is sheer genius.

Kelly whipped up a chocolate cake batter to go on top of the graham cracker crust and put these cupcakes in to bake. While the cupcakes baked, we moved on to more fun projects...

Frosting. In addition the s'mores, Kelly had on her agenda the peanut butter cup cupcake and a chocolate cupcake with salted caramel buttercream. Kelly and I share an intense love for caramel, especially salted caramel. Kelly had prepared a salted caramel sauce earlier in the morning so that it had time to cool. She added the caramel to a traditional buttercream mixture to make the caramel frosting. I probably could have eaten a bowl full of this frosting. I may or may not have.

Throughout the morning, I learned several things about Kelly's recipes, techniques and ingredients. One particularly fun fact: Kelly purchases whole vanilla beans in bulk and makes her own vanilla extract. Any baker will know that vanilla is an essential ingredient, and not just in vanilla-flavored desserts. It is small touches like these that make a significant difference in the final product.

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After the cupcakes had cooled, we got to work assembling the three different kinds, but not before having a little fun with experimentation. I was curious about filling the cupcakes with caramel.

This was a beautiful sight to behold. We filled two cupcakes with the caramel sauce and topped one with the caramel buttercream and one with the fluff frosting that tops the s'mores cupcakes. Verdict? The one topped with caramel buttercream was, dare I say, caramel overload. The one topped with fluff frosting though was delightful.

Don't think that this experimentation is exclusive to those who visit her kitchen. Kelly will make pretty much any confection you request, though I would say it is wise to stick with the prescribed varieties. Kelly has worked to perfect them and it shows. The cake itself is wonderful--chocolatey but not intense. It is incredibly moist and is one of the few chocolate cakes that was moist and flavorful enough that I would happily eat it on its own.

We did indulge in one more curiosity. When you have fluff frosting and peanut butter frosting, what logically follows but... a Fluffernutter! This one did not disappoint.

The final product: s'mores, peanut butter cup, and salted caramel topped chocolate cupcakes.

If you live in Boston and are in need of cupcakes, or are just struck with a craving, I cannot recommend Mix Bakery highly enough. I have loved every cake and frosting combination I have tried. What's more, Kelly is happy to deliver any order placed. I dream of the day when Mix Bakery has its own shop and I can pop in for a cupcake any time I like. Until then, I will wait patiently (or not so patiently) and order from Kelly at every possible opportunity. Whether you already know the fabulousness that is Mix Bakery or you have yet to have the pleasure, you will get to enjoy them in less than a month at CupcakeCamp.

Mix Bakery
http://www.mixbakeryboston.com/