Cupcake Coma

While I have long heard of the fabled cupcake coma – a woozy exhaustion that is provoked by over indulgence in sugary sweet delight – I never believed it to be true. I love cupcakes, and I especially love the sweet sugary rush one gets from each soft bite. How could a cute dainty cake put one into a saccharine induced swoon? After four bakeshops and four large cupcakes lathered with heaping mounds of frosting, the cupcake coma came over me.

I was fortunate enough to be invited by the lovely TaraMetBlog to the Chevy-sponsored Best of Cupcakes Los Angeles Tour. Our small group of eager cupcake enthusiasts was chauffeured by Chevy around LA to the city’s finest cupcakeries. It was a cupcake throwdown.

First stop: Crumbs Bakeshop in Beverly Hills. Of the unbelievably large and imaginative cupcake flavor selection, I chose the Pistachio cupcake. The cake was moist and spongy with the perfect amount of frosting. The frosting was just sweet enough and coated with chopped pistachios. I am not a frosting fan and I generally avoid the stuff but I ate this cupcake in its entirety.

For bakeshop number two we walked down the street to the well-known Sprinkles. Here I tried the classic Red Velvet. I thought the cake was firm yet moist, but the frosting was thick and overly sweet. As far as frosting goes, these are the reasons I avoid it.

Destination three was SusieCakes in Brentwood. SusieCakes is known for its Strawberry cupcake, which Martha Stewart gushes over. I had to try the Strawberry, but I also could not pass up their seasonal Gingerbread cupcake. By now I was starting to understand the causes of the cupcake coma.

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The Strawberry cupcake was amazing. The cake was flavorful, but the strawberry frosting was mind altering. In the most complementary way, it tasted like a cake version of a pink starburst.

The Gingerbread cupcake with cream cheese frosting took the cake! It perfectly captured the season. With spicy and warm flavors slathered with a silky rich frosting, it was my favorite by far of the cupcake tour.

Last stop was Vanilla Bakeshop in Santa Monica. At this point I was quickly fading into sugary heaven and I needed something to captivate me. Vanilla Bakeshop did not meet the challenge. I gave the cupcakes a cursory glance and was quickly taken by the beautiful Key Lime Cupcake. Unfortunately it was cold, dry, and tasted like a refrigerator. It didn’t help that the staff (especially the manager) were rude and unwelcoming. With the exception of our last stop, this was one tasty tour.

By the end of the cupcake tour I was gorged on sweets and ready for a nap.

http://www.carolineoncrack.com/2009/12/15/best-of-la-cupcakes-tour-with-bloggers-and-chevy/

http://www.happygomarni.com/2009/12/scavenging-los-angeles-cupcakeries-in.html

http://www.tarametblog.com/2009/12/best-of-la-cupcakes-tour-with-chevy.html