You’ve probably seen them around South Austin – large murals covering sides of buildings depicting Sailor Jerry, his artwork, and bottles of rum. The latest is at the corner of Lamar and Oltorf. So what’s the deal?

It’s Sailor Jerry Day! For those of you who did not know, yes, Sailor Jerry was an actual person: Norman Collins. He was one of the pioneers of modern day tattooing and mentor to several well-known tattoo artists, including Don Ed Hardy, Mike Malone, and Zeke Owen.

Collins was also the inspriation behind the Sailor Jerry rum brand – and if you have ever tried it, you will understand why. It tastes like something an old sailor would create – spicy, a little sweet, potent.

On June 13 & 14, Sailor Jerry rum will play homage to Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins with a series of public screenings of the award-winning documentary, Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry: The Life and Times of Norman Keith Collins, written and directed by Erich Weiss.

Your friendly neighborhood Tasting Buds recently attended a Sailor Jerry event at local hot dog haven, Frank. We were treated to Sailor Jerry cocktails, including the Perfect Storm, which was a very potent, tangy, slightly bitter concoction. After a couple of Storms, I was ready to watch the film and learn more about the man and his art.

Luckily, my tablemate to the right was the director himself, Erich Weiss. He sipped a michelada and gave us the director’s commentary to what he called the “cliff’s notes” version of the documentary. He took us on a journey through Honolulu’s gritty, drunken Chinatown circa the 1960s, introducing us to the main characters that helped shape the world of modern tattooing.

Poutine and Cheese Fries at Frank

Between the on-screen anecdotes of Collins and company, and the litany of well-informed side notes from Weiss, I felt both disquieted and enamored. These figures were irreverent to everything else but their art, and I have to respect that.

Learn more about the world of Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins in the full screening of Weiss’s documentary. The screenings will take place at Alamo Drafthouse South and are free for the public, but you must RSVP at http://horismokumovie.com/austin_screening/

Cheers,
Kristina

Last September, Peter and I attended the Franklin BBQ preview party (see Backyard Eats post). The tasty bbq and fun, backyard atmosphere won us over immediately. Since they had their grand opening in December, we decided to return to see how things were going.

We arrived well before noon, and several of the picnic tables were already occupied with an early lunch crowd. The menu is perfectly simple: sandwiches, sides a la carte, and for heftier appetites, plates with your choice of meat, a side, and bread. Drinks include Sweet Leaf Tea, soft drinks and bottled water stored in a very cool vintage ice box.

I opted for the brisket sandwich, a potato salad side, and an ice-cold Topo Chico. For about $10 I got a full meal – a steal for a high quality lunch. The sandwich was heavy with thick slices of moist, flavorful brisket, and the espresso infused bbq sauce was the perfect complement.

Peter got the pulled pork sandwich, the pork is delicious as we mentioned in our previous post.

Next time he wants to try the Tipsy Texan Sandwich (half chopped beef, half sausage) – named after none other than the Tipsy Texan himself, David Allen (who happened to be at Franklin BBQ the same day we were).

As we ate, the lunch-time line continued to grow, and owner Aaron Franklin was behind the counter furiously working to keep up with customer orders. Once the rush was over, I got to chat with Aaron for a few minutes. He said business is booming, especially during lunch, and he usually sells out of everything by closing time at 4pm. Get there early if you want to pick up some plates for dinner!

Check their website for hours and directions: http://www.franklinbarbecue.com/

Many of you got to check out Franklin BBQ on the recent Trailer Tour – Let us know what you thought about it in the comments!

Happy tasting,
Kristina + Peter

• Turkey Treats by Kaetlan

As the Tasting Bud who claims not to cook, I surprised everyone last Thanksgiving when I volunteered to bring a side dish to the feast. We were expecting more than 30 family members and friends, so I had to come up with something good. I thought about three of the essential food groups: carbs, cheese, and bacon. You really can’t go wrong with that combination, so I opted to make macaroni and cheese. I can, however, tell you a little about my process.

• Butternut Squash Bake by Kristina

I had never made it before, so I scoured the internet looking for a recipe. I looked at about a million recipes, and in the end, created my own recipe for macaroni & cheese made with four cheeses and topped with bacon. It was a heart-wrenching process, which resulted in one tossed out batch of cheese sauce, two oven burns, and a myriad new phrases comprised of colorful expletives. The dish was a hit, and only a small serving survived the Thanksgiving feeding frenzy.

Before I recount my Thanksgiving Day task, I have to thank my lovely sister-in-law, Sondra, for helping me avoid the grocery store headache altogether. She went ahead and picked up everything I needed while she was purchasing her Thanksgiving Day necessities. And yes, I did reimburse her.

I had never worked with butternut squash before, but luckily, my mom was on hand Wednesday night to help me peel and cube the gourds. The next morning, I looked over the recipe as I drank coffee and thought, “Ok, this is easy. Time for laundry.” I put the squash (tossed in olive oil and lightly salted) to roast in the oven, and then I took a couple of loads of laundry down to the laundry room. This really was a rare exhibit of domesticity on my part. After a quick shower, I checked on my squash, which was happily roasting away.

I prepared the next few steps of the recipe and went back downstairs to put my laundry to dry. When I came back to my kitchen, the squash was ready and it was time to put the whole thing together. The next 20 minutes went by in a blur of scallions, butter, cheese, and bread crumbs.

The completed dish was finally in the oven to finish baking, and I stood back to assess the damage. My tiny apartment kitchen had random bits of parsley scattered about. I had managed to get mascarpone on the stove, floor, and wall. I even found some bread crumbs on the vent hood. I’m not sure how they got there. Oh, and I successfully sliced open a finger while dicing scallions.

• Thanksgiving Feast by Tasting Buds

The result was a tasty dish that did not survive Thanksgiving 2009 – not even a bread crumb – so I would call it a great success. More importantly, I learned a very important lesson: always, always prep before you start cooking. Don’t wait until you need to sauté the scallions before dicing them. Don’t try to chop parsley while you’re trying not to burn butter. And definitely don’t get distracted by an email notification while wielding a very sharp knife.

Will I ever regress back to my bag o’ salad? Maybe someday. In the meantime, I’ve discovered that I actually like cooking, so you may see the occasional recipe posted in the future by this Tasting Bud.

Happy holidays!
Kristina

Last month, I had a serendipitous meeting while I was at Owl Tree Roasting for a chat with proprietor, Travis Kizer. (Stay tuned for that post soon!) As I was leaving the Owl Tree building, I noticed a flurry of activity in the back lot.  A couple of people were raking leaves, moving rocks, and clearing weeds from the fence line. Travis took me over to meet Aaron and Stacy Franklin, who were prepping the lot for their new business: Franklin BBQ. The newest among trailer eateries, their concept is simple – fresh BBQ served in a laid back, family friendly atmosphere.

UPDATE (12-2-2009): Franklin BBQ is now officially open for business! Please visit their website at franklinbarbecue.com for more information, or check out their Grand Opening on Sunday, December 6th.

When Peter and I walked up to the Franklin BBQ preview party last weekend, I was delighted with what I saw. The lot, which had looked like a construction site on my first visit, had been transformed into a cute backyard with picnic tables, small paper lanterns, and shade trees. The recently renovated trailer stood in front of a gigantic BBQ pit/smoker.  We each got a beer from the keg, and Peter returned from the trailer with an overflowing tray that we shared among friends.

Here are some of our tasting notes:

Sausage – We both agreed that it tasted hand made – not dense and super firm like other more processed brands.  It had a wonderful strong flavor.

Brisket – It was absolutely delicious – tender with a nice flavor. We speculated that it might be grass fed beef. The burnt edges were great, but sometimes they were a little too burnt for Peter’s tastes. I say, bring on the burnt edges!

Pulled pork – Peter says: probably my favorite thing besides the sausage. It’s hard to get pulled pork in Texas, but this seems to be the real deal. I totally agree. It was delicious when still warm – tender and packed with flavor, and it went great with each of the BBQ sauces. Peter felt it was not as flavorful when cold.

Three BBQ sauces – Sweet sauce: very good, probably vinegar based, and not too overpowering; Pork sauce: Peter’s favorite with the pulled pork; Espresso sauce:  just a hint of coffee flavor to accent the meat – my favorite.

Sides – Cole slaw: Peter thought it was pretty good, but nothing super special. I’m a fan of vinegar based cole slaw vs. mayonnaise based slaw, so I enjoyed it. Potato salad: We both agreed it was good but not spectacular.

Franklin BBQ is set to open in October, and I can see it becoming a favorite lunch time spot. We will be back with some updates on the full menu, pricing, and hours of operation.

Cheers!
Kristina

Over the years, our tailgate has evolved from a few people huddled around a BBQ pit to an organized event with planned menus, live music, and our own social network. The catalyst to this type of planning was, of course, food. Our tailgate started out as a “bring what you want, we have a grill” free-for-all. Inevitably, we would end up with a copious amount of meat products and beer, and not much else.  After one too many Saturday afternoons ending with a fight over the last tortilla – the loser dejectedly eating fajitas with his or her fingers – we’d had enough.

These days we are a well oiled machine.  Last year’s tailgate season menu included a margarita machine, homemade chili, kegs from NXNW, spicy hot wings, mimosas, smoky ribs, Bailey’s & coffee, and various pastas, salads, and  baked goods. We even created our own team koozie. (see our logo below)

The 2009 football season began a couple of weeks ago, but the planning started mid-summer. One of our tech minded teammates set up a social networking site where we can discuss menus, talk trash, and post photos.  And occasionally discuss the actual football games.  This has become the virtual home of our community, where we keep in touch on non-home game weeks. Visit us here: http://uthookem.ning.com

The menu for the first tailgate was pretty standard: various meats on a grill. The day started off with mimosas and breakfast tacos for the early birds and proceeded to beer, fajitas, hot wings, rum & coke, pasta salad, and longhorn shaped cookies. By game time, we had grilled everything from veggie burgers to pork ribs, consumed enough beer to quench the thirst of a small country, and had sung almost every Beatles song at the top of our lungs.  I’d say our first tailgate was a big success!

As we look forward to the rest of the season, my thoughts are on homemade chili & cornbread, chicken & waffles, and some surprise appearances from local musicians.  We will, of course, post photos and recipes.

Hook em!
Kristina

This post is courtesy of our great friend and Blogger Jeaneane McNulty from j9online!

Sometime around late July/early August, my garden gets unruly. It’s getting enough water (thanks to my handy-dandy timer-controlled drip irrigation system), an abundance of sunshine, and not enough human attention, so the things that like it hot start to get a little, um, “frisky”. One day, I noticed a pile of very ripe tomatoes where my countertop used to reside. Curious, I ventured out of the AC to check on the growing things and - gasp - the basil is bolting! The eggplant has suddenly produced a dozen ripe fruits! A mega-squash is visibly lengthening on the vine and the bell peppers, while copious, are tiny from overcrowding.

Folks, it’s time to stop the madness and make some marinara!

Now, you may be saying to yourself, “but I don’t have a garden” or “it’s 102 degrees outside, my garden died weeks ago” or “I only have one ripe tomato”. Lucky for all of us, gardeners far more talented and better equipped will experience this same late summer veggie boom, and they will have so much produce they’ll want to sell it on the cheap. These expert gardeners are also known as “farmers” and can be found at your local Farmer’s Market. When you notice the original prices have been crossed out and lowered, that’s your cue to chat up your farmer for the best deals. Stock up on some farm fresh veggies and make yourself some SAUCE! I guarantee it will beat the socks off of anything you can buy at the store.

Here’s the Marinara recipe I use, with a list of possible “after-market modifications”. Today, I made it as a “primavera” sauce using eggplant, squash, carrots, sweet onion and bell peppers. It yielded 18 cups of sauce, enough for about six or seven meals.

Fresh Tomato Marinara Ingredients List

Preparation steps:

The “Mods”: Mix and match any of the following to suit your individual taste. Add after the basic marinara has simmered 1-2 hours. Veggies such as squash, carrots, peppers, onion can be finely shredded and added raw (easier prep and great for sneaking veggies to your kid) or you can sauté larger pieces in olive oil until soft before adding to the sauce for a chunkier texture.

Further tomato musings:

When it comes to marinara, I personally don’t have a preference for a particular tomato. I’ve used all-purpose tomatoes, such as Better Boys, Celebrities, Early Girls, with equally tasty results as Romas (billed as “THE” sauce/paste tomato). If the tomato tastes GOOD, e.g., not like a store-bought tomato, so will the sauce. If you are into growing your own tomatoes, and you want to make marinara – or put them up in some other form such as salsa, sun-dried tomatoes, canned, etc. – look for “determinate” plants. They ripen all their fruit at the same time, give or take a couple weeks, so you’ll have a big harvest all at once. Indeterminant varieties are great for fresh eating; they’ll give you a few at a time all season long to use in your day-to-day cooking. I love cherry tomatoes as an indeterminate for snacking on while I’m tending the garden!

• Trinchero Cabernet Sauvignon

 For as long as I can remember, I have been more than willing to try any food, and really, any drink, at least once.  After all, isn’t a sense of culinary adventure the key ingredient to being a foodie?  Part of my adventurous nature is inherited from my Mexican lineage – memories of my childhood include pig slaughters, fish frys, and barbacoa for Sunday breakfast.  The other side is continually nurtured by wonderful people I meet along the path of food discovery – a motley crew of cooks, mixologists, and people who just love to eat.  Mollejas (sweetbreads)? Sure. Chicken liver pate? Bring it on. Duck rillette? Um…do you really have to ask?

I first visited Parkside a couple of months ago for my birthday dinner with my brother and sister-in-law.  As we walked into the dining room, I was delighted by the unpretentious atmosphere, the austere, yet beautiful, décor – and the sound of My Morning Jacket floating from the speakers overhead!  We ordered a Trinchero Cabernet and excitedly discussed what we would each order and what we would share.

We started with the Blond Pate served with finely diced strawberries and crostinis.  For some, the taste of chicken liver might be more of an acquired taste than duck liver, but the smooth texture and liver flavor was fantastic when paired with the sweet strawberries and light, crispy crostinis.  Next up was the sliced veal tongue topped with perfectly breaded, fried sweetbreads.  I only have one word to sum up this dish: EXCELLENT.

As the three of us were fighting over the last nugget of sweetbread, the very gracious manager brought us a plate of fritters to apologize for the long wait for our meal.  We actually hadn’t noticed, as our attention was consumed by wine, food, and conversation.  The crab meat and puff dough fritters served with fresh herbs were crispy on the outside, flavorful and airy on the inside.

The final two plates we shared before our entrees included a butter lettuce salad served with thick, fatty cubes of bacon, which provided a nice contrast to the sweet and creamy lettuce.  We also got a taste of the raw bar: delicate slices of bass topped with lime and jalapeno served over fresh avocado slices. The light and savory dish made me want to come back just for the raw bar.

Our entrees were delivered soon after ordering our second bottle of wine, and I had the scallops with porcini mushrooms and potato risotto.  After having disappointing scallop dishes at other restaurants, I was impressed by these perfectly prepared scallops, which retained their full flavor and delicate texture.  We also ordered several sides to be shared by all of us.  The ratatouille was perfectly seasoned and garlicky, with the fresh flavor of each vegetable in each bite.  The white mac & cheese with gruyere and white cheddar and the lightly breaded fried okra with ranch dip were fantastic takes on some of my favorite comfort food.

After a couple of hours, we left Parkside full and happy – a great meal to celebrate the start of my new year.

We returned to Parkside with a few friends a couple of weeks ago and ordered a variety of starters for the table.  To our disappointment, some of the dishes we loved the first time were just mediocre this time.  The biggest inconsistency was in the ratatouille, which was simply not as flavorful, and we could tell by the cut of the vegetables that it was prepared by a different cook. The service was equally inconsistent, which could be attributed to a busy Saturday night, whereas our first time at Parkside was on a not so busy Tuesday night.

Despite our somewhat disappointing last trip, I will definitely return to Parkside soon to delve into the raw bar and to try the seasonal items Chef Shawn Cirkel will add to his already fabulous menu.

Cheers!
Kristina

One of my friends recently posted the following on his Facebook status: Prosecco is the new Rosé.  While I love this sparkling Italian wine, and drink it quite often, I can’t imagine it will ever fully replace the rosé.  Rosés are among the Fooding bloggers’ favorite summer wines, and we have featured several in Jon’s Random Wine Wednesday posts.  Incidentally, Jon took a short hiatus from writing while he prepared for final exams, but Random Wine Wednesdays will return next week.

So what happens when our resident wine geek is swamped with grad school finals?  Well, he sends a couple of stand-ins to the Chrontourage** Rosé tasting event and hopes for the best. Peter and I were absolutely happy to comply, and just one look at our score card (pictured above) will show you how much fun we had with this assignment.  I had two things in mind as we tasted each wine: whether I would purchase it and what type of meal it would accompany. Since we shared a score card, the writing is tiny and pretty undecipherable, so see some of our tasting notes below.

1. Segura Viudas Brut Rosé – Spanish Cava; we both loved it and would definitely purchase
2. Chateau de Campuget Rosé – Neither of us were impressed; nothing distinctive about this wine
3. Cruz de Piedra Rosé – This one was ok, but neither would purchase
4. Gran Fuedo Rosé – Strong alcohol aroma; would not purchase
5. Marques de Caceres Rosé – Another one with an alcohol aroma; would not purchase
6. Mulderbosch Rosé – a Fooding blog favorite; would definitely purchase
7. Goats Do Roam Rosé – light and fresh; would purchase
8. Becker Provencal Rosé – Crisp and refreshing, with pear and strawberry notes; would purchase
9. Columbia Crest Two Vines Rosé – I thought it was a little on the sweet side, but Peter said it was well balanced; would purchase
10. Menage A Trois Rosé – another sweet one; would purchase; distinctive berry flavors

The wine tasting occurred just in time to get us through the final stretch of this never ending 100 degree summer.  The very knowledgeable staff at Twin Liquors in the Hancock Center walked us through the tastings, answering questions and providing bits of information we would not have known otherwise.

One final note: Prosecco, I love you, but Rosé will always be my summer fling.

Cheers!
Kristina

** Chrontourage = the Austin Chronicle’s promotions team + fearless leader Logan Youree

Ok, I admit it.  I am a geek.  This fact is evidenced by, but not limited to, the following: I love to watch British Sci-Fi shows like Dr. Who and Torchwood; I recently purchased the original Star Wars soundtrack – on vinyl; I think Joss Whedon is brilliant; and I really wish I had tickets to Comic-Con last weekend. 

My geekiness extends, of course, to my choice in novels, with authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Douglas Adams, and J.K. Rowling occupying prominent places on my bookshelf.  Naturally, I have eagerly awaited the movie version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince pretty much since the book was published.  Having re-read Half-Blood Prince, the story was fresh in my mind, and I was ready to see these beloved characters on screen.  My plan was to see the film in its opening week at Alamo Drafthouse, because – as I’ve mentioned many times before – a pint of beer makes everything better.

I missed the infamous Hobbit Feast which accompanied the Lord of the Rings trilogy, so I was more than thrilled to find out about the Hogwarts Academy Feast to be presented with the screening of Half-Blood Prince.  The five course meal was inspired by the start of term feast enjoyed by Hogwarts students at the beginning of each book.

While I adore Alamo Drafthouse for their admirable beer list and usual fare, I was slightly apprehensive when I saw the menu for the Feast.  I was unsure how a kitchen which always produces such great pizza and fries would handle a terrine.  After a gracious welcome from Chef John Bullington, the room turned dark and our first course arrived.

Course 1:  Chilled Leek Soup paired with Wychwood WychCraft Blonde Beer
Although I am not a fan of chilled soups, the leek soup had a nice flavor and smooth texture.  The winning element of this course, however, was the fantastic WychCraft Blonde beer from the English brewery, Wychwood.  The pale golden blonde, with its fresh citrus aroma and light hop flavor, is my new favorite summer beer.

Course 2:  Cauliflower & Carrot Terrine paired with Fuller’s London Pride Ale
A good terrine, vegetable or meat, can showcase some very complex flavors, and is a welcome addition to any meal.  Unfortunately, the flavors in cauliflower and carrot terrine were overpowered by the mustard vinaigrette.  The vinaigrette was so strong that I could smell the vinegar as the servers walked down the aisles with the dish.  Again, the winning element of this course was the beer accompaniment.

Course 3:  Scallop-Mushroom Pie paired with Step Rd. Black Wing Chardonnay, Barossa
I was pretty excited about this dish after Chef John mentioned the mushrooms: morels and chanterelles.  Because we rarely, if ever, come across fresh morels in Texas, I assumed the chef used dried ones.  They were small but good and complemented the chanterelles nicely.  This dish was a different take on the traditional shepherd’s pie, made with scallops instead of lamb, and topped with mashed potatoes.  Despite the slightly gritty scallops, it was my overall favorite course of the evening.  The wine pairing, however, was less than desirable.  The chardonnay, with its buttery peach and melon tones, was too heavy for a dish with delicate flavors.

Course 4:  Roast Pheasant Supreme paired with Campion Pinot Noir, Los Carneros
The main course held two big highlights for me: the bacon and the wine pairing.  The tender and flavorful roast pheasant was wrapped in bacon, which came from local farmer’s market pork bellies and then cured in-house by Chef John.  It was perfect.  The buttery potato-stilton gratin and savory Cumberland sauce added excellent contrasting flavors.  The other highlight of this course was the Campion Pinot Noir, which perfectly complement the wide range of flavors offered in this dish.  My favorite pinots hail from the Carneros region in California’s North Coast, and this one is at the top of my list.

Course 5:  Bramble-Berry Pudding paired with LoDuca Lambrusco
By the time we got to the last course, I was pretty full, but I’m a big sucker for dessert.  I had never tried an English pudding – which, depending on where you are, could be a variety of different desserts.  This one was stuffed with several types of berries and served with a lavender cream, and it was perfect end to a long, delicious meal.  Although I am not a fan of sweet wines, this lambrusco paired well with the fruity dessert.

The movie itself was great, but I’ll leave the review to the movie critics.  I go to Alamo Drafthouse for the full experience: the funny pre-show entertainment, beer from a local brewery, sharing a big basket of fries with my companions, and of course, a great movie.  Eating in the dark is not a small feat, but I highly recommend the Drafthouse next time you are looking for more than just a night out at the movies.

- Kristina

Why do we love cupcakes?  We’re all adults here at Fooding Blog – for the most part, anyway.  Shouldn’t we be eating grown up desserts like crème brulee or some kind of dowse-with-brandy-and-set-on-fire thing?  Don’t get me wrong: I love a good crème brulee, but it requires a torch and a utensil.

Cupcakes, however, remind us that it’s ok to feel like we did as kids, when dessert was fun and gooey and colorful.  They remind us it’s ok to eat with our hands and get a little frosting on our chins and maybe on our shirts too.  Cupcakes remind us that desserts don’t always require an open flame.

This weekend, we decided to embrace our inner child and search for the best cupcake in Austin.  After a quick lunch on South Congress, each blogger set out to his or her assigned bakery specializing solely in cupcakes.*  The mission: purchase one chocolate and one vanilla cupcake and return to our specified rendezvous point.

• Hey Cupcake Trailer

Since the blazing heat has yet to really settle in for the summer, we opted for a cupcake picnic under a tree on the Capitol grounds.  There among the families on field trips, a quincienera on a photo shoot, and the occasional squirrel, we divided each cupcake and rated the pre-determined factors on a scale of 1-5 (1=bad, 5=excellent).  See our rating grid below, which shows the average score of each cupcake from the following bakeries: Hey Cupcake!, Sugar Mama’s Bakeshop, Polkadots, and Delish.

And the winner is: Sugar Mama’s Bakeshop!!

Overall Rankings:
#1  Sugar Mama’s Bakeshop – The vanilla and chocolate cakes were dense and sweet with a nice flavor, and the frosting is sweet, but not too sweet. Smallest size cupcake.

#2  Polkadots Cupcake Factory - The vanilla cake was not very flavorful, but the chocolate cake was moist and had a nice flavor. The jury is out on the light, whipped cream-like frosting: a couple of bloggers liked it, while others did not. This was one of the larger size cupcakes.

#3  Delish – The vanilla cake was moist and flavorful, while the chocolate cake was slightly dry and crumbly. The frosting was entirely too sweet, but I gave the glittery chocolate frosting an extra point for being fabulous. This was one of the smaller size cupcakes.

#4  Hey Cupcake! – The big surprise was that these cupcakes, from arguably the most popular shop in Austin, came in last place. The vanilla cake was dry, but the chocolate cake was moist and flavorful.  The frosting on both cupcakes tasted like it came out of one of those little tubs you can buy at the supermarket.  This was the largest of all of the cupcakes.

• Polkadots Cupcake Factory

We enthusiastically encourage our readers to conduct their own comparisons. The sugar high is excellent – the crash is not so excellent – and we would love to hear your opinion.

Happy cupcake-ing!
Kristina

* We were not solicited in any way by the bakeries, and we purchased all of the cupcakes.

Photos taken by and Copyright Peter Tsai