For Bourdain Day, I wondered which cakes or desserts he favored. “Anthony Bourdain Is Not a Fan of Dessert,” the Internet told me. Buzzkill. Is it true? I did more research and read some books. My purpose was to bake something reflecting his tastes as a way to interweave the substantive and the bittersweet. One… Continue reading Parts unfulfilled

The Hostess company is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. It introduced the swirly cupcakes in its first year, so they are also reaching the century mark. Source: Hoboken Historical Museum, which helpfully reprints the ad’s body text. The national #HostessSweetennial tour came to D.C. earlier this week. It was a modern affair with photogenic… Continue reading Hostess cupcake turns 100

The calendar is such great inspiration. It focuses and structures my curriculum and directs my attention to occasions that demand immediate study. The never-ending homework assignments are sweet. It’s Easter and Passover. What’s for dessert? I like the style of this Easter bunny. The tuxedo color scheme suits my cupcakology theme this year, Cupcakes and… Continue reading Holiday baking

Endorsing this message without apology. Both the sentiment and medium epitomize my designation of 2019 as Year of Cupcakes and Formal Intention. Bonus: my purchase was partially charitable. https://www.instagram.com/p/BumCaG7gewg/

Orange root vegetables are my good luck charms. The first cake I ever baked was carrot. Not knowing what I was doing, I attentively followed the recipe and baked a spell-binding success. Carrots have assumed iconic status in my home baking trajectory. This week, I used National Cook a Sweet Potato Day as an excuse… Continue reading Lucky orange

I adore carrot cake. That’s sufficient reason to get wildly excited about today’s National Carrot Cake Day. But it also compels a trip down memory lane because many of my baking milestones involve carrot cake. It was the first cake I ever made. I had no idea what I was doing or how the cake… Continue reading When carrots carry history

Today’s National Gluten-Free Day made me think about the gluten-free cupcakes I’ve met. Here’s my collection for the record. The last two cupcakes are from my November 2018 field research trip to Long Island. I went to Huntington, N.Y., to investigate the Frenagel and naturally studied local cupcakes, too.

2019 is the year everything shifts. There’s no telling exactly what the future holds, but it is premised on an attitude of formal intention. What lies ahead is hazily, blindingly brilliant. It is dressed for success in a manner that ties it all together. And it is rooted in faith. https://www.facebook.com/JenSincero/posts/1603082286396690

People eat cupcakes for psychological and symbolic reasons. Baking, too, has an element of comforting escapism. Here’s a deeper look at the concept of #procrastibaking. https://twitter.com/amandamull/status/1075037328446504965

You eat lemon cupcakes. It’s inconclusive whether today is National Cupcake Day or National Lemon Cupcake Day or both. What to do? When in doubt, celebrate both. Good thing I’m diligent about cupcake research. If I weren’t in the habit of going to my core bakeries so obsessively, I may have missed the window to… Continue reading When the food calendar gives you lemons …

Today’s National Cake Day coincides with my one-year anniversary as a home baker. Thanksgiving 2017 is when I bought my first stand mixer and gave baking a whirl. Stunned by my rookie success, I’m delighted to continue my education. I bake for myself to learn. I’m usually not feeding other people. What I bake doesn’t… Continue reading A year of baking

There’s a cupcakey celebration for today’s World Pasta Day. https://www.instagram.com/p/BpXQlzdgiQz For the previous National Pasta Day, I made cacio e pepe, once again proving I sometimes eat savory food. https://www.instagram.com/p/BpCwX_Jhrji