Carb Lover's Delight: Golden Crown Panaderia, Albuquerque

When I tell you about Golden Crown Panaderia in Albuquerque, it's probably going to sound strange. 

You see, from the best I can tell, they have four specialties there: 

1. Empanadas

2. Biscochitos

3. Bread

4. Pizza

Yep. Empanadas and biscochitos, okay. Bread...all right. The pizza is a little bit of a curveball. And yes, in case you're wondering, they do have other stuff--like mexican wedding cake cookies and a variety of other pastries. Here's there menu so you can ogle. But we zeroed in on the stuff that we were told was the best.

Now, I don't know about you, but I might not have high hopes for, say, the pizza at such an establishment. But the most incredible thing is that they do all of four things things amazingly well. 

But since this is a dessert and baked goods site, I am going to assure you that the pizza is well worth a try and start talking about the sweets now, ok?

First, the biscochitos. We were extremely delighted when, upon entering the bakery, the employee just gave us each a biscochito. If you've never tried one, they're a flaky, almost pie crust-esque spiced cookie, often made with lard, which is the official State cookie of New Mexico. Their biscochitos were perfect.

They simply crumbled into a sweet, melty oblivion in your mouth, and the lightly crunchy dusting of sugar and spice was gentle, not overpowering, letting the flavor of the rich but slight cookie shine. 

Now, I should tell you for future reference that if you ever buy biscochitos, you must eat them immediately. It's not that they won't keep, but they will crumble. I have purchased biscochitos before and taken a short walk with them and somehow they've turned into a pile of crumbs. Be warned.

Next up were the empanadas. We got apricot and cherry. They have a number of flavors, though--raspberry, apple, lemon, et cetera. Nothing crazy, but a nice variety of flavor options.

The fillings were OK. Like, serviceable. But sort of along the lines of one of those TastyKake hand pies. Fancier of course, but still of that ilk. The apricot tasted better than the cherry, we thought. But either way, the fillings are really just an excuse to have something to wrap the crust around.

But dudes, dudettes, the crust. The crust was similar to the texture of the biscochitos, making me wonder if it was a biscochito crust or perhaps just a lightly doctored biscochito dough altered for a sturdier texture. Like the cookies, they were dusted with sugar and spice. The crust was perfect. It was flaky, lightly nutty (perhaps owing to the spice?) and like the biscochitos, just melted in your mouth. This is the type of crust you're willing to travel for. 

Get yourself to the Golden Crown. I think you'll enjoy their crust quite a bit, be it on an empanada or a pizza.

Golden Crown Panaderia, 1103 Mountain Road, Albuquerque NM. Online here.

New Orleans Bread Pudding: Palace Cafe Recipe

I like bread pudding. But usually, "like" is about as far as my affection goes. I like it. I'll eat it. But I'm never like "yeah! Bread pudding!" and happy dancing about it or anything.

That changed when I tried bread pudding in New Orleans. I said to myself, "they get it here, man. They really get it." The texture is not so much like custardy, soaked bread as it is like velvet. It's so smooth. And they put this sauce on it which is as addictive as I imagine crystal meth to be. At just about every establishment at which I sampled bread pudding in New Orleans, it was one of those situations where I was like "OK, I'll have a bite" and then ended up eating the whole thing and scraping the spoon on the bottom wanting more. 

Upon inspection of a variety of recipes and talking to bakers from the area, I think I've pretty much figured out the secrets behind the bread pudding success in New Orleans: they basically double the butter, cream, and eggs, and add booze besides. And the results are stellar.

I'd like to try as many of these New Orleans bread pudding recipes as I can. Will you taste along with me? 

First up is the White Chocolate Bread Pudding from the Palace Cafe. It's owned by Dickie Brennan, a famed restaurateur in the area. 

This recipe intrigued me, quite frankly, because I had a lot of white chocolate on hand. 

I'll tell the truth: I made some changes. First, I halved the original recipe. I just didn't have 15 eggs on hand, and it seemed like it would make more bread pudding than two people needed in my household. 

Halved, the recipe worked great. The texture is like butter. It's so soft, and so moist, it practically oozes like a tres leches cake.

This is probably owing to the glaze. It seems like an obscene amount of liquid at first, but somehow the bread pudding absorbs it all. The white chocolate tastes wonderful with the dash of bourbon I took the liberty of adding to the recipe. Actually, after a few bites, everything in the world looks glorious.

White Chocolate Bread Pudding

Adapted from Palace Cafe: The Flavor of New Orleans - printable version here

6 servings

• 1 loaf French bread (you are not going to use the whole thing, but have it on hand)
• 3 cups whipping cream
• 1 cups milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 10 ounces white chocolate, chopped (or use chips)
• 2 whole eggs
• 7 egg yolks
• A rather generous glug of bourbon

White Chocolate Sauce

• 8 ounces white chocolate (broken into small pieces)
• 1 1/2 cups milk

Procedure

1. Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes. Divide it in half--you'll definitely use half, and you might use some of the rest of the cubes. If you don't, you can make croutons, yo. Place the half you're using in a large bowl. Set to the side.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13-inch pan. Set to the side.
3. In a large saucepan, heat the whipping cream, milk, and sugar over medium heat. Dash in the salt. When hot, take off the heat and add the white chocolate pieces; stir until melted.
4. Combine the whole eggs and egg yolks in a large bowl. Slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the eggs in a steady stream, whipping the eggs as you pour. If you wanna, add that glug of bourbon now. 
5. Add the mixture to the bowl with the bread pieces.
6. If the bread is positively swimming, add some more bread until the bread is covered, but not by much.

7. Feeling good? Now, transfer it to the prepared pan. The cubes of bread will poke up but it's really liquid-y.
8. Using a spatula press down the bread so everything is absolutely saturated.

9. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until set and golden on top. You don't want brown, just lightly golden. 
10. While it bakes, prepare the sauce. Bring the milk to a boil in a small sauce pan. Take off the heat and add white chocolate; stir until smooth and completely melted. It's going to be a fairly liquid sauce. Pour over the bread pudding right when it comes out of the oven. It may look like an obscene amount of liquid but the bread pudding will absorb it.
11. Let cool and enjoy. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2 days.

CakeSpy for Craftsy: How to make a Cookie Crumb Pie Crust

A cookie crumb pie crust is an easy alternative to a traditional pie crust. A simple concoction made using finely crushed cookies, which add a pleasing texture -- not to mention a delicious taste -- to all sorts of pies. They are particularly popular when paired with cream or custard fillings.

What is a cookie crust? It's a simple pie or pastry crust made with finely crushed cookies. Sometimes they include sugar for added sweetness, or melted butter, which acts as a binder to hold the crumbs together.

Why make a cookie crust? There are a few good reasons to use a cookie crust. One is flavor: the cookies will impart a pleasing flavor that will complement many pie fillings. Another is texture. Some smooth and creamy fillings will benefit from the light crunch of cookie crumbs, which will add a pleasant contrast. The texture isn't only pleasant in terms of taste, though. It is also good for the keeping quality of certain pies. Certain pie fillings (especially cream or curd based ones) can make a typical butter crust soggy rather rapidly, even if it is prebaked. The cookie crust will retain a crunch much longer.

Visit Craftsy to check out my primer on the hows and whys of this delicious baking base, along with a tutorial and recipe.

Czech Yourself: Kenner's Kolaches, Arlington, TX

Recently, I drove from Santa Fe, New Mexico to New Orleans, Louisiana. Let me tell you what I saw on this trip. I saw Texas, and lots of it.

And in case you didn't know it, when you cross the border into Texas, you are entering Kolache Country.

In case you've never had the pleasure of eating a kolache, or if you don't in fact know what they are, please, allow me to briefly educate you. 

Kolache, which may also be spelled kolace, kolach, or kolacky, is a light, pillowy yeasted pastry which is only lightly sweet, and is filled in the middle with a dollop of any number of different fillings, from poppyseed to apricot to cherry to fig to chocolate or cream cheese. The kolache is Eastern European in descent. I hear that in Europe it originated as a wedding dessert. They traveled to the US with Czech immigrants, who started moving to Texas in a big way in the early to mid 1800s. It seems to have been one of those things where a small group came first and promoted the opportunities stateside in a big way for friends and family back home, which led to more immigration. The kolache of course evolved and adapted once it got to Texas. For one thing, rather than a wedding treat, based on my Texas observations, they're primarily an A.M. treat.

I'll pause now to ask: want a kolache recipe? This one, on Homesick Texan, looks mighty fine to me. But really, you should get yourself to Kenner's. 

It was just after noon when we pulled in to Kenner's Kolaches in Arlington, Texas, but we hadn't eaten yet so this was breakfast, making it still a valid A.M. treat.  

Kenner's has been making kolaches since the mid-1980s, but it's so old-school that I wouldn't have been surprised to hear they'd been at it since 1947. I say this as a compliment.

When you enter Kenner's, you'll be assaulted (but in a good way) by a warm, yeasty smell. You will want to live in that smell. 

The two employees were so friendly, possibly owing to the fact that for several hours a week, they do live in that smell. They were happy to explain everything in the bakery case.

First, the kolache. They had them in a myriad of flavors: apple, apricot, bavarian cream, blueberry, cherry, cream cheese, strawberry, strawberry cream cheese, peach, poppyseed, and raspberry. They were described as pie filling-esque, "but good stuff". 

Their kolaches are like eating clouds. If clouds were light as air but also stuffed with stuff. You inhale, and it's practically gone. But they're so good. Two is better than one for sure. 

They also have some savory kolaches, including sausage, bacon and cheese, and the related (in that it uses the same dough but is presented pig in a blanket style) sausage roll.

Rounding out the offerings? Cinnamon rolls ("best in town!"), and Danish Melt-a-Ways.

Let me take a moment to tell you about the melt-a-way. If I were pressed to describe them, I'd say they're like a morning bun on buttercream-laced crack. I told myself as I took the first bite "only eat half. pace yourself for other sweets." Yeah right. I inhaled that thing, with my only regret being that it was gone so fast. This is like a down-home version of what I imagine a cronut would taste like--flaky, creamy, delicious. And in this case, glazed.

They also had some pastry thingies (I know! I get paid to write!) in the case with rainbow sprinkles. "It's an experiment" said the employee, who said that she'd made them with leftover cinnamon roll dough and put sprinkles on to entice children. "It's to discourage them from using the d-word."

The d-word? I was confused. She whispered, conspiritorially, "doughnut". And that was that--subject closed.

There are no doughnuts on site or in sight here. But once your mouth is full of kolache, I donut think you'll care too much. 

Kenner's Kolache Bakery, 2812 South Cooper, Arlington TX. Online here. 

CakeSpy for Craftsy: Homemade Pizza

I don't want to scare you guys, but I made something savory. I made pizza. 

After all, you've got to eat something to pre-funk before a nice cake sesh, right? 

Nine out of ten people say that they love pizza. The tenth person is almost certainly lying! Joking aside, it’s true that just about everyone loves pizza. Although it is Italian in origin, it has been adopted by and proliferated in a big way in the United States. The classic American pizza pie consists of a flat, open-faced round of bread-type dough topped with tomato sauce and cheese and any number of different toppings. Classic toppings include sausage, pepperoni, and mushrooms; however, in recent years experimental chefs have tried unusual toppings such as Thai peanut sauce, avocado, or even banana slices.

See a delicious tutorial on Craftsy!

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!

CakeSpy Note: I recently celebrated a birthday, so there are several birthday related links here!

These birthday cake doughnuts look quite fab to me.

How to make pie crust without stress.

London themed cakes!

A collection of creative doughnuts--yum!

Pinata cake - best thing ever!

YUM: birthday cake bread pudding. In the unlikely case that you EVER have leftover birthday cake, that is.

Not your average honey cake recipe.

I'm intrigued by this "croissant surprise birthday cake".

I'm also intrigued by these "pear and chocolate croissant cakes".

14 delicious lemon dessert recipes.

French bakers tell Kanye West to wait patiently for his damn croissants.

My kind of archaeology...the kind including cake!

I love this monster cake!

An OR-based bakery that refused to make a same-sex wedding cake closes.

Cakes with a coffee theme. Sugar buzz worthy!

CakeSpy for Craftsy: 20 Creative Doughnuts

Doughnut worry…be happy! It’s certainly easy to keep smile on your face when you’ve got a doughnut in your hand. But what type of doughnut do you favor? In recent years, all sorts of creative interpretations of the doughnut have appeared in recipes in books, blogs, and in retail stores.

Gettin’ Creative with the Dough

Ranging from the use of unusual flavors such as bacon or even spam in doughnuts, to interesting uses for the holey treats such as using them for French toast or even ice cream sandwiches, or making them from croissants, it seems that doughnuts are the medium of choice for creative fans of food and cooking.

For the full article, please visit Craftsy!

Cake Byte: Depressed Cake Shop, Seattle Edition

After a successful round in LA, it's coming your way, Seattle…

Here's the 411 from Melissa Riddington, the organizer of Seattle's Depressed Cake Shop event:

The Depressed Cake Shop – a one day charity event that aims to stomp out the stigma of depression, one grey cake at a time.

The Depressed Cake Shop campaign started in London early August, by Miss Cakehead (Emma Thomas). The concept is simple – make grey cakes and sell grey cakes for one day, in an attempt to raise awareness around depression and mental illness. The campaign’s idea spread quickly around the UK and is now going global, with lots of one-day events taking place around the world.

What: The Depressed Cake Shop Seattle

When: Saturday, October 5

Time: 10am-4pm

Where: Sole Repair Shop 1001 East Pike Seattle, WA 98122

Money raised will go to the Seattle’s non-profit organization, NAMI –Greater Seattle (National Alliance on Mental Illness).

More info for interested bakers:

We’re on the lookout for talented bakers, cakers and sugar shakers to donate delicious grey goodies for our event! The only stipulation is that the goodies need to be grey in color (to represent the feelings felt by many suffering from depression), but they can have a pop of color inside the cake (to represent the feeling of hope). Here’s a link to our Depressed Cake Pinterest Board for inspiration on making grey beautiful!

Learn more by "liking" the Depressed Cake Shop Seattle Facebook page.

Find out more about the global Depressed Cake Shop campaign.

Want to bake up a storm for the Depressed Cake Shop Seattle event? Please do get in touch! Melissa Riddington melissariddington@gmail.com, or phone 206-432-1852.

Stomping out Stigma, One Grey Cake at a Time.

SpyMom's Devil's Food Cake with Buttercream Frosting

There are many good things about moving out of your parents' house. You get to watch tv whenever you want, not be told to make your bed, and eat cupcakes for dinner if you wanna. And often, I wanna.

But one of the less awesome aspects of moving away from home is that if your mom is a great baker, you don't as often get to indulge in her delicious creations. 

But in an effort of maintaining a baking bond even from a fairly long distance, SpyMom recently sent over a recipe success with me, which I am in turn sharing with you. It's a Homemade devils food cake (from an old Fannie Farmer book), brought up to modern times with a generous coating of Magnolia Bakery's buttercream frosting recipe. As SpyMom says, "Imperfect looking but the taste was perfect." 

I disagree that it looks imperfect--those layers of tender-crumbed, moist chocolate cake beautifully held together with light blue tinted buttercream look perfect--and completely delicious--to me. Like a classic cake dream come true.

Here's the recipe.

Devil's Food Cake with Buttercream Frosting (Printable version here)

Makes 1 2-layer 8-inch cake

Adapted from recipes in The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook: Old-Fashioned Recipes From New York's Sweetest Bakery and The Fannie Farmer Cookbook

For the cake

• 4 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/4 pound unsalted butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 eggs, separated
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the frosting

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 6 to 8 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Procedure

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees f. Butter and lightly flour two 8-inch round cake pans. Put the cocoa, 3 tablespoons of the sugar, and 3 tablespoons water in a small pan and cook over low heat until smooth and blended. 
2. Remove from the heat and stir in the milk. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter, add the vanilla and 1/2 cup of the remaining sugar, and beat until light.  Beat in the egg yolks, and then add the cocoa mixture, beating well. Mix the flour, cream of tartar, salt, and baking soda together, add to the first mixture, and blend until smooth.
4. Beat the egg whites separately until they are foamy. Slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, and beat until stiff but not dry. Fold the whites into the rest of the batter.
5. Spread in your prepared pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans for 5 minutes before turning on to racks to cool completely before frosting.
6. To make the frosting, In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter, 4 cups sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 3 to 5 minutes. Gradually add remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating for about 2 minutes after each addition, until icing reaches desired consistency; you may not need to add all the sugar. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Illustration Friday: Lush

This week's Illustration Friday theme is "Lush" and what better to express this idea than cupcakes indulging? Be a lush--it looks luscious!

Shop for my artwork here.

CakeSpy for Craftsy: How to Make Pie Crust

“We must have a pie. Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie.” – David Mamet

While most of us can thoroughly agree with Mamet, his sentiment does not always extend to the crust. For some reason, people fear pie crust. 

Perhaps that’s because of how many strict rules appear in the recipes. The ingredients must be cold. You must not overwork the dough. You must not put too much water in the mix. But really, rules aside, pie crust is a fairly simple thing to make. True, to hone it to an art may take time and require some trial and error, but really, doesn’t just about anything worthwhile?

That is to say that it’s well worth the time to try this simple (and forgiving) classic pie crust recipe.

Find the full tutorial here!

Sweet Art: Corn Summit

What do you think they thought when they first spied each other?

Celebrate your love of all sorts of corn by purchasing a print here!

Sweet Potato Cupcakes Stuffed with Maple Peanut Butter

I am what I am, but there’s no yam in these cupcakes. They’re made with delicious sweet potato! When added to a rich pound cake batter, sweet potato and spices make for a comforting cake, especially during cold-weather days. The cupcakes get even better, however, once you take a bite and realize that they have a sweet flavor surprise: a spoonful of Mighty Maple peanut butter inside of the cake, and a kiss of peanut butter in the frosting. Make this for your Labor Day festivities to mark both summer’s end (sigh) and the start of beautiful autumn days!

Find the delicious recipe that I developed for Peanut Butter and Company here!

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!

Great new prints in CakeSpy's online shop, including the above image!

I'm featured as a Crafty Superstar on Cut Out + Keep!

What it really takes to start your own bakery (or restaurant, etc).

Pumpkin brioche whiskey caramel monkey bread. Try saying that five times fast.

Pisco alfajores!

Caramel cashew clusters.

I'm feelin' it: strawberry ricotta scones.

Do you love the movie Gremlins? You will love this cake.

Who invented Mary Janes, the molasses and peanut butter candies?

YUM: Peach pie!

These are just despicably adorable.

Learn more about Andes Mints than you ever needed to know.

Good life skill: how to make gelatin bows.

A collection of lovely lemon desserts.

My friend Molly wants to open a bakery! Help make her dream come true.

How to make dragees at home!

An article on decorative pie crust. 

Sweet Art: Cronut Dream

CakeSpy wonders: when Dominique Ansel (creator of the Cronut) dreams, does it look like this?

Peanut Butter Honey Banana Oatmeal Bars, with Love from Haydn

When it comes to cookbooks, are you attracted to the unusual ones? 

Well, you're not alone. I simply cannot pass by a rummage sale, secondhand store, or bookstore's dollar rack without checking out the unusual cookbooks they always seem to have.  I've found a few great ones this way, including my personal fave, Cooking in WetLeather (a biker recipe book). Yes, it exists. 

At a yard sale recently, I was purchasing a $10 sofa and this book caught my eye: Haydn in the Kitchen.

Since I was already shelling out for the sofa, they gave it to me for free. Score!

As it turns out, this recipe book was put together by the Denver Symphony Guild to benefit the orchestra. Unfortunately, the recipes have little to do with famous composers, and the only way that they incorporated music was to call the chapters things like "Symphonic Variations", "Finales", and "Intermezzi". Nestled in the Intermezzi chapter was a recipe for Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars. 

I made a few changes to the recipe, one of which was using honey peanut butter, and then I added banana. Oh my, were they ever good. Sort of in the blondie family, but with a much more mellow, rounded flavor. The rich peanut butter with the golden, sunshine-y honey.

The moist and gooey banana bits. The vaguely healthy tasting oats, adding a nice nuttiness. The slightly caramel-y taste from the brown sugar. All in a fairly dense bar cookie. They're very, very good. 

They certainly disappeared quickly in my house. Bet they'll disappear faster than a symphonic overture (is that a thing?) in yours, too. 

Haydn Bars

Makes 16 - printable version here.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/3 cup honey peanut butter (or, plain peanut butter with 1 teaspoon honey mixed in)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup quick cook oats
• 1/2 a banana, cut into small pieces

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Cream the sugars, butter, and peanut butter until smooth (or as smooth as the chunky peanut butter will get). 
3. Mix in the egg, milk, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally to ensure that they're mixed fully.
4. Stir in the rest of the ingredients all together, until combined.
5. Spread in your prepared 8x8-inch pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden on top and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan, then slice into squares. These bars keep well for 3 to 4 days, well wrapped.

CakeSpy for Craftsy: Peach Pie

The taste of a fresh peach in the summertime is truly an inimitable experience: a sun-warmed, fuzzy exterior yielding to reveal a juicy and subtly sweet flavor. During their peak season (July and August), peaches proliferate in stores and on roadside stands, beckoning us to snack…or better yet, to bake.

Did you know August is National Peach Month? Let’s celebrate with this mouthwatering recipe for juicy, fresh peach pie!

Baking peaches allows their unique sweetness to shine. This recipe is made with minimal sugar, instead allowing the naturally sweetness of the ripe fruit. It tastes like concentrated bite of summer, encased in a rich, buttery pie crust.   

Here's the fantastic and easy recipe I shared on Craftsy!

Happy Birthday to Me, and Happy National Cherry Popsicle Day

August 26th is my own personal birthday (CakeSpy the website celebrates its birthday on August 1--there is still a chance to enter the giveaway celebrating this momentous occasion!).

August 26 is also, as it happens, National Cherry Popsicle Day. Now, I apologize if I sound ungrateful...but seriously, this is the crappiest holiday I could possibly think of for my birthday. Cherry popsicles suck, dude!

I immediately began to do an inventory of other people's birthdays, and most everyone came up with a cooler food holiday coinciding with their birthday, including my mother on June 28 (National Tapioca Day), my sweetie on September 18 (National Cheeseburger Day!), my sisters on September 14 and May 4 (National Cream Filled Doughnut Day and National Candied Orange Peel Day, respectively), my BFF James on February 2 (not only Groundhog's Day, but also Pisco Sour Day!). 

I started to get angry, and thought to myself, "I could probably make a list of a hundred things I'd rather eat than a cherry popsicle, easy." So I did. It only took like five minutes.

Here are 100 things I'd rather eat than a cherry popsicle.

1. Vanilla chocolate softserve swirl
2. Hummingbird cake
3. Mint chocolate chip whoopie pies
4. Banana nilla wafer pudding
5. Reese's peanut butter cups
6. Princess cake
7. A soft chocolate chip cookie
8. Philadelphia butter cake
9. Gooey butter cake
10. White chocolate macadamia chip cookie
11. Butter cake with pink buttercream (birthday cake!)
12. Rainbow cookie
13. Zeppole
14. Cronut
15. Croissant
16. Chinese almond cookie
17. King cake
18. Pop Tart
19. Dairy queen blizzard
20. Frozen custard
21. Carrot cake
22. Macarons
23. Cheesecake
24. Chocolate fudge
25. Velveeta fudge
26. Pancakes
27. Honeycomb
28. Monster cookies
29. Avocado cake
30. French toast
31. Rice Krispies treat
32. Pink frosted cookie
33. Snickerdoodle
34. Gingerbread
35. Corn cookie
36. Meltaway cookie
37. Pound cake
38. Penuche
39. Tiramisu
40. Cake doughnut
41. Yeast doughnut
42. Cruller
43. Custard
44. Shortbread cookie
45. Millionaire's shortbread
46. Chocolate layer cake
47. Apple pie
48. Nesselrode pie
49. Snowballs
50. S'mores
51. Macaroon
52. Chocolate cream pie
53. Spice cake
54. Roly polies
55. Pie crust cookies
56. Galette des rois
57. Sacher torte
58. Alice B Toklas brownies
59. Peach pie
60. Banana split
61. Chocolate mousse
62. Maple spam doughnuts
63. Peanut butter cookies
64. Sopaipillas
65. Cadbury crème eggs
66. Pazcki
67. Beignets
68. Fried oreos
69. Toffee
70. Wellesley fudge cake
71. Grocery store sheet cake
72. Egg cream
73. Black and white cookie
74. Congo bars
75. Hermit cookies
76. Blondie
77. Brownie
78. Nanaimo bars
79. Cherry pie
80. Cherries Jubilee
81. Chocolate covered cherries
82. Cherry chip cake
83. Cupcake with a cherry on top
84. Black forest cake
85. Cherry garcia ice cream
86. Cherry pie bars
87. Cherry ice cream bar
88. Cherry crumb cake
89. Chocolate chip cookies with dried cherries
90. Bonbon cookies filled with cherries
91. Creamsicle
92. Fudgesicle
93. Eskimo bar
94. Jell-o pudding pop
95. Yogurt with cherries on the bottom
96. Flan
97. Egg tart
98. Navy bean pie
99. Angel food cake
100. Biscotti

Then I started to feel bad about poor cherry popsicles. Surely there must be something I like LESS than cherry popsicles, right? So, OK. Here's my list of things that I think are worse than cherry popsicles. 

1. Low fat ice cream
2. Frozen yogurt
3. Those awful chocolates that look like oranges
4. Jelly beans
5. Violet candies
6. Deep fried Kool-aid
7. Cherry Jell-O
8. Fruitcake

So, there you have it. My birthday rant! 

What are YOUR thoughts on Cherry Popsicles? Also, is there a food holiday on YOUR birthday?

Still Time to Enter: CakeSpy Birthday Giveaway!

Sweeties, you are so lucky! I've decided to extend the CakeSpy 6 Year Anniversary giveaway until August 26th (which happens to be the Head Spy's birthday!). 

Go ahead and visit this post to enter. Hooray!

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!

OMG love this doughnut.

Grilled peaches with cardamom whipped cream. YUM.

This amused me. (thanks, Karyl!)

It's hip to be square with these awesome square wedding cakes.

Mont blanc crepe cake. Look. Just trust me on this.

Sweet cause, sweet cakes. Check out Icing Smiles.

Could whoopie pies be the next big thing...in Australia?

Buttermilk: all purpose for baking and more.

Basically my favorite chocolate chip cookie ever.

YAY! Coco Cake turns 5! A sweet bloggy buddy of mine.

Happy food: creme filled brownie bites.

Salted caramel crescent doughnuts...hmm, looks like a cronut hack to me!

Love this collection of fine art-inspired cakes.

Here's my collection of master-pieces of cake.