Oooohhh… Cupcakes!!!

 

I was really never a fan of cupcakes until I made some for my son's birthday last year.  I thought if you are lazy to make a real cake then you could just opt for fairy cakes but I was wrong, I had to do more things and extra steps for these small treats and yes, they are really fun to make!  Each cupcake could have its own little scene if you may, which makes it more interesting, the cute thing about it too is that you could make some cupcakes that stands out and make simple ones for some accents.  I made these just a week ago for a friend’s son’s 1st birthday.  I learned that her baby likes Elmo a lot and he only watches Sesame Street because of Elmo’s World.  So here are the cupcakes that I came up with.    

• Elmo’s crayons
  
• Dorothy in a fishbowl (painted sand and seaweeds)
  
• Elmo faces
  
• Smash cake 
  

I passed by the Central Market…

It was so exciting to see so many varieties of food, it is like a play land for foodies like me.  Not to mention the free samples of new products from vinaigrette to freshly baked breads.  The merchandising concept really works because while I was browsing the aisles, I noticed that there are some new wines that are displayed on the walk way and of course, the distinct label and wonderful burgundy color of the foil in the bottle catches the eyes of a curious individual like me and so I got me a cute bottle of wine.  I am not sure if I read it right but I think it’s Riondo Sheraz Spago Rosso.   It is a semi-sparkling wine, sweet, very dark violet in color and magenta bubbles., I think it’s perfect for beginners. Pardon me but please do not ask me about wine, I’m not a wine steward or as they call it Wine Sommelier, as long as it taste good and I like it, I’ll drink it.  I drink wine when I’m really in the mood for it but this is the first time to actually finish one whole bottle and I’m really curious about the taste of their Prosseco because I noticed that most chefs suggest Prosecco in their cooking and you know what they say, “only use wines for cooking that you enjoy drinking” and since the Sheraz Spago Rosso was very good maybe I could try their Prosseco too.  

Another great buys that I found in the Central Market are Cedar’s baked Pita chips and Out to Lunch Handmade Chipotle Sun dried Tomato Hummus… yummy!!!  Of course, I always like to add a little bit more flavor so I drizzled a little bit of homemade basil pesto and it was exquisite!  The Pita chips are a little bit sweet and salty and just the perfect thickness, not too thick and not too thin and with a hint of garlic flavor, as for the Hummus, it was actually good on its own, very creamy but adding a little bit of herb to it, makes the flavor burst to your palate.  My husband hates chickpeas but when he tried this he thought it was actually very good. Lastly, the Easter bread.  When I tried this bread, I thought it is like a combination of Hawaiian bread and Panetone without the candied fruit. It tastes like Hawaiian bread because of the soft texture and it’s sweet like kinda dinner roll-”ish” and of course the hint of citrus that you get once you bite it reminds you of Panetone.  It’s perfect with just butter and jam but you could also eat it with Cheez Whiz.   

Where to get all these???  You know!  If you don’t, check the title one more time… 

• Sheraz Spago Rosso, I believe the price for this is $9.99.  
  
• Cedar Pita Chips 2 for $5.
  
• Chipotle Sundried Tomato Hummus, I’m not sure but I think about $4.99, you know… after a glass of wine or two, I tend to forget stuff.  
  
• Easter bread is $3.99.
  

Do not forget the tax!