Famous across campus for her delicious baked delights, this teacher’s one-of-a-kind cupcake creations are certainly television-worthy. Think you know who it is? Take a guess, let us know and you might just win a prize.
A cupcake trimmed with creamy frosting, topped with a juicy red cherry and finished with a wafer stick. Every morsel oozes temptation. With each bite, a zesty snap explodes onto your taste buds as the distinct taste of root beer fizzles into existence. It’s as mouth-watering as it looks—with a burst of unexpected flavor.
Just what is the secret ingredient? The real question is who. The Cupcake Boss follows no recipes, at least none that appear in conventional cookbooks. Instead, she allows years of experience to guide her, all the while invariably seeking to assemble startling concoctions and outdo her previous work.
The Cupcake Boss has been experimenting with baking since childhood. Take the Cookie Pizza, a cookie or brownie crust baked with various desert toppings sprinkled across the top. Garnished with candy corn and caramel drizzles, the scrumptious confections truly live up to their affectionately-given names of “The Chocoholic Fantasy” and “The Chocolate Covered Strawberry Goodness,” until they’re gobbled up just moments later.
From the famed Cookie Pizzas, the Cupcake Boss transitioned to more decorative pieces that would pose broader challenges to her creativity through both form and taste: cupcakes.
The results of her active imagination are certainly shocking, sometimes even daring to push the boundaries of culinary possibility. Take a hint from the Cake Boss and drop a pinch of bacon bits into your next dark chocolate batter blend. Fold in a dash of balsamic vinegar and top with a luscious strawberry. It might sound unorthodox, but seemingly-mismatched combinations such as this one tend to result in empty plates and calls for more. That’s the Cake Boss for you. Unexpected, but always good.
“I like to experiment with interesting flavors,” the Cupcake Boss said. “I always like to surprise people.”
But before they delight the palate, these cupcakes are first a treat for the eyes. Careful attention to presentation and design adds to the appeal, tempting each and every person passing by to sneak a bite. Set in a classic Starbucks cup, her Salted Caramel Mocha cupcake adds new meaning to the “cup” in “cupcake,” with a telltale green straw completing the look. On other occasions, remarkably realistic arrangements of sunflower and hydrangea cupcakes dazzle in homemade wire displays concealed within actual flower pots. Upon closer inspection, the center of the sunflower gives way to an oreo, and the alluring blue-white gradient of the hydrangea petals are the product of carefully coordinated mixing.
“It’s more important that it tastes good than looks good,” the Cupcake Boss said. “But of course, you want to make it look good too because people eat with their eyes.”
So what is her secret? The answer lies with a well-played partnership between sweet and savory that simultaneously attacks all senses.