Trailer Baker Cupcake Maker

Last year, I became aware of a cupcake trailer parked in the Heights on Saturdays and at the First Saturday Arts Market. The few occasions I drove by the location they were supposed to be parked, they weren't there. I gave up. Recently, I spotted the What's Up Cupcake trailer parked along Washington Avenue. So on Saturday, we decided to give them a shot.

They were sold out of red velvet, but had all the other flavors we wanted. The boyfriend picked vanilla bean, chocolate ganache and wedding cake. Ah, he's such a romantic by choosing a cupcake that represents the blissful occasion he has yet to partake in. Anyway, I chose strawberry, chocolate brownie and banana pudding.

After returning from my booze peddling gig, I came home to find the boyfriend already consumed his wedding cake and chocolate ganache cupcakes, so I wasn't able to taste test those flavors. But I immediately began devouring mine.

The first cupcake I tested was the strawberry. The cake was a little dry and crumbled while eating, but the frosting was tasty and adequate. Not much else to say about this one though.

The second cupcake I ate was the chocolate brownie. The cake part was an actual brownie, but had nice texture and appropriate moistness. The frosting was vanilla butter cream with a few chocolate chips on top. Again, the frosting was the right amount and satisfying flavor.

The last cupcake I had was the banana pudding. I often eat regular banana cupcakes, so I figured this wouldn't be too far off even though it mentioned "pudding" in its name. I was not at all impressed by this cupcake. The only part I thought was acceptable was the frosting with vanilla wafer cookie crumbled on top. While the cake was moist, it was too chewy from the very thick chunks of banana that sunk to the bottom of the batter. In the middle of the cake was banana pudding. I think there was too much going on in this cupcake, which made it banana overkill and rather disappointing. I didn't even finish it.

The boyfriend was gracious enough to grant me a bite of his vanilla bean cupcake. It was pretty good. Once again, the frosting was quite flavorful and the cake had the right consistency.

What's Up Cupcake is hit or miss. Some of the cupcakes were good; some alright; and one was downright displeasing. I would try them again in the future if I needed a quick cupcake fix and I was passing by, but they're not my first choice.

Bacon in a Cupcake?

Our most recent cupcake adventure transpired a few weeks ago at a little cupcakery in the Heights called Frosted Betty. Tucked away in an old building, adjacent to a boutique, Frosted Betty has more unconventional flavors you don't find at most of the cupcake shops or in your boxed mix varieties. While I'm a bit more of a traditional flavor aficionada, I will get a little daring once in awhile. And since we arrived at Frosted Betty a few hours before closing time, the selection was limited, so we didn’t have much choice but to experiment with the few options that were available. It appears this cupcakery bakes a batch for the entire day and once they're gone; they're gone.

My boyfriend asked the employee about the different flavors. When he came up on one the employee said was, "maple bacon," my boyfriend's facial expression was of utter disgust. The employee told us how popular the flavor is and to prove my boyfriend's repulsion wrong, he gave us the last maple bacon cupcake for free. Reluctant to try it myself, the boyfriend forced it upon me. It actually wasn't bad. I’m not a sweet and salty mix fan, so I probably wouldn't get it again, but it was better than I expected. The maple frosting was creamy and the more predominant flavor with just a hint of bacon bits (not imitation) inside a light-colored maple cupcake.

The next cupcake I tried was almond ricotta raspberry. There was only a hint of almond and ricotta, so it wasn't overpowering. The raspberry frosting was the most noticeable flavor with subtle touches of the other two flavors combined. The verdict? This cupcake was just acceptable. It was edible, but not a favorite.

The last cupcake I consumed was salted caramel. Of all three cupcakes I sampled from Frosted Betty, I liked this one the most. It was a chocolate cupcake with caramel butter cream frosting and a sprinkle of French sea salt on top. Even though I don't prefer the sweet and salty combination, the salt did give the cupcake an interesting burst of flavor atop the caramel frosting.

We also tried their cake balls. We had red velvet with chocolate coating and vanilla with chocolate coating. The coating is almost like a hard shell. Both flavors were satisfactory. We never had cake balls before and heard this is a new trend, so wanted to give them a try. But we'll just stick with cupcakes for now.

Frosted Betty has traditional options, but I think their specialty cupcakes are what differentiate them in the cupcake market. While Frosted Betty hasn't beaten my favorite cupcakery (which I will reveal in a future post), I'd recommend them for more adventurous palates that want unusual flavors.

Desserted for Dinner

A typical Saturday dinner at my house consists of dessert. Yes, I usually only eat dessert for dinner. My boyfriend and I have a sweet tooth – especially for cupcakes. As most locals know, Houston is a Mecca for gourmet cupcake bakeries. The trend has been going strong for several years and yet, there are still more cupcakeries turning up everywhere. I have tried almost every cupcakery in town. While I should have started this blog a long time ago, I guess better late than never. I can recall each devouring fairly well, but if I can’t, I suppose I could refresh my taste buds and reignite that sugar coma by trying them again.

My first gourmet cupcake experience took place about three years ago when someone brought them into the office. They came from Sugarbaby’s Cupcake Boutique. Everyone has had cupcakes before from the store-bought mixes, but this was different. I was immediately hooked. Soon thereafter, my boyfriend and I visited Sugarbaby’s to get a sampling of flavors to take home. The boyfriend got hooked on them too.

Even though the average cost for each of these gourmet goodies is in the $3.00-$3.50 range, I feel they are well worth it. Most cupcakeries use special ingredients and have a delectable appearance to boot.

After Sugarbaby’s, we explored other cupcake bakeries around town and have even tried some in other states. As we continue our crusade for cupcakes, stay tuned for reviews and more thoughts around the cupcake craze…