Cheery Cherry April Cupcakes!

It's April and appropriately it's raining outside. But it's also warming up! Spring has sprung and things are beginning to grow again (especially with the help of this rain). All us Yummy Staffers have emerged from our winter hibernation and are now busy channelling the energies of Spring. We started the month off with a very hoppy Easter, full of robin's egg blue cakes and mini eggs! Now we're keeping the colours (and flavours) alive with our Cherry Almond Cupcake of the month! Maraschino cherries make the almond cupcake a nice cheery pink which contrasts beautifully with the teal blue vanilla buttercream frosting and red cherry on top! Maraschino cherries are not just for cocktails and Sundaes: they are the perfect flavour pairing for our lonely almond cupcake!

In other Yummy News we have put away the rich and warm pecan pies of winter in favour of the light and sunny key lime and lemon meringue pies of Spring and Summer! (I know, I know, perhaps it's a little too early to mention that most elusive and brief of seasons, but I shall be daring and invoke it: sing to me Summer, muse of fruit pies!)  Come by on a weekend when we roll out the pies and tuck into Spring (then Summer...soon....)!

You know what March means...

It's March, which we all know means it's time to think Spring (and maybe the weather will warm up under the force of our collective will!). The weather is gradually warming up - I even undid a couple buttons on my jacket while walking to work this morning. Negative five is practically a tropical paradise these days. Of course, we still have a foot of snow, but birds are returning! Spring is determinately on its way! Spring time means green things: leaves, grass, Ireland, St. Patrick's Day. Here at Yummy Stuff we like to get in touch with our Irish roots with a dark and dreamy Guinness Cupcake of the Month. We pair this Guinness spiked chocolate cupcake with a smooth Bailey's infused cream cheese buttercream frosting - like the foamy head on your pint at the pub! Just look at this beauty:

The best part about this cupcake? You don't have to wait until after noon to eat it! There's no shame in day-cupcake-eating!

We here at Yummy Stuff also love March for one nerdy reason: Pi(e) Day, March 14th! Being a bakeshop, we tend to embrace the pastry side of this informal holiday, but if you know Pi to more than 3 decimal places, come on in and impress us! I think the current calculation is up 10 trillion places and counting...While you're in the shop doing homage to Greek mathematicians, why not pick up a tasty apple or pecan pie?

Sweet Treats for your Sweetheart!

It's February now so we've all emerged from our Christmas Sweets Coma and are ready to indulge in the delectable delights of Valentine's day! And boy do we have your Valentine's treats covered. We have mini cakes for two, extra large chocolate chip cookiegrams (with your custom message written right on the cookie!), and jars of hugs and kisses. Yes, we have actually bottled hugs and kisses. (Naw, they're really our tasty sugar cookies but who's telling?).

February also brings with it a new cupcake of the month! We're bringing back an old favourite: our Red Hot Chocolate Cupcake. It's a cozy cinnamon spiced chocolate cupcake with a fiery chocolate buttercream, Think of a nice steaming mug of hot chocolate mixed with the spice of cinnamon heart candies and you've got this cupcake! It is the perfect treat to warm you up from that blustery February weather swirling outside. If you're craving something dangerously delicious, bundle yourself up against the cold and head on over for something warm and sweet! If you don't feel like struggling into those Canadian-Winter grade socks, boots, mitts, parka, and tuque, or if you're not part husky, don't worry - we deliver!

Decembrrr

That icy wind blowing outside must mean it's Decembrrr.  When the sun does come out though, it's that clear, bright, winter sunlight shinning brilliantly into our bake shop! If you come inside (or if the wind pushes you through our door) you'll see a bakery in its element: making treats for the holidays! As an added bonus, the ovens in the back make the shop nice and toasty warm.

In our pursuit of warmth we have some new heart-warming (if not physically cozy) baked goodies, as well as some holiday classics. Our Ugly Christmas Sweater cookies are my personal favourite. They're perfect for stocking stuffers, holiday party favours, or presents for your favourite teacher.

Our shelves are absolutely abounding with melt-in-your-mouth shortbread, chocolate toffee bark, and crisp and spicy gingerbread cookies! Or, in case you've forgotten how fast Christmas is approaching, our cookie calendar can remind you:

December also brings with it our favourite holiday cupcakes: moist and molasses-y gingerbread cupcakes with your choice of chai or chocolate buttercream frosting, and fluffy orange cranberry cupcakes with orange cream cheese buttercream frosting. A nice plate of holiday cupcakes to share while sitting around the fire after dinner (or watching Love Actually) is a great way to spread some Christmas Cheer!

Stay tuned for other fun holiday flavours like the nutty and warm Ferrero Rocher Cupcake and the fresh Chocolate Mint Cupcake. 

Happy Holidays! Hohoho. xoxo.

Movember Mo' cupcakes!

November has arrived and with it come moustaches of all shapes, sizes, and varying levels of bushiness. We've gotten into the spirit by making some moustache cookies! We've baked them onto sticks for you to surreptitiously hold them up to your upper lip, if, perhaps, you are unable to grow your own. I must say, ours are very luxurious -and tasty!

November also brings with it a new cupcake of the month! In honour Morag's recent South African holiday, we have made a Coffee and Amarula cupcake. It's a a rich mocha cupcake with a boozy Amarula cream cheese buttercream frosting. Amarula is a South African cream liqueur made from the fruit of the Marula tree; in other words, it's pure South African deliciousness! When you bite into this cupcake it's as though you've just taken a sip of Irish -or in this case, South African- coffee! It's the perfect flavour combination for these crisp November days.

Even though November is the month between October's Thanksgiving and December's Christmas, we're still keeping the pumpkin craze going strong! (We don't want November to feel left-out!). We've made some pumpkin bread puddings with toasted pecans perched cozily on top, and I must say, I think they give last month's pumpkin pies a run for their money. Pop on by and we'll be sure to have a treat for you! After all, it's Movember, and that means mo' cupcakes.

Turkey and Pumpkin Weekend!

This weekend is a special weekend: It's Turkey Time (also known, perhaps more commonly, as Thanksgiving)! I personally think that there is far too long a hiatus between holidays where it is appropriate to eat turkey -Easter to October is unacceptable in my books. But Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful, not querulous, and I am thankful for any opportunity to eat turkey, and, more importantly: PUMPKIN PIE!  The summer pumpkin embargo is equally lamentable to the turkey hiatus.  I suppose the long break makes it all that much more delicious, and boy do we make a delicious pumpkin pie at Yummy Stuff. A creamy and smooth pumpkin filling, rich with spices, is cradled in a buttery pastry shell, just waiting for you to cut a slice!

Pie isn't the only pumpkin item we've got on our fall menu either! We've turned into pumpkin heads and gone a little pumpkin-crazy.  We've got moist pumpkin cake with candied pumpkin seeds and pumpkin cupcakes with browned butter cream cheese buttercream. We like to think that browned butter makes everything better -it's so warm and nutty in flavour! I definitely recommend you pop by and try some before they're all eaten by me by the other pumpkin heads.

If pumpkin is not your thing (fair enough), or if you like all the things (completely understandable), we've got some other tasty fall treats to tempt you. Can you say bourbon pecan pie or maple walnut tart anyone? How about apple ginger torte or gingerbread cookies? Or the ever classic apple pie featured in our last post? I am very grateful that the apple dessert season has expanded to include several seasons, not just a few holiday days!

Here's a photo or two to get you drooling, if you weren't already:

At Thanksgiving I'm thankful for family, friends, and yummy stuff!

September Sweetness

Fall has arrived and it brings with it crisp mornings, clear sunlight, the occasional autumnal drizzle, and, of course, our new cupcake of the month! Growing up in orchard country, Autumn always meant one thing to me: apple harvest. Up early and up in the trees, we'd always nab a few apples before school, then leave the rest of the apples to be picked by the pros (our parents). Our own pros here at Yummy Stuff have taken freshly harvested apples and baked them into September's cupcake of the month: our Yummy Apple Cinnamon Cupcake.

The name just about says it all, but there's a secret filling missing... I've never been good with secrets so I'll spill! It an apple cinnamon cupcake with a bourbon caramel filling and a cinnamon buttercream frosting. It tastes like a cozy day in Nana's kitchen, and we all know our sassy grandmothers would add a swig of bourbon to their caramel. Even though I'm a grown (-ish) lady now, you can find me in the kitchen at Yummy Stuff begging to lick the spoon when our bakers are finished making the caramel!

With such an abundance of apples available in Autumn we couldn't help but bake them -instead of the proverbial blackbirds- into pies! When you cut into these buttery pies, a wealth of sweet and juicy apples spills out. Though no birds may be singing as in the nursery rhyme (if anything, they've started migrating south), you can still proclaim "what a dainty dish to set before the king!" (If Canada had a king that is. "Prime Minister" just doesn't seem to have the right ring to it). Either way, our apple treats are fit for royalty...and for you!