Cupcake Search in Boynton Beach, FL

Yeah...I have been MIA for a bit. Life has been weird, cooking not a priority at the moment. I need to get back into it though, or my husband and I will go broke from take-out. Or gain immense amounts of weight. So keep staying tuned. In the meantime, the next few series of posts will be reviews.

Recently, my husband and I ventured back down to the Boynton Beach area of Florida, like we do approximately every 6 months since we have a "vacation house" down there (courtesy of my in-laws second home) and since many members of my family live about 25 minutes from there and it makes my grandmother happy when I go visit. Since my husband and I have been on a cupcake search here where we live, we decided to check out the area in Florida.

We knew there was a store in a shopping center near the house called Sweet Surrender. We saw it last November, but didn't go in. This time, we did. The selection was nothing to get excited over - they had about 10 flavors out, but they were all basic, like, just a chocolate or vanilla cake with a different frosting on top. They weren't stuffed, they didn't have other decorations, they were average size and they were just...there. So, we got one to try. We bought the Chocolate Chip cupcake (Website description: OUR GOLDEN YELLOW CAKE IS LACED WITH PREMIUM CHOCOLATE BITS AND SPRINKLED WITH CONFECTIONARY SUGAR.)

The incredibly cheerful clerk (it was a little creepy how much she smiled), boxed our little cupcake up in a cute little plastic box, which allowed the tip of the icing to stick out just slightly. She asked if the box needed a bow...we declined. No need. I have to admit the presentation was cute. But home the cupcake went, and into the fridge until we were ready to eat it.

A few hours later, we stopped in another shopping center near the house and went into another cupcake place that was simply called Cupcakes of Boynton.


They had 2 small cases full of cupcakes, including one that was made into a Panda Bear and was incredibly cute. The flavors were more creative than Sweet Surrender. They were also standard cupcake size, unless, of course, they were built up into an animal or something. We chose the Strawberry Shortcake cupcake (Website description: Butter vanilla cake filled with strawberry preserves and vanilla whipped cream, topped with a fresh strawberry.)

The cupcake was packaged up in a clear plastic bowl type thing. Almost like what a sundae from McDonald's would come in. Again, that cupcake went home until we were ready to cut and share them.

The opportunity came 2 days later - on our last night in Boynton. After an incredibly delicious Italian dinner, we went home and cut the cupcakes in half. Here is what we found...


The Sweet Surrender was definitely nothing special, and kind of dry. And I don't think it had anything to do with being in the fridge for 2 days because the other cupcake was still nice and moist. The cupcake had cost us $2.75 (a little steep for a not-that-special, average size cupcake). It wasn't that chocolate-y, and there was too much icing. We will not be going back there, unless, they come up with some new stuffed cupcakes.


The Cupcakes of Boynton cupcake was pretty good. It was still moist, and our main complaint was that there needed to be more strawberry preserves in the middle - there was a tiny little drop, and it needed more! That cupcake cost us about $2.50, so we felt we got a better deal for the price and taste.



However, neither cupcake compared to our favorite cupcake places in NY and NJ. Keep trying, Boynton!!

Bite Size Halloween Treats!

Since I don't work on Friday's, I decided to treat my co-workers to some Halloween cupcakes on Thursday, so I whipped up a few batches of mini cupcakes.

I used white icing and red and yellow food coloring gel to get a deep orange color for the icing. And I got it on the first try - how about that!! (My husband can attest, he watched me).

Then I used some Halloween sprinkles we had (black and purple with white ghosts) to garnish the top. We got these sprinkles at the Christmas Tree Shops last year after Halloween - 50% off!! Good thing sprinkles don't go bad, so I could save them for this year!

I know my co-workers will be excited to see these cupcakes and they are the perfect bite-sized Halloween treat for a pick-me-up at work!

Yum!

Eating With A Travels...to Walt Disney World, FL!

OK, OK...so Disney World isn't exotic. But it IS a really fun place to visit and I love it. AND, my favorite place to eat there is located in MGM...er...I mean, Disney Hollywood Studios. (I hate the new name, it will always be MGM to me).

I'm talking about the 50's Prime Time Cafe. This place serves awesome food in huge portions and has such a fun atmosphere. It's American comfort food in a TV themed setting...and it feels like home! All of the tables are in "rooms" that are designed to look like kitchens from the 50's. There is a TV at each table playing scenes from 50's TV shows as well as news clips and commercials. The waiters and waitresses are "mom" and "dad" and yell at you to clean your plate, elbows off the table, and ask you how your day is going.


The first time I was there was when I was 16 with my parents and one of my friends. We had a blast and finished off our meals with s'mores. This plates of s'mores is like NOTHING you have ever seen before...the entire plate is full of a large graham cracker covered in perfectly placed marshmallows and chocolate. YUM!!

When I was 18, 3 friends and I were allowed to go to Disney by ourselves for our February school break and I dragged my friends there the day we went to MGM. This time I got in trouble for being sassy and had to stand in the corner for a minute. We have pictures. Of course, I finished off my meal with s'mores.

I went again during a college spring break when I was 20...and then not again until I was 29 with my husband when we went on out mini-honeymoon. However, that time I actually ordered something different... my husband got the s'mores and I got the 50's Boston Cream Cupcake!!

Oh my, that was delicious. It was this HUUUUGGE cupcake full of delicious boston cream filling. Two thumbs up!

I should probably also talk about their entrees - which are amazing. The fried chicken, to me, is worthy enough to stand up to good ol' southern cooking. The pot pies are so scrumptious and honestly, I feel like you can't go wrong with most of the menu. It's just old fashioned cooking in the middle of Disney.

I can't wait until the next time I go back - that is the one restaurant that is always on my list.

But make your reservations early! This place, like all Disney restaurants, fills up fast. You can make dining reservations up to 90 days before your visit so if you know you are going to Disney - call the reservations number and just get in the places you want - even if you don't know what days you will be in each park. At least you will have a spot in a restaurant and as things get closer and you have more of a plan, you can try to change it.

Have a magical day!