3.17.2013

02.23.13 Dessert. Cupcake Anarchy (Located in New Berlin, WI but delivery provided)

Cupcakes have made their amazing little niche in the food world lately.  I don't even know when this all started but what comes to mind are Sex and the City and the Magnolia bakery.  Also, who doesn't know Sprinkles?  I did a Google search "when did the cupcake craze start?" to see if I could get any background on this topic.  The top link was a Wikipedia page for Magnolia Bakery.  Per this page, it stated that Magnolia Bakery was "credited with starting a 1990s 'cupcake craze.'"  So, I guess that's the answer... because Wikipedia is the all knowing reference right?

Cupcake Delivery
I've noticed cupcake places popping up in the past couple of years here in good ol' Milwaukee.  We often see these places when we drive around but sometimes we miss out on the smaller companies that we only hear about via social media, word of mouth or via ads here and there in the Shepherd Express.  So, thought I'd blog about my cupcake experience with the Cupcake Anarchy. 

Through the blogging and foodie networking, I noticed a name that stood out, Cupcake Anarchy.  It made me smile and so thought I'd check it out.   Saw that the company was local and they had a bunch of great options for cupcake flavors.  It just so happened that I was going to have a gathering at my home with some friends and so I decided to place an order for some mini cupcakes.


Apple Pie, Brownie and Bacon Maple Whiskey
I got in contact with Karen, the Cupcake Anarchist, to see what she offered.  I wanted to get two dozen cupcakes because sometimes, people don't want a full cupcake but still want a cupcake ya know?  And, who's going to only take half a cupcake at a party? Most won't.  And, it's time consuming to see who would do a "splitsies" with you.  Anyway, let me get of my tangent.  I asked her if she could do a mix and match for the two dozen mini cupcakes since there is a minimum number needed for the cupcakes (a dozen for the large and two dozen for the mini's).    She said she could and I left it up to her to pick the cupcakes to include in the two dozen.  I can sometimes be indecisive and with the number of flavors, I was struggling.  So, I left it up to her since she knows the cupcakes the best.   Prior to her deciding, she asked me if there were any allergies she had to be concerned about which was thorough and considerate of her. 


Vegan Chocolate, Coconut Cream and Cookie Dough
I provided her almost two weeks in advance notice for it which was plenty of time for her to plan.  Per the Facebook site, one week notice is requested for orders of two dozen or more and two weeks for custom cupcakes... yes, I said custom.  In addition to four categories (traditional, seasonal, anarchist and booze-infused cupcakes) of almost 90 cupcakes, you can request a cupcake of your own creation.  Something to also note is that they offer vegan and gluten-free options.   Karen got in touch with me and we set plans for her to deliver to my home the morning of the event.  Delivery is always a nice perk.  The boxes were nice because the cupcake had their own little slots that prevented them from sliding around and the box was tall enough that there wasn't a risk for smearing the frosting.  Some were so snug in their house though that they were a tad hard to get out but that's no biggie because if worse came to worse, cut into the box a tad.  The flavors she chose for me was a surprised and I didn't find out until I received them.  The flavors that she included in the dozen were apple pie, vegan chocolate chocolate, bacon maple whiskey, coconut cream, cookie dough and brownie.  There was four of each flavor.
 
I had about nine ladies over for a little gathering and the cupcakes were our dessert.  I asked those that ate the cupcakes, to provide some feedback on them.  So, here we go, let's get into the nitty gritty of the Cupcake Anarchy mini cupcakes. 

We will review the cupcakes in an order that I placed them in regard to which I liked the most to the one I liked the least out of the group.   But, I will include some thoughts that were provided to by the group as well.

Cupcake 1: Coconut cream
Our thoughts:  Definitely the one that people enjoyed the most.   Obviously though, if you don't like coconut, you might not find it you favorite.  But, even if you don't like coconut, I would recommend trying this one because it is delicious.  It's not too sweet or overwhelmed with coconut flavor.  I neglected to try the cake and frosting separately so not completely sure if there is coconut in just the cake, just the frosting, or both. 

Cupcake 2: Cookie Dough
Our thoughts:  The swirl to the frosting is pretty.  When you cut into the cupcake, you can definitely see that it's filled with cookie dough.  This was my second favorite.  I'm not always the biggest fan of cookie dough desserts but this one I enjoyed quite a bit.  Definitely a sweeter cupcake than the coconut cream.  This is a cupcake that I would like a mini versus a full one unless I had a nice cup of coffee to eat with it.  I can see this one being a popular among the masses.

Cupcake 3:  Vegan Chocolate
My thoughts:  I struggled with placing this one at third instead of second.  I think the main reason cookie dough beat this one out is due to how pretty and fun cookie dough looked.  What I enjoyed about the vegan chocolate cupcake is that they were nice and moist and the cake was a little more spongy versus a more dense cupcake.  This cupcake wasn't too sweet either which surprised me.  I'm typically not a huge fan of chocolate on chocolate but it was sooooo good, I had to have a half of another one.  (Yes, I did a splitsie and left the other half hanging only because it was my party and I could do what I want.  I actually broke all my rules by cutting them all in half because I wanted people to get the opportunity to try a little of each flavor and not feel bad about hogging all the cupcakes.)

Cupcake 4: Apple Pie
Our thoughts:  This one was another favorite for the group.  This one was so cute with its piping work and the apples on top.  Apples were also in the cupcake.  The cake itself was drier than the other ones.  But, we all found it rather enjoyable with this specific cupcake because, as Katie best stated, "it reminds her of an actual pie crust."  This cupcake is one that lives up to its flavor and name.  Definitely not only tastes like an apple pie but has all the textures of one including the fresh apple compote that it was filled with.

Cupcake 5: Brownie
My thoughts: Definitely had a struggle with where to put brownie.  Apple pie beat it out because of how pretty it looked.  I'm a sucker for presentation.  Brownie was oh so delicious but a little too rich and sweet for my liking.  It definitely wasn't bad and I almost feel bad placing is in fifth of six cupcakes but I think it's more of my bias of preferring fruit desserts over chocolate.  Also, if I do have something chocolatey, I prefer it to be less rich.  As said with the cookie dough one, it would pair very well with a cup of Coffee or glass of milk.  It was a treat to have the pieces of brownie because of the texture it added to it.  It was a little more chewy which I love about a good brownie.  The frosting was oh so good.  I had the childlike urge to lick the frosting off of all the brownie ones.  But, that definitely would have crossed the "I do what I want" line.

Cupcake 6:  Bacon Maple Whiskey
I wanted to love this one because if you know me, I love me some bacon.  The bacon was surprisingly still crisp.  And, when you take a nice even bite of the cake and frosting, it's actually pretty good.  But, the whiskey was definitely present and a stronger flavor than I would have liked.  I enjoy a whiskey here and there so that's why i was surprised I didn't love it in a cake.   It makes me think that it would a "guy friendly cupcake."  Could be a nice little valentine's present for a guy or even as a grooms cake if people go the cupcake route.  The maple frosting was delicious and I would be interested in having this on an apple flavored cake or even a nut flavored cake.  Perhaps if the bacon was crumbled over the top to disperse it out a little more, you can get a little bit in each bite  Definitely wouldn't be as pretty but with this cupcake, having even amounts in each bite would be nice. 

Brownie and Cookie Dough Splitsies
Overall, the cupcakes were very good.  The actual cake part of the cupcakes was inconsistent in regard to how moist they were.  Some were dry and some were perfect.  I'm definitely not a cupcake connoisseur but this was the group consensus.  From my mini cupcake experience from different smaller businesses and bakeries, I've noticed that it's tough to have consistently moist cupcakes.  The common trend with the cupcakes we had from Cupcake Anarchy were that the ones that had filling in the middle had a cake that was more moist.  But, I did have a few cupcake left over and put them in a Tupperware together and had them the next day.  They were definitely all a tad more moist.  Perhaps it was because of the container they are kept in?  I'm not quite sure.  Could it have been when they were made?  Or, I did see an episode of DC cupcakes and they did comment that if the batter is over mixed, it could be dry.  I'm not much of a baker other than things out of the box baking.  I prefer the decorating part versus the measuring and mixing.

Tower of Cupcakes
Despite them being a little dry there were a lot of good things that would make me want more. The flavors and all the flavor options are impressive.  I can't speak for all of them but the ones we had lived up to their names and what flavors they had in them.  The best part of the cupcakes was the frosting.  I could have eaten the frosting off of all of the cupcakes.  They had such great flavor, weren't too sweet and the consistency was divine.  It wasn't hard, dry or gritty.

Would I get cupcakes again?  Definitely.  I would try the regular cupcakes versus the minis.  There are so many fun flavors and options that it wants you to keep coming back.  Also, being a follower of Cupcake Anarchy on Facebook is a tease due to all the awesome pictures and the seasonal cupcakes that are offered are always fun.   I would recommend following them if you enjoy some food eye candy.  It definitely reflects the art side of food.

Do yourself a favor and check Cupcake Anarchy out.  Cheers!

Cupcake Anarchy
info@cupcakeanarchy.com
(262) 844-8712

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