Frostitution

Frostitution. This is not a phrase I coined. I saw it or heard it so I can’t call it my own. However, it’s a phrase that is quite fitting for Seattle.

Just as donuts dominate the coffee Seattle scene, cupcakes dominate the sugary snack and special event scene. And cupcake bakeries are not shy about flaunting what they’ve got. They have spectacular marketing (Cupcake Royal’s “Does a Booty Good” is genius!), great smells wafting out into the city streets and tempting, delicious concoctions — Pina Colada cupcake, anyone? All of which are sure to draw in those looking for a momentary taste (or release) of happiness. Yes, it is like prostitution without the risk of catching an STD.

Since the early 2000’s cupcakes have been the “new” wedding cake, and Cupcake Wars in 2009 without a doubt bolstered cupcake popularity. I love sweets, but I’m more of a cookie and chocolate bar girl — the darker the better. However, Seattle has made me change my tune. I now (occasionally) crave the hurt-my-teeth sugary frosting and moist, rich cupcake bottom of many Seattle cupcake establishments. And I have “taste tested” many a cupcake. Here are my favorite establishments:

• Cupcake Royal — Ballard — amazing selection, great schwag and awesome staff
• The Yellow Leaf Cupcake Company — 4th Ave — the most amazing buttercream frosting, ever! Talk about frostitution…
• Top Shelf Cupcakes — Queen Anne — booze is a main ingredient in their cupcake recipe. Enough said.

So, are you a cupcake lover? Where do you like to get your cupcake on? 

 

Donuts (Doughnuts?) vs. Bagels

Given I’m an East Coaster by birth, I occasionally get a craving for a good ol’, boiled then baked, crusty-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside bagel. But that is hard to find in Seattle. Seattle seems to be the land of donuts. We have organic Mighty-O Donuts, hand-forged Top Pot Doughnuts and the mom-and-pop Family Donut Shop — all of which are Seattle originals. But don’t get me wrong. I love donuts too, but sometimes I just want a hearty, toasty, carb-filled creation with my favorite shmear (a.k.a. cream cheese.) It makes me long for the Northeast . . . just a bit.

Are you a donut or bagel kind of gal/guy? What’s your favorite shop?

Fragrant Seattle

Seattle is very smelly . . . in a good way.

If you are lucky enough to live in any of the neighborhoods in Seattle — Queen Anne, Fremont, Ballard, Magnolia — you no doubt have been treated to some lovely scents. It seems everyone has a garden full of great smelling flowers from lilacs, lavender, tulips and roses to several tiny, white, sweet-scented flowers that I have no idea what they are.

And if flowers aren’t really your thing, then there are all the wonderful coffee and food scents — from coffee beans roasting to baked goods baking and fabulous Thai, Indian and Himalayan scents that fill the air.

And you’re still not convinced Seattle smells great, then maybe the soft, salty sea air will make you smile. I love walking out of my apartment in the morning and breathing that air in.

How does your neighborhood or city smell?