Friday, November 26, 2010

Day-Glo Faygo Cupcakes

Soft, moist, flavorful, and vivid enough to resemble colors of nail polish that lil' ol' quirky and whimsical moi would wear ... welcome to the wonderful world of Faygo cupcakes!

These are a uniquely Michigan product -- created by the Just Baked bakery in Livonia (30 minutes or so from Ann Arbor, with a store here in town) using a legendary soda made in Detroit. They come in three flavors: Orange, Grape, and Redpop (strawberry).

I'd heard about them for several weeks -- they're being sold not only at the Just Baked shops, but also at locally-owned grocery store chains Hiller's and Busch's. So, of course, near-omnivore that I am with a hearty sweet tooth, I had to give them a try!

Tom and I went into the bakery the other day, and asked if we could buy a couple of them; no, sorry, they're packaged by the half-dozen for mass retail sales so they can't be sold individually. Well, we didn't need 6 cupcakes no matter how festive they were. So we were thrilled to have the sales clerk offer to give us a sample, and to even ask which flavors we'd like to taste. Hmmm ... ye olde decision-making brain fizzle! Tom chose Orange and I chose Redpop, and we set to tasting and sharing.




Each of the cupcakes had a distinct flavor of the soda they are made with; and our charming hostess told us that no food colorings are used in creating the depth of color in the treats -- the soda alone provides the hue. They were moist, they were flavorful, they were very sweet, and the frosting was silky smooth ... sigh ... :)

These cupcakes would be perfect for a kids' party, in particular. They would also be a perfect way to support multiple Michigan businesses at once, if one were serving state-themed goodies for the Michigan-Ohio State game at noon on Saturday -- show some love to the Great Lakes State against its superarchrival, yeah!!! (Maize 'n' Blue food is perfectly alright, but buying these cupcakes would be an investment in our economy ... and no, that's not just my way of rationalizing a sugar fix!)

Of course, after being treated so hospitably we didn't have the heart to leave the shop without buying anything ... what a couple of mentsches ([MENT-shez] = good people) we are, huh???

So we decided to try one Chocolate Peanut Butter cupcake -- chocolate cake filled with peanut butter frosting, topped with more peanut butter frosting that is then coated in chocolate -- and a Samoa cupcake with chocolate-drizzled coconut and caramel over a yellow cupcake, in honor of the famous Girl Scout cookie of the same name. Yeah, what a way to spend a Saturday afternoon, huh???


The Samoa cupcake was a bit dry, though the coconut-caramel-chocolate topping was sweet and sticky and wonderful to savor even when it separated from the crumbly cake. The Chocolate Peanut Butter one was rich and smooth and absolutely luscious ... definitely one I would eat more (lots more!) of.


In closing, let me just brag about my state and its delicious goodies and great businesses one more time ... humor me, please. Detroit gets so much bad press that I want to really tout this particular tidbit of news, 'cause it's just a happy little item. Serious Eats, an enormous NYC-based site devoted to all things food (recipes, articles, chatting, photos, etc.) recently did a taste test of regionally produced root beers. Well, you only get one guess as to which was the winner ... come on, you know the answer ... FAYGO, yay!!! Truly, we are a proud bunch here ... :)



504 Main





12 comments:

Karen Harris said...

I discovered what Faygo is from their contest lot long ago. Since they don't sell it in these parts I couldn't particicpate. Now, after your review I'm green with envy that they don't sell those cupcakes here.

Mika said...

Great cupcakes! I'm now following from the blog hop. You can follow me at www.mikaspantry.blogspot.com

I have a food blog too!
Thanks!

KimMalk said...

Hi Food Floozie, it's fun to read about Faygo cupcakes. I'm from the Detroit area and was married in Livonia. (We're now in Tampa, but most of our family is still in that area.)

Jacqui said...

Hi! I am your newest follower from a Friday Blog Hop. I would love it if you would follow back at one or all four of my blogs :)

www.singleparentretreat.com
http://singlemamachallenges.blogspot.com/
http://motherdaughterconnection.blogspot.com/
http://jmconsultingservices.blogspot.com/

Have a wonderful weekend!

Michelle said...

The colors in those cupcakes are a tad frightening. Is it okay to admit that? ;) The peanut butter cupcake, however, made me drool like crazy. I now seriously covet that darn little morsel.

Anonymous said...

I so wish we could get those Faygo cupcakes in NY!

I'm dropping by from the Friday hop, and am now a follower.

Stop by if you get a chance!

Coupon Clippin' Daddy

Heather Jones said...

Hi! I'm following from Monday Mingle. Congrats on the spotlight. Stop by when you can!


Heather From and Mommy Only Has Two Hands! and Lynhea Designs

Eliz Frank said...

Hi,
I am following you from Mingle Monday blog Hop.
Have a great week ahead.
Elizabeth

Cranberry Morning said...

...so then the rest of the story is that you went home and fell onto the couch in a sugar-induced coma? LOL I'm only laughing cuz I could totally do something like that, even if I've set my mind to staying away from sugar. There are times when it just calls my name...and what is a body to do???

Miriam said...

Yum. The chocolate peanut butter thing looks like it was invented just for me. Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters

Unknown said...

love love love the name of your blog! Thanks for linking up to FFF! Have a Fabulous week! www.LilysLaundryBlog.com

Holly Lefevre said...

I would love to get my hand on those cupcakes! The colors and the experience...FUN!


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