Sweet Themez Bakery Celebrates Adams Morgan Day

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Adams Morgan bakery, Sweet Themez, celebrated Adams Morgan Day by cooking up some of their yummy cakes and cupcakes. Owners Adrienne and Maurice were featured on Fox 5 this morning and showcased one of my favorites: their Louis Vuitton cupcakes. Adrienne, Sweet Themez's chief baker, also had her flavorful cake pops on hand. Their red velvet cake pops are also my favorite due to their size (imagine a cupcake on a stick), moist texture and flavor. 

Check out my review of their shop and then taste the real thing at the DC to NYC Cupcake Happy Hour hosted by yours truly on Thursday, September 13, 2012 from 6-9PM at the Blue Banana Sports bar. Sweet Themez will be providing some of my favorites: Grandma's Pound Cake cupcakes, vegan red velvet, and Sweet Satisfaction (a caramel turtle cupcake). Be one of the first 25 people there to receive a gift bag complete with a red velvet cake pop. Don't miss it! 

                        

The Butterscotch Shop

Mini Lemonade Cupcakes/ Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop

Review:  The Butterscotch Shop 

Location: Online/ Waldorf Farmer's Market 

Flavors: 14 Karot, What is that velvet?, Lemonade, Glory, and Sprinkle Me

Price: $20 per dozen

Score: 4.8

One of the challenges that bakers face is recreating the ‘magic’ with each batch.  Perfection gets sold while less-than-perfect gets tossed so; it’s a rare treat when you come across cupcakes that merge commercial uniformity with homemade goodness. To put it plainly, The Butterscotch Shop is the bomb!

Glory Pound Cake Cupcakes  /Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop 

On a sunny Saturday morning, I would be gifted a box of six cupcakes containing five flavors:  14 Karot, What is that velvet?, Lemonade, Glory, and Sprinkle Me. I coordinated a meeting with owner Brandiss Smith, to pick-up cupcakes from her booth at the annual BowieFest. Meeting Brandiss and her husband was an absolute pleasure and I watched as each customer was treated with patience and kid gloves.

Lemonade Sunflower Cupcake/ Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop 

Driving home with my cupcakes on the passenger side was so tempting but I refrained. Once I opened my cupcake container I immediately went for the lemonade cupcake which was the outlier in the group. The cake was crumbly and dense like it was a day old. The frosting was creamy but lifeless and didn't compliment the cake.

What is that Velvet? Cupcakes/ Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop

With a website that boasts over 20 different flavors and a dozen retailing for $20 (plus a small delivery fee), I knew that there was goodness somewhere in my container of cupcakes. I didn’t lose hope. I chose the Glory cupcake next and was instantly in heaven! The cupcake was blissful with a slight icing drizzle. The texture was moist but with the expected density of a pound cake.

Eager, I went for the What is that Velvet? cupcake which also had a moist texture and the perfect chocolate flavor. The icing was cream cheese, I believe, but it tasted like heaven on my tongue.  

Sprinkle Me Cupcakes/ Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop

Next up was the Sprinkle Me cupcake which was my favorite cupcake of the bunch. The texture was ultra-moist and flavorful. In fact, Butterscotch’s frosting is a true winner!  The homemade goodness is like nothing I’ve ever tasted on a commercial-grade cupcake. It reminded me of my grandmother's recipes which are hard to replicate (I know because I’ve tried).  Kudos to The Butterscotch Shop for that!

14 Karot Cupcake/ Photo Courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop

My final cupcake was the 14 Karot cupcake. What I loved most is that the cupcake wasn’t overrun with nuts or raisins which can get stuck in my teeth. Instead, biting into the carrot cake cupcake was delightfully moist, spiced to perfection, and that signature frosting acted as the bow on my cupcake present.

Look at all the sprinkles!/Photo courtesy of The Butterscotch Shop

Overall The Butterscotch Shop is amazing and there aren’t enough adjectives to describe how much I enjoyed these cupcakes. The best thing that you can do is visit them every Saturday at the Waldorf Farmer’s market from 9AM until 1 PM. Or place an order online and see for yourself the cupcake-goodness.

Happy Eating Cupcake Lovers!

*The cupcakes in this review were gifted however that did not persuade the thoughts of the reviewer. 

Sweet Themez

Sweet Themez Sign (Photo courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)

                      

 Location: Sweet Themez 2318 18th Street NW, Adams Morgan

Flavors: Lemon and Pound cake

Cost: $2.75

Score: 4.8

Located in the effervescent neighborhood of Adams Morgan, sits a delectable cupcake shop named Sweet Themez. The basement bakery offers up cupcakes and cake pops in flavors ranging from pound cake to peanut butter crunch and sweet potato.  In total, they have 15 daily flavors and 10 seasonal flavors (not including their gluten-free and vegan options).  

Several cupcake flavors! (Photos courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)

Sitting a half mile from the DuPont Circle Metro station, taking the bus there would be ideal.  Parking in Adams Morgan is difficult but I found a space a block away.  Walking into the petite shop, I was immediately greeted by the store clerk. He was more than eager to take my order and had the calmness one would expect from your local bartender; telling him all your tales of woe and saying, “Barkeep…more pound cake please and keep’em coming”. He was cooler than cool.



              

                               Counter filled with cake pops (Photos courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)



Despite having so many options, I took the simple road and ordered the pound cake with butter cream frosting and raspberry swirl. It sounds complicated but trust me, it was oh so heavenly.  My secondary choice was my standard lemon.  My total for the two cupcakes was only $5.50! When I asked for a bag, the clerkpulled out a reusable bag that comes in a small carrying case and unfolds into a full shopping bag. That bag fascinated me like a two year-old playing with their mother’s pots.

My American Express Reusable Bag (Photos courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)

I was even more surprised that they are open until 1AM (or until they run out), Thursday through Saturday! It reminded me of the many inebriated nights out when me and my friends, or my date, desperately desired a cupcake but knew we wouldn’t be able to score anything at such an ungodly hour. Problem. Solved.    

Eating these cupcakes made me happy. Traditionally pound cake isn’t served with frosting; maybe a fruit compote or powdered sugar but not frosting. The use of frosting fascinated me however this cupcake explained it all in one bite. The butter cream frosting quietly vindicated itself as it merged with the cake’s traditionally dense nature.  The raspberry jam converged with the notes of lemon and held up the overall flavor like a perfectly wrapped bow at Christmas. My present was the music this cupcake was making in my mouth.

(L-R) Lemon Cupcake & Poundcake Cupcake (Photos courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)

The lemon cupcake was good as well. The texture was appropriate and the flavor was just right. However my only hang-up was that the frosting was more of a pudding than an actual butter cream base. However it didn’t deter me at all. Overall, Sweet Themez has found a deep place in my heart and I will be back again, and again, and again. Happy Eating Cupcake Lovers!

Sweet Themez Outdoor Sign (Photos courtesy of The Cupcake Critic)





Baked by MSquared

Name: MSquared

Location: Varies

Price: $3.50

Flavors: Pound Cake

Score: 4

I attended H Street Bakes and while there I was pleased to discover Baked by MSquared. Nestled in the back corner of the venue was a primly decorated booth filled with treats. Manning the booth was Melissa Jackson, one-half of the MSquared team, while her partner Mallory was off that day. (Get it? Mallory + Melissa =MSquared!)

Smiling brightly, Melissa’s gracious personality bubbled over into her wares as the table featured several baked delights including: pound cake cupcakes, chocolate ganache covered pound cupcakes, cookies and peach cobbler in a jar-AWESOME! How inventive is a pound cake cupcake? And for $3.50 no less! I couldn’t resist and purchased one of the plain pound cake cupcakes (the critic isn’t too big on chocolate) and one peach cobbler in a jar.

Having hit up two other vendors in the same day, it took me a day or two to actually eat the pound cake cupcake. Known for its density and overall difficulty to master, I eagerly dug in and was blissfully surprised at how moist and tasty the pound cake cupcake was. The presentation was exquisite as the cupcake liner was a thick gold leaf wrapping that treated the eyes while the cupcake treated the palate.


Regarding accessibility, sadly, MSquared doesn’t have a store front or even regular rotation in a commercial venue to find their treats. Further their specialty isn’t cupcakes but their desserts are a treat that must be experienced. Feel free to contact them on twitter @BakedbyMsquared to learn more about their pastry and delivery options.

*Originally published on October 28, 2011