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She's here! She's here! Let the sweetness begin!



When I decided to devote the month of March to Cupcakes and Bake Shop Treats, I immediately thought of Jessie Oleson, a.k.a., CakeSpy. After all, her sweet and scrumptious blog is where I get my daily sugar fix. There, I feast on delicious interviews with bakers and pastry chefs, read about fun baking experiments, learn about bakeries all over the country, and of course, drool over the neverending stream of recipes, stunning photographs, and whimsical Cuppie art.

Truly, if anyone seems to be leading a fairy tale life, it's Jessie. She's one of the few people I know of who's able to make a living by combining her three greatest passions: writing, illustrating, and baked goods. She launched CakeSpy back in 2007, and was so successful at selling her artwork that she was able to quit her day job and devote all her time to "seeking sweetness in everyday life." She runs her "Dessert Detective Agency" from her home in Seattle, but has several Cake Gumshoes around the country sniffing out the latest and greatest in the world of dessert. 



I was curious to learn more about this extremely talented and enterprising sugar-fueled dessert dynamo, who recently purchased the Bluebottle Art Gallery in Seattle, and who just returned from a whirlwind trip to Paris, where she communed with the likes of gateaux, macarons, Roulé Cannelle, Tarte au Chocolat, Marie Antoinette, and a Black Currant Violet Religieuse. Oo-lah-lah, la vie est très bon!



Welcome, Jessie! I’ve been enjoying your posts about Paris! What was the most delicious dessert/pastry you ate there? Please share a few of your sweetest encounters!

Mon dieu! Well, my goal in Paris was to visit at least one pâtisserie in each arrondissement. And I did it! It was a great way to see the city as well, as it took me to neighborhoods I might not have found otherwise. I must admit, although it was not the flashiest of the bunch, I simply adored the "figue" pastry -- a fig and chocolate mixture enrobed in marzipan -- which was found at a few bakeries there. But in terms of bakeries I truly loved, topping the list are Pâtisserie des Rêves, Eric Kayser, Pierre Hermé, Ladurée, and Legay Choc. 


Read about Jessie's visit to Ladurée here.


The famous figue pastry.


Pierre Hermé chocolate macaron.<

All artwork in this post copyright © 2010 Jessie Oleson.

Are cupcakes taking over the world?

Besides lazing on the couch eating soup, they're studying to be great chefs!

"Literary Cupcakes"

They're blogging!

"Laptop Cupcakes"

They're even knitting!

"Knitting Cakes"

Yes, they're everywhere! And the person responsible? The one and only CakeSpy herself, Jessie Oleson, who'll be stopping by alphabet soup for a Cupcake Chat tomorrow!

You may already be a fan of her sweetly satisfying blog; perhaps you've purchased some great Cuppie inspired art or have read her weekly column at Serious Eats. Anyway, she's just returned from Paris, where she visited some legendary pâtisseries -- oh, the ecstasy! She's graciously taking time from her busy schedule ("busy" doesn't begin to describe it), to tell us more about her fairy tale life.

So stay close and watch for Cuppie!

Here's one more painting to tide you over till then:

"Choose"

To visit CakeSpy's Shop, click here!

More Cupcakes and Bake Shop Treats here.

*All artwork posted by permission, copyright © 2010 Jessie Oleson. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2010 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan's alphabet soup. All rights reserved.

I saw this adorable image at CakeSpy.com recently, and simply had to ask Head Spy, Jessie Oleson, for permission to post it here. It's got to be one of the cleverest ways ever, to present a cookie!

Turns out she created the drawing for a guest post she was doing for Serious Eats (see it here), featuring the recipe for Berlinerkranser wreath cookies. I love to make these buttery wreaths flavored with orange zest, because they always look beautiful on a cookie tray and are totally scrumptious, melt-in-your-mouth heaven. In case you're looking for a new cookie to impress your guests this holiday season, try Jessie's recipe, or the one I've always made, from the Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook:

CHRISTMAS WREATHS
(makes 54 cookies)

sugar
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup butter, softened
2 tsp. grated orange peel
2 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg white, beaten
red and green candied cherries, chopped

1. In large bowl, measure 1/2 cup sugar and next 5 ingredients. With mixer at low speed, beat ingredients until just mixed; increase speed to medium and beat 4 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. (Mixture may look dry.)

2. Preheat oven to 400°F. Take a heaping teaspoon-ful of dough at a time and roll it into 6-inch rope. Place each dough rope on cookie sheet in a circle, crossing ends over.

3. Brush cookies with egg white and sprinkle on some sugar. Decorate with red and green cherries.

4. Bake 10-12 minutes until light golden. Allow wreaths to cool on cookie sheet. Store cookies in a tightly covered container.

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*Bonus Recipe

Speaking of looking beautiful on a cookie tray, I also love these Neopolitan Cookies. They take a little more time, but are totally worth it. Nom nom all the way!

NEOPOLITAN COOKIES
(makes 72 cookies)


photo by mmwm.

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. almond extract
5 drops red food color
1 square unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. With mixer at low speed, beat flour, sugar, butter, egg, baking powder, vanilla and salt until just mixed. At medium speed, beat 3 minutes.

2. Divide dough among 3 small bowls. Add almond extract and red food color to one portion; stir until thoroughly mixed.

3. In 1-quart saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate. Mix chocolate into second portion; mix walnuts with remainder.

4. Line 9"x5" loaf pan wit