"BAKED DESSERTS CAFE" CUPCAKES

It’s been awhile since my last blog post, and for this I apologize.  I was trying to find my way out of the mounds of work piled high around me.  It’s crazy to think that 9 months ago I was making my way to Maryland to start my internship, and now I am only weeks away from completing it!  With graduation only a few short days away, celebrations are going to be in order.  And I know exactly how to celebrate.  With cupcakes.  Cupcakes from the Baked Desserts Café in Berlin, MD. 

My current preceptors introduced me to these marvels a few weeks back.  They ordered them for my birthday.   While I have never been a cupcake fan (seriously, I’d rather eat greek yogurt or ice cream instead), they seemed very excited about ordering these specific cupcakes.  I went along with it as I was very grateful for the gesture, and I knew it was the thought that count.  I did not realize this dessert would become one of the most memorable events of my 25^th birthday.    

I don’t think I’ve ever tasted a cupcake this good. And a GLUTEN-FREE cupcake nonetheless!!  Let me first describe to you the presentation of this cupcake.  Extra dense, subtly sweet vanilla cake topped with perfectly swirled strawberry frosting and a tiny white fondant flower perched off to one side (sort of like those beret hats that people wear in France).   This wonderful concoction was set in a heavy duty chocolate brown paper liner.  It was so attractive, I didn’t want to eat it!

                But I did. 

And it was the best cupcake I have ever tasted.  I honestly don’t think any other cupcake could outdo the one I had that day.  I loved that the cake was dense; it didn’t crumble as you picked it up and peeled it away from its liner.  And the frosting…Ohh, the frosting.  I could not tell you what was in it, but I swear an angel made it.  It was creamy and smooth, yet light-tasting.  It didn’t leave that caked feeling on the roof of your mouth when you finished eating it.  And they used fresh strawberries in this frosting. FRESH!  That’s not something you find every day.  
 

This was the kind of cupcake that looked small, but in actuality was heavy, dense, and gave you that “Whoa! That was so good, and now I’m stuffed….But I want more” feeling.  At first I thought my preceptors went a little overboard when they ordered 8 cupcakes for 3 of us, but now I understand why they did so.   We ended up celebrating my birthday for 3 days.   3 glorious days filled with cupcakes. 

People are often shocked when, as a dietitian, I eat things like ice cream, cookies, and chocolate.  But when it comes to eating, consuming all foods in moderation is really the key.  While cupcakes do not provide one with many nutrients, they are okay to eat every once in a while when your diet consists of mostly healthy, nutrient dense foods.  We often tell people that as long as your diet consists of 80% nutrient rich foods, the other 20% can be from foods that do not provide the body with as many benefits.  

So if you ever make it out to Maryland, head over to Berlin and find the “Baked Desserts Café”.  Ask for a gluten free cupcake with the fruit flavored frosting.  Your life will be changed.  I can guarantee it.