Hot Cakes, Ballard WA

I stopped by opening week having a few hours to kill before dinner on Capitol Hill.  I know that Hot Cakes has had a presence at a few markets in Seattle, but have never had the opportunity to sample their sweet offerings.

First off, I have to admit to being an ultimate consumer of purveyors of sweets.  I love sweets and in my next lifetime I would like to be a pastry chef.

Hot Cakes in Ballard is a gem.  My family and I enjoyed a few minutes sitting, watching and enjoying everything this sweet spot had to offer.

The space is rustic and offers a few tables and chairs to provide you with instant gratification of their delicious treats.

As I ate, I savored the flavors and textures worthy of the "Oh Wow!" stamp.  I would expect nothing less from Autumn Martin, an accomplished pastry chef and chocolatier extrodinare.

Anything you order is going to be fantastic.  I especially enjoyed my chocolate chip cookie (their cookies just came out of the oven at four in the afternoon) and a sip of my son's chocolate milkshake.  My husband enjoyed their signature molten chocolate cake, rich with a delicious taste of really good chocolate.  We later enjoyed a cinamon cardamom hand held pie (fantastic).

If you're looking for something sweet, head to Hot Cakes.

Out and About: Boehms Candies, Issaquah WA

As one of the Seattle areas oldest confectioners, Boehms Candies is an Issaquah icon.  Located just off I-90 in Issaquah, this sweet spot is sure to delight children of all ages.

When you pull into their parking lot, you'll take notice of the chalet design and you'll almost forget where you are.

Boehm's Candies offer a variety of over 150 chocolates and candies.  There is something to surely please any sweet tooth.  They are wonderful, and Mr. Boehm would say, "As High As The Alps On Quality". On special occasions, you'll find chocolates molded from unique sculptures including golf clubs, neck ties and other items to made your speicall occasion "sweet".

On a special weather day (e.g., when the sun is shining and the temp is over 80 degrees....which is rare in the Seattle area) it's a treat to head to Boehm's and have their hand dipped vanilla ice cream bar. It starts with vanilla ice cream, then it's dipped into their rich semi-sweet chocolate. It just takes a few minutes to harden and it's oh so good. None of the supermarket brands come even close to this delectable frozen treat.

On a rare spring afternoon, my husband and I escaped for this frozen goodness. He plain, I with nuts (I'm going to skip them next time). We sat in their adjacent garden and enjoyed our little treat.

Great for kids.  Great for adults.  Enjoy!

In The Kitchen - Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate Hazelnut Frosting

Have you every run into a recipe and said, "wow, that sounds great" only to find out that, "humm, that wasn't a great as I though it would be."  Well, that's this recipe.  It is a vanilla cupcake with a nutella based frosting.

First, I have to admit that the vanilla cake was good.  The texture and flavor was excatly what I would expect from a vanilla cake.  The combination of vanilla extract and vanilla beans really brought a wonderful flavor to the cake.  With oil, full fat sour cream and whole milk this cake was moist.  Thumbs up from the family taste testers.

Now, to the frosting.   I'm a big chocolate hazelnut fan.  The biggest brand out there is Nutella, but I prefer Justin's brand.  This frosting uses a Nutella base and I thought..."wow"!  Well, IMO there is too much sugar, and if I were to make this again I would cut the sugar down to 1/4 cup (versus the 2 cups called for in the recipe).  Although there was a nice aroma of chocolate, I was really put off by the very sweet and gritty texture of the frosting.  I topped them with bits of chocoalte and nonpareils.

Well, now it's time to get rid of them.  I had my one.  That's enough of that.  Now, off for a workout.