Competitive Cupcakes

Danielle Ackerman carefully placed 3 of her flame-topped Spicy Hot Chocolate cupcakes on the judging table and took a seat nearby to watch the festivities. A graphic designer and amateur baker, Danielle hoped to win first prize in the Moorestown Iron Cupcake Challenge.

Bakers from the Greater Philadelphia area gathered at Tortilla Press Cantina in Pennsauken, NJ for the first cupcake challenge of 2010. Each month, the competition features a different secret ingredient. In this case, it was chilis. Organized by Kati Angelini of Kati’s Kupcakes, the contest was well attended with over 150 cupcake fans. A portion of the proceeds of this March gathering will go towards Haitian Relief efforts. Each cupcake challenge features a different charity and past events have supported the Boys and Girls Club of Camden County, the Knight Park Playground Foundation, and the Ronald McDonald House (just to name a few). The 2009 events raised over $3000 for various philanthropies.

Before gorging myself on cupcakes, I sampled the tasty buffet of Mexican food. The pulled pork was awesome, but you know I have a fondness for pulled pork so I’m pretty biased on the subject. Also, as much as I wanted to save room for cupcakes, I couldn’t stop myself from eating all of the sweet mango chicken.

After everyone finished the Mexican food, it was time to meet the judges for the event.

Chef Mark Smith of Tortilla Press Cantina

Liz Rocco of Rocco’s Gourmet Catering

Chio of 96.5 Chio in the Morning

What were the judges looking for in a good cupcake? Liz stressed the importance of a moist cake with soft whipped icing. I second this thought. I could dive into a soft cupcake. I would walk 500 miles for decent icing (which just goes to show you how much I love icing and also 80s music references). Speaking of music, Chio thought the entries were very competitive although he admitted, “I’m a chocolate guy so those did better on my scales.”  But what about the chilis? Were the cupcakes too spicy, I wondered? Mark reported that you could taste the the chilis with a few of the cupcakes and some of them had a real kick. 

Once the judges had their fill, everyone was able to help themselves to cupcakes. Kevin and I ate more than our fair share. At 21 months, Evangeline Weimer enjoyed one of the chocolate cupcakes.

As you can see, the competition was fierce. 

Kids division results:
1st place: Chocolate Chili Chili Cupcakes: Matt Angelini
2nd place: Triple C Chocolate Cupcakes: Alexis Angelini
3rd place: Chili Surprise Cupcakes: Joshuah Pike

Adult division results:
1st place: Dark Chocolate Molten Chili Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting: Nicole Jaconetti
2nd place: Jalepeno Peanut Cupcakes with Spicy Brittle: Joanne DeWald
3rd place: Spicy Hot Chocolate Cupcakes: Danielle Ackerman 

Turns out, contest winner Nicole is a professional baker– you can check her sweets and pastries out here. I’m hoping to schedule an interview so you’ll be able to read her story and recipe here soon. Stay tuned . . .

Lessons learned:
-Kevin can eat 3 more cupcakes than I can and he’ll still want to go out for cannolis afterwards. I’m envious of his metabolism.
-Mexican food + cupcakes is a great combination
-I was nervous before going in to the restaurant. Other than my husband, I didn’t know anyone at the event and I sometimes feel shy. Turns out that people who like cupcakes are really nice and friendly.