Jimmy's birthday was last Friday, and to help him celebrate I offered to make a batch of cupcakes for him to take to work. These, my friends, were what I consider to be a true labor of love. I've dubbed them "Jimmy Only Wants Chocolate" Cupcakes (since he kindly asked for me not to use any sort of funny/intense flavors) however I should have called them "Oh Yeah, You Had Better Love Me" Cupcakes - because they took about 3 hours on a work night. Granted, the three hours is because I bake slow, I like to clean up as I go if possible and I enjoy measuring things etc., but still...

Anyways, BuzzSugar let me borrow a book called Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans - who also wrote one of my favorite cookie books - and I debated over which ones to make. In the end, these ones stood out to me (the picture was beautiful, mine look nice, but not nearly as pretty as the stylized photo), and although it took hours (I essentially made 30 miniature layer cakes), it was actually one of the simplest recipes. So if you're in the mood for chocolate on chocolate topped with chocolate cupcakes, and are looking for something that will make people ooh & ahh, but really doesn't take more than just time, then check this recipe out. There are lots of pictures and details, so read more

Guess who was seen at Borders Books in New York City yesterday? To find out who it is, read more

With all of the wedding planning I've been doing over the last couple of days I hate to admit it, but I have romance on the mind... and I'm in the mood for chocolate dipped strawberries. Every week we get a new batch of fruit in the office and two weeks ago heralded the arrival of spring strawberries! The berries were plump, juicy, cool and absolutely divine. Chocolate dipped strawberries are a simply and super elegant dessert. My dad would make them at the "adult" dinner parties I would host when I was in 8th-9th grade and I thought they were the chic-est of desserts. If you've never made them before, don't be afraid, all you have to do is melt some chocolate and plunge the berries in. Make sure that the strawberries are completely dry before dunking and use your favorite type of chocolate. You'll find the recipe if you, read more

Equally as important as the food at a wedding reception are the drinks. People love to be invited to weddings because usually a large amount of alcohol is consumed and offered for free. This is great for the guests but not so great for the bride and groom. To cut back on the tremendous costs of alcohol serve a signature drink, beer, wine, and champagne. Hosting your wedding earlier in the day rather than at night is another way to cut the costs of the drinks because people tend to drink less during the day. Buy the wine by the case wholesale (instead of through the caterer) as most merchants provide discounts that may increase if you purchase multiple cases. Wine purchased through the caterer can cost twice as much and although he will charge you a corkage fee to pour in the long run you will be able to spend more money on other areas of the wedding (like the invitations!). Instead of buying regular sized bottles of wine get magnums (bottles double the size of a regular 350 ml bottle) as it costs less per ounce and you'll cut the cost of corkage in half. Don't offer champagne all night long but splurge on an extravagant bottle and make sure each guest gets a glass during a special toast to the happy newlyweds. To see the signature cocktails I've mixed up for Julie and Scott's wedding and the wine pairings to go with the menu please, read more

• You want to eat locally, but can you do it on a budget? The Pennywise Eat Local Challenge believes you can only eat foods within a 100-mile radius of where you live, for $10 a day. - SF Chronicle
• Don't limit yourself to the honey found inside the little bear at the grocery store. There are tons of different varieties of honey out there. Now if only we could find the bees... - Houston Chronicle
• For lovely, juicy food that really traps the flavor, slow and steady cooking is the only way to go. - LA Times
• Don't eat veal because it's too sad to think of little cows stuck in cages? Think again. Farmers are raising veal more humanely these days. - New York Times
• Every food lover knows, home-grown herbs can complement a favorite dish. - Chicago Tribune
• Can vegetarian Indian food satisfy Mr. Meat and Potatoes? I bet it can! - The Washington Post

I recently met up with a few other food bloggers and during the meet-up, Catherine of Food Musings mentioned an article that she read about how there weren't many things in America that most Americans could talk about. In fact, according to the article there were two things: Harry Potter and the Sopranos. We discussed that for a while and decided that American Idol should probably be added to that list too. I mean, I haven't even watched the show in several years and yet I find myself talking about it at least once or twice a week.

At any rate, it got me thinking - there had to be a better reason for a bunch of food bloggers to end up talking about American Idol. So I figured, why not host an American Idol themed food challenge. I know, it's a little bit hokey (okay, maybe a lot hokey), but you know you are secretly excited over this one. And the rules are pretty simple, all you have to do is come up with a dish inspired by American Idol. It can be a loose interpretation of the words (something red white and blue perhaps?), but if you want to make a cake shaped like Simon Cowell, that would be more than awesome.

Here's what you need to do to participate:

• Write about your creation by May 8 May 15 (be sure to include a link to this here post). If you don't have a blog, you can always sign up for a TeamSugar account and post it there.
• Send me an email by May 8 May 15 (the roundup will be posted on May 11 May 18) with the following information:

  - Your name & location
  - Your blog name
  - Permalink for your post
  - What you made and why
  - A 100x100 pixel image of your creation (optional)

Send the emails to yumsugar[at]gmail[dot]com with the subject "American Idol Creation" - I can't wait to see what you guys come up with! I'll post the full roundup on May 11th May 18th.

YumSugar Out!
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Oh and if you're wondering, that Sanjaya cookie came from the crazy folks over at Milk Fat.

I'm an avid traveler and big time country dropper. I like to pretend I'm a jet-setter and really do have friends all over the world. When I saw these cute little travel tags, I suddenly wished I wasn't planning Julie's Wedding but my own! Travel tags are something everyone can use, but don't necessarily buy for themselves - making the little tags a wonderful and practical favor! Slide a small piece of paper with each guests name written in the most beautiful calligraphy and voila! The favor becomes a placecard! Name the tables after your favorite travel destinations and loop a card that resembles a boarding pass with the name of each destination (table) through the black leather strap of the travel tag. Hang all of the travel tags/placecards on a large map with pretty glass head pins. In the future when your guests travel the world they will remember back to your wedding day!

On Sunday night I had the lovely opportunity to meet a few wonderful food bloggers face to face. From left to right we have Catherine of Food Musings (who was delightful and funny), the secretive couple from BunRab (who's site I didn't know but have since fallen in love with their photos and their wild story about how they were the first couple married at the French Laundry back when it just opened), Kristen of Give Me Some Food (who actually went to college with Adam, proving my theory that foodies somehow attract other foodies), and the visiting Adam of the The Amateur Gourmet (who's working on a book right now). Also present were Sam & Fred of Becks & Posh (who arrived soon after the photo was snapped and were even more charming than I imagined them to be). We ended up at Place Pigalle over in Hayes Valley (a neighborhood here in San Francisco). I'd never been there before and wasn't 100% sure where it was - that is, until I got there and realized I'd walked past it a bajillion times. It was a low-key bar with lots of beers on tap, a decent wine selection and a great happy hour price (pint of Stella less than 3 bucks). Plus it got bonus points for big booths and a foosball table.

So, what does a table full of food bloggers talk about? If you said food you'd only be partly correct. We also, somehow ended up talking about American pop-culture and American Idol for much longer than I'd like to admit. However we did talk a lot about food. Adam is visiting from New York and has a large list of places that he's hoping to make it to. In fact, the night before we met, he drove out to Yountville to visit Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc. Talking to him made me realize. Wow, I live here and I've never been to half the places he's going to make it to - this has got to change. I'm going to have to start going out more often...

Our conversation also made me realize the funny lengths we go to for a good meal. So tell me everyone, what's the furthest distance you've ever gone for a good meal?

And hey Adam, next time we meet I will (a) have a gift for you and (b) take you up on that foosball challenge.

Isn't it fabulous fun to think outside the box? Generally when making burritos I stick to the usual Tex-Mex inspired ingredients of beans, rice, and pepper jack cheese, but today I was in the mood to jazz things up a bit. Instead of using my usual chicken with tomato salsa and cilantro mixture, how about using mushrooms, green salsa, spinach, and goat cheese? Sound deliciously gourmet? Well it's made with store bought chicken making it easy and quick! I've never had goat cheese on a burrito before, but can imagine that it will be creamy and crumbly. The spinach will add a fresh crunch making this burrito a perfect on the go meal that you can scarf down before you meet the girls for cocktails. Get the recipe and read more

A great way to cut back the costs of a wedding reception is to offer guests wine, beer, champagne, and one signature cocktail instead of a full bar. Signature cocktails have become quite popular within the last few years and more and more couples have decided to create their very own specialty drink. There are several ways to go about creating your big day's cocktail. Start by either choosing a drink color (green, blue, red, clear, etc), a liquor base (vodka, rum, gin, etc), or a cocktail type (frozen, shaken, stirred, etc). Once you have made these decisions, build your drink from there. Like every other aspect of the party, consider the season and style of the event. If you are having a beach bash with orange and hot pink as your accent colors, a raspberry mojito is a great cocktail option.
Change the name to feature your personalities or particular place memorable to you as a couple (the park where you had your first kiss, the restaurant where he proposed, etc). After you've figured out the name and components of the drink, decide the best way to serve the signature. Will bartenders be mixing up fresh batches all night or is it easier for guests to serve themselves out of large pitchers set on the tables? Stay with the tone of your wedding - if it's more formal, waiters passing around the drinks on trays is chic and if it's more informal, large punch bowls on the tables would be fabulous. To help you create your signature cocktail, check out the wedding section at Stirrings - they have cool downloadable, personalized garnish labels. Oh and if you are a fabulous and single (!) girl like me, and are planning a party in the future, why not fashion your very own cocktail? Party-Sugartini anyone?