treating myself to a treat

In honor of the "Winter Solstice" I treated myself to a Crumb's cupcake last night.  I went for the featured Cupcake of the Month - Peppermint Hot Cocoa.  Great idea.

Crumbs gets a lot of slack from people who actually live in Manhattan.  Apparently, cupcakes from Magnolia, Sugar Sweet Sunshine, and Sweet Melissa are WAY better than Crumbs, but I beg to differ.  Well, maybe not differ, because I don't think any cupcake is any worse than the next, they are just special in their own way.  Crumbs should not only be recognized for the sheer mass of their cupcakes (that is the fat kid in me talking), but also for the crazy flavors.  The cupcake I ate last night was super moist and coated in crushed candy canes.  One may envision the texture being strange with a moist cake and a crunchy candy cane, but the candy cane was softened in a stale sense (deliciously stale that is) by sitting in the frosting.  It was a brilliant combination at the perfect time of year.

I may have just grossed you out, but I enjoy stale things.  Buttered popcorn, Smartfood popcorn, gummy candy, and animal crackers are much better stale than fresh.  Anyhoo...

My other favorite Crumbs flavor is Grasshopper - another mint and chocolate combo that has tiny, little chocolate chips around the edges.  The mint frosting is florescent green, too, which is mildly disturbing and wonderful at the same time.  What can I say?  I like mint and chocolate, and my favorite color is green.  I grew up eating Andes mints at Pops and Gammie's house, too.  It is a very comforting taste for me.