Cupcake Bake-Off: Billy's vs. Sprinkles
March 2007
When baking cupcakes I've officially been converted to the batter published by Billy's Bakery (of NYC). Even Martha uses the man's Vanilla cupcake! Who am I to disagree? I admit that I do love the regular old box mix and have my own special ways of kicking it up and making it my own. But if I have enough time and the right ingredients on hand- Billy's my guy. Golden and spongy perfection.
However, whispers of dissension have reached my ears. The L.A. bakery set thinks Sprinkles can take on Billy's or even Magnolia (gasp!) any day. The whispers were persuasive enough to convince me to purchase the Sprinkles Vanilla Cupcake kit at Williams-Sonoma and give it a spin for Erin's birthday. Like I said, she's the best roommate ever and living in my kitchen she is forced to taste-test my baked goods all the time. No need to make her work on her b-day.
I'm the first to admit that the best ingredients make the best dishes, and since the ingredients listed had only the normal baking products like flour, bourbon vanilla, salt, etc. I can only imagine that they have some flippin' pixie-dust infused something because those cupcakes were OUTSTANDING. I made my own frosting. It was already a box mix, I can't give up THAT much control in my own kitchen. But I would turn in my right to scramble up recipes if I could make those. They were sweet without being too sugary, had a good depth of vanilla and a nice snap from the signature dotted sprinkle on top (included). Definitely worth the splurge at W-S.
I'm the first to admit that the best ingredients make the best dishes, and since the ingredients listed had only the normal baking products like flour, bourbon vanilla, salt, etc. I can only imagine that they have some flippin' pixie-dust infused something because those cupcakes were OUTSTANDING. I made my own frosting. It was already a box mix, I can't give up THAT much control in my own kitchen. But I would turn in my right to scramble up recipes if I could make those. They were sweet without being too sugary, had a good depth of vanilla and a nice snap from the signature dotted sprinkle on top (included). Definitely worth the splurge at W-S.
This batch is Vanilla, but in the near future I'd like to give their Red Velvet a spin. Disclaimer: Please do not interpret this as my vote for urban supremacy- my loyalty for NYC runs deep.
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