6th Annual Great St. Pete Cupcake Contest

I’m having a sugar crash right now writing this post because I just got back from the 6^th Annual Great St. Pete Cupcake Contest.  I just ate enough sweets to last me a month…

My mom joined me along with my friends Thao, Crystal, Kate & Brent.  Here’s our amazing spread of cupcakes:

I attended for the 5^th Annual Contest last year, which was held at the Morean Arts Center in downtown St. Pete.  I think that year they underestimated how much people like cupcakes because it was WAY too crowded and almost impossible to navigate.  This year, they moved to a larger venue just down the road – the Morean Center for Clay.  Lance and I had actually attended a Meet the Chefs event there last December. 

The contest is a mix of professional bakers and amateur cupcake enthusiasts.  This year I was especially impressed with the creativity in flavors and presentation.  There were Cookie Monsters, mini churros, a Ferris Wheel display, and dried pineapple "flowers" (I saw this technique at the "Cupcakes and Cocktails" event at the Epicurean Theatre last year...) 

You can try as many cupcakes as you’d like for free, but then it is $1 per ticket to vote for your favorites (the proceeds benefit the Morean Center).  Luckily most people bake mini cupcakes – although even with the small ones, it was impossible to try them all.  It’s best if you have someone that you can split them with so you can taste a wider variety. 

There were so many talented bakers, but a couple definitely stood out.  There was an apple cupcake that was so incredibly moist – that was one of the first I tried.  One cinnamon cupcake actually had a little liquor injector that let you squeeze Horchata into the center.   

There was a cupcake that had Earl Gray tea in the frosting embellished with an adorable fondant teacup! 

Probably my favorite of all though was the black forest cupcakes with chocolate dipped cherries and incredibly rich chocolate cupcakes. 

Judges select the best novice and professional bakers, then the tickets determine the People’s Choice awards.  Here are this year's winners:

Novice Category:

1st Place: Monica McLaughlin - Root Beer Float

2nd Place: Lauren Haught - Lime w/ Strawberry and Basil Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Professional Category:

1st Place: Diane Ratto - Peanut Butter Cream Banana Dream

2nd Place: Joyce King - Angry Orchard Apple Crumb

Specialty Category (Gluten or Vegan entries):

1st Place: Deborah Molise - Pumpkin Cheescake

2nd Place: Brittney Sherley - Vegan Double Mocha

People's Choice:

1st Place: Jen Jacobs - Chai Latte w/ Brown Butter Marscapone Buttercream

2nd Place: Michelle Saxton - Dark Chocolate Coffee w/ Cream Cheese Buttercream

Additional Awards:

Best Overall Frosting: Jen Jacobs - Chai Latte w/ Brown Butter Marscapone Buttercream

Best Chocolate of the Day: Michelle Garner - Junk Cupcake

Flavor Pop: Amy Turner - Bubble Gum Cupcake
Artistic Award: Melissa Howes - Honey w/ Strawberry & Earl Grey

Now time for a nap…

5th Annual Great St. Pete Cupcake Contest

 

Yesterday I went with my friend Raena to the Great St. Pete Cupcake Contest at the Morean Arts Center.  I wasn’t sure what to expect since I’d never attended before, but 1700 people had RSVP’d on facebook, so we got there early just in case.  Lucky we did, because there was a line down the block before it even started. 

While in line, they sold tickets for $1 each to vote for the “People’s Choice” cupcake.  I expected that meant each cupcake cost $1 – but when we got inside, it turned out that you could sample as many as you wanted for free! Then you voted on your favorites. 

Over 60 bakers participated in the contest – some amateurs and some professional bakers.  The whole gallery was packed with people – and there were so many varieties that it was impossible to try them all.  There were quite a few featuring bacon (I especially liked the Maple with Bourbon Buttercream).  I was impressed by the range of flavors and innovative presentations. 

And here were the winning flavors:

Novice Category:
1st Place: Lemon Blueberry Lavender - Michelle Saxton
2nd Place: Bottom of the 9th Bacon with Caramel Buttercream - Sarah Perkins
3rd Place: Banana Nutella - Jennifer Jacobs

Professional Category:
1st Place: Hopcakes - Lori Schmidt
2nd Place: Strawberry Coulis and Lemon Curd - Michelle Garner
3rd Place: Cannoli Cupcakes- Lori Schmidt

People’s Choice:
1st Place: Jennifer Jacob's Banana Nutella
2nd Place: Michelle Saxton's Lemon Blueberry Lavender