Robicelli's

IT’S FINALLY TIME. 

I honestly don’t know how I managed to wait this long. This is the best thing that’s happened to me since I found Brian Austin Greene’s rap CD at a garage sale (someone let that thing go for only fifty cents! Can you believe that?!?!?!)

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, chocolate ganache

Creamsicle: Orange cake, vanilla buttercream, candied orange peel

Strawberry Shortcake: Vanilla cake, strawberry syrup, mascarpone buttercream, strawberry compote

Toasted Almond: Almond cake, vanilla buttercream, toasted almonds

We’ve got cupcakes heading to stores today (of course), but we’ve got some BRAND SPANKING NEW BAKED GOODS in our online shop right this very second! Well, they’re not exactly NEW per se, but you haven’t seen them since last March, so there’s a good chance you forgot they existed. So “brand spanking new to you baked goods” then!

First up is……

PASSOVER SEA SALT BROWNIES!  We made these last year to sell at our now-bulldozed shop at DeKalb Market (RIP 2011-2012), and the entire lot which was meant for a few days sold out in two hours. They are that delicious.

Our Passover brownies are made without flour or leavening, using all Kosher ingredients and Made-In-NYC Streit’s Matzoh Meal. Since we’re not in a certified kashrut facility nor are we under Rabbinical supervision, these brownies are unfortunately not kosher. However if you don’t keep a kosher household, they’re as kosher as anything you’d make yourself. Matt and I also have professional experience working in kashrut kitchens, meaning we inspect our eggs, bake in disposable certified pans, etc. 

You can order them through our online store, and we’re going to be sending them to retail shops that want them! (And if you happen to be a retail shop we’re not working with but YOU want them, check out our wholesale page)

Next….

MATT’S FAMOUS IRISH SODA BREAD! And no, your eyes are not deceiving you- those are raisins in there. We all know by now how much I despise raisins with every fiber of my being and think they should fed only to prisoners and very bad children, but they’re kinda traditional in this instance and we can’t fight the man. But we can fight against raisins’ suckitude by using the golden variety (which for some reason I don’t think are evil- if you’ve read this blog for any period of time you know that logic isn’t my strong suit). And to fix them further, we rehydrate the raisins so they’re more like their former selves as grapes. We also decided that reconstituting them in water would be boring, so instead we use Drambuie, aka “Scotch whiskey blended with honey”. BOOM! CHECK OUT THOSE SKILLS, RAISINS!

If you want these shipped in time for St. Patrick’s Day, you’ll need to order them by 8am Tuesday morning. They’ll also be turning up at select locations, like Queen City Cupcakes in Patchogue and ALC in Bay Ridge. They’re wonderful sliced up and stored in the freezer, then toasted for a quick breakfast or accompaniment to a cuppa tea, or you can just eat an entire loaf whole to help stave off alcohol poisoning. After all, that’s what carbs are for.   

And finally- today’s cupcakes! You’ve got to venture out of the house to grab these, because we don’t ship them. But I just checked the Weather Channel and there’s no sort of snow/rain/fog/pollenpocolypse scheduled for today, so you should all be safe.

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, ganache, roasted walnuts

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Liddabit: Chocolate cake, salted caramel nougat buttercream, roasted peanuts

Oatmeal Cream Pie: Brown sugar oat cake, marshmallow buttercream, oat crisp

I’ve been sorta crappy at my life these past few weeks as my book deadline has approached- not sleeping, eating tons of junk, ignoring my kids, half-assing the blog, not acting like an idiot on Twitter. It’s been all stress and writing all the time, with occasional breaks to go to the doctor.

Most of all, I’ve been bummed that I haven’t been able to do more for Sandy Relief since this book has totally owned me (and you guys BETTER buy it with what I’ve been through! [shakes fist]), and I’ve been physically rehabbing from the accident in October. I know I’m one person, I’m not superhuman, that some people have told me that I’ve done enough, but I still don’t feel like it. I still feel sad and worthless against Sandy, still feel heartbroken for all my friends I see on Facebook struggling every single day.  We own a bakery- we’re not saving the world. 

Then good people like you give me perspective and remind me why we do this in the first place. We’re featured again on Fab.com this week- we’re selling hot cocoa, not rebuilding houses or counseling people. Last night I got this letter:

That’s the nicest letter anyone has ever sent me. I know how much food means to me- how every time I miss my grandmother I go have linguine at New Corner and don’t feel sad anymore, or how my heart is totally broken over the news that Hinsch’s is closing for good and will probably become something awful like an Arby’s, or how I ate a cake a day during the holidays because they were KILLING ME.  I got into food to make people happy, and sometimes between all the invoices and paperwork and other glamorous stuff, I forget we are actually responsible for some of those amazing moments ourselves. 

So now- let’s stop being sad and start being awesome again!

This Saturday, there’s TWO things you can do. First is a series of walks in Sandy-affected neighborhoods- “rallies”, really- that are raising awareness of how badly the government has failed our neighbors, and pleading for support. You can participate in Brooklyn (Coney & Gerritsen), Queens (Rockaway), Staten Island, Long Island, and four spots in New Jersey. Click on the flyer above to go to their Facebook page and learn more!

The second event Matt and I will be in attendance for- Shame on Sandy at Highline Stages. Tickets are expensive (and almost gone), BUT you’ll be eating food from Mario Batali, Michael White, April Bloomfield, Daniel Boulud, Eric Ripert, Jonathan Waxman and more of the best chefs in all of America. It’s a bargain when you think of it that way, AND 100% of the proceeds are going to the Mayor’s Fund. 

And today, go get some cupcakes or hot cocoa or brownies, and make yourself happy. You probably deserve it- I’m sure of it.

Oatmeal Cream Pie: Brown sugar oat cake, marshmallow buttercream, oat crisp

Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Butterbrew: Butterscotch soaked cake, butterscotch buttercream, edible gold dust

Car Bomb: Chocolate Guinness stout cake, Jameson whiskey ganache, Bailey’s buttercream

Straight flavors right now because I have an epic recap of WD-50 to write, a million emails to catch up on, and I STILL don’t have Internet in my apartment. Options are staying up until Starbucks opens at 5:30 so I can go use theirs, or delaying the post and grabbing some sleep. Guess which one I’m picking.

And Time Warner Cable, I hate you with the burning passion of 100000000 suns. Almost as much as I hate autocorrect.

Back later today! Promise! Go grab some of these and stay tuned!

Mudslide: Baileys Kahlua chocolate cake, mascarpone buttercream, Mudslide ganache

Blueberry Blintz: brown sugar cake, sour cream Bavarian filling and buttercream, blueberries, roasted almonds

Peach Melba: brown sugar cake, raspberry jam, vanilla buttercream, brown butter roasted peaches, graham crumbs

The Bluth: chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache.

I love love loooooooove weddings so much. :)

The groom in this picture is Mike, who I’ve been friends with since I was 5 years old. I love him more than most of my biological family. And he is, in part, one of the reasons that there is a Robicelli’s in the first place.

Growing up, I was a guys girl- my main group of friends consisted of seven “Bay Ridge guys” (if you’re from South Brooklyn, you get what that means). One night in January 1995, when we were 14 years old, we were hanging out drinking malt liquor- which FYI is the defacto standard weekend activity when you grow up in Bay Ridge. One of their birthdays was coming up, and I suggested we do something special- because as I’m a girl I’m actually considerate about crap like that. 

So one of the guys- we’ll call him “Luke” because that’s his real name- scoffs “Yeah, what are you going to do? Bake a cake?”, and starts laughing at me. I say “What, you don’t think I can’t make a cake?”. And he keeps laughing at me. So being the obstinate girl I am, I decide that yes, I am baking everyone a freaking cake, and I’m going to shove a big hunk of that cake right down his little throat and it’s going to taste like defeat. Rich, velvety, creamy defeat.

By the time I was 14 I had read the “Good Housekeeping Complete Illustrated Cookbook” about 973 times, I’d played with savory food (and poorly at that), but I’d never baked a single thing on my own in my life. My first ever, my “spite cake”, was a cheesecake which though very delicious, had a gigantic crack down the center. I whipped up a quick sauce with some frozen berries and covered the top so no one would notice, but it didn’t matter. Regardless of the fact that it was delicious, I knew it was flawed.

PS- to keep this from happening to you, cook AND cool your cheesecake in a hot water bath. Turn the oven off right as the cheesecake looks barely set in the center, then just keep it partially open until the oven and water are cool. Then cover the cake and let it set overnight in the refrigerator to allow the egg proteins to set. OR ignore all that advice, just cover it with strawberries and keep your damn mouth shut. You’re welcome.

With the memory of my cracked cheesecake haunting me, I did the only thing I could do - I started to learn everything I could about baking cake. When Luke turned 15 a few weeks later, he got a cake, too. Then for Mike’s birthday, which coincidentally is today, he asked me to make him a blueberry pie, so I started to expand my repertoire. And until we all went away to college, every single one of my friends got a cake, or pie, or bread or cookies or whatever on their birthday, 60% out of love, and 40% out of vengeful, vindictive spite.

On Saturday, 17 years and 6 months after that fateful night where Luke inadvertently taunted me into my career in an Olde English induced stupor, we were together again watching Mike and his new wife cut into a cake that I made with the man I married, the man who I met in a bar one night at talked about cake with until 10am the next morning. And behind them was the eventual product of my own personal fairy tale- a big tower of Robicelli’s cupcakes.

We’ve been a part of hundreds of weddings- for clients, for friends, for family, for strangers. Even before this business we both spent the majority of our careers working a large amount of banquets and catering.  They are checklists, set-ups, breakdowns, deliveries, vendors, planners, tuxedos and walkie-talkies. Weddings for Matt and I are a business. Even our own wedding, which we planned and executed ourselves, was like that in many ways.

This one was different. Maybe because seeing someone you love so much finally finding his other half, and having her be one of the most amazing women you’ve ever met, can make you as happy as if you were falling in love yourself. Maybe it’s because that in that moment, surrounded by the friends who have for the better part of my life been my brothers, I remembered that for all the headaches and hoopla and commercialism- weddings really, truly are one of the most perfect moments in life. And I am overwhelmed with gratitude that so many couples choose us to be such an important part of the greatest moment of their story.

As for my friends- we may not see each other every Friday night anymore, we might not all have as much in common as we did when we were kids, and not all of us survived to be there (we still miss you Sean. I didn’t forget it was your birthday today- happy 32nd in heaven, handsome. I’ll bake you a Car Bomb Cake when I get up there, I promise). Though I am grateful to them for helping me keep my head while coming of age, for accidentally launching my career, for inadvertently giving me the skill that would lead me to finding the man of my dreams- what I am most grateful for is that even as we are all getting older, whenever we get together, we still in so many ways are those idiot 14 year old kids getting drunk in Bay Ridge. And I had forgotten just how much I had missed that.

I love you guys. Even you, Luke. Even though you’re still a jerk sometimes.

What would be really lovely for all of you to do today is perhaps to pick up a cupcake for someone you love, just to put a smile on their face and remind them how much they mean to you. It’s always a good day for that, but today is an exceptionally good day.

Clockwise from front: Dark Chocolate Dulce, Coconut Custard, Root Beer Float, The Bluth

Dark Chocolate Dulce: Dark chocolate cake, dulce de leche buttercream, dark chocolate ganache, sea salt

Coconut Custard: Coconut cake, vanilla custard buttercream, roasted coconut

Root Beer Float: Root beer cake, root beer custard, vanilla buttercream, maraschino cherry

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market is closed Mondays, but will reopen tomorrow. All the cupcakes you see above, plus brownies, whoopie pies, and more, are going to select Robicelli’s retail partners. Availability varies per store- call ahead if you’re looking for something in particular.

It’s a super exciting DOUBLE holiday weekend made up of third string holidays! It’s Kentucky Derby day AND Cinco de Mayo! WHO’S ALREADY DRUNK?

First let’s talk about the Derby. All I knows about the ponies is that I’m almost 32 years old and I still don’t have one. So there’s that. Also at the Derby….

Lots of stupid hats! I don’t have any of those either. This is not my day.

Fortunately, what I DO have is our super duper special one-time-a-year-so-get-it-now-because-you-won’t-see-it-again-until-next-year-no-matter-how-much-you-beg cupcake- THE MINT JULEP! It’s a bourbon-mint cake and buttercream with a hand candied mint leaf on top. We designed this one about two years ago when we only needed to make maybe 60 cupcakes a week, and 60 hand candied mint leaves didn’t seem like all that much.  Fast forward to last night where Matt needed to make several hundred hand candied mint leaves, and you can understand not only why this will remain a once a year treat, but also why Matt isn’t speaking to me today.

Also this weekend is the 5th most important holiday of the year (after Christmas, New Years Eve, St. Patty’s Day and the night before Thanksgiving when all the college kids come home and get loaded)..

CINCO DE MAYO!!! Cinco de Mayo is the day where Americans from all over come together to remember en masse the marketing campaign Corona ran in the mid-nineties to get people to drink more Mexican beer. And boy did that one ever work!

MEXXXXIIICCCOOOOO!!!!!

Every year, I ask my friends who are going out what exactly they’re celebrating on Cinco de Mayo. And every year, I need to broadcast the single greatest response that I have ever heard in my life: “Cinco de Mayo is the day that New Mexico got it’s freedom from Regular Mexico”.

We’re celebrating the, ahem, independence and tremendous bravery of the people of New Mexico, by making- ok, you know what, I need to stop. I can’t even get through that in a joking manner. Everyone, sit your children down tonight and properly educate them about Cinco de Mayo, before it’s too late.  If our kids are one day going to be dancing on a bar somewhere doing tequila shooters, at least we can be at home with the peace of mind of knowing they are at least informed about history and not embarrassing themselves.

Back to cupcakes.

We’ve got three special Mexican inspired flavors today! Returning is the incredible Abuelita, a sexy little number made with chocolate, cinnamon and cajeta. We’ve got the Tres Leches, which is a contender for being our most popular cupcake ever (and also one of our oldest- the 3rd cupcake we ever made). And finally, The Bluth, which commemorates one of Mexico’s greatest culinary traditions- the Cornballer. Ok, maybe I’m stretching it on that last one, but it sure is tasty.

We’ll have lots of other flavors of cupcakes, whoopie pies, and ice cream sandwiches headed to DeKalb Market on Saturday, but these particular flavors are heading out RIGHT NOW. Go get them before they’re all gone!

Clockwise from front: Abuelita, Tres Leches, Bluth, Mint Julep

LIMITED EDITION! Mint Julep: Mint-bourbon cake and buttercream, hand candied mint leaf

Abuelita: Mexican chocolate cake, cajeta buttercream, ground Abuelita chocolate

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

___________________________

Cupcakes Available at:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Aloha Grinds: 77th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Bagel Schmagel: 76th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Crespella: 7th Avenue off 9th Street, Park Slope

Blue Apron Foods: Union Street off 7th Ave, Park Slope

Eastern District: Manhattan Ave off Eagle, Greenpoint

Brooklyn Standard: Nassau Street off Jewel, Greenpoint

Battery Place Market: 240 Murray Street, Financial District

Cake Shop: Ludlow btwn Stanton & Rivington, LES

Bar 5F at Bergdorf Goodman: 5th Avenue & 58th Street, 5th Floor, Manhattan

Queen City Cupcakes: 62 West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

________________________________

Whoopie Pies Available At:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Red Hook Lobster Pound: 284 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Queen City Cupcakes: 62 West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_________________________________

Brownies Available At:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Queen City Cupcakes: 62 West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Oaxaca Tacos: 250 4th Avenue- Park Slope Brooklyn; 251 Smith Street Cobble Hill Brooklyn; 16 Extra Place, LES Manhattan; 48 Greenwich Avenue, West Village, Manhattan

It’s May! Already! And we’ve got tons of important stuff that goes along with the May-ness!

1. MOTHER’S DAY ORDERING is now up and ready to go! And Mother’s Day is especially notable as it will be the day where we finally complete our Golden Girls collection by releasing “The Betty White”!  As we had started this silly practice three years ago as a way to cope with Bea Arthur’s death, we planned to only release these tribute cupcakes posthumously in order to help us cope by eating our feelings.  But then we didn’t want to feel like we were waiting for Betty White to die so we could release her cupcake.  So if there was ONE day a year for us to finally release it so we can properly honor our beloved Golden Girls, it’s Mother’s Day.

You’ll be able to order cupcakes for pickup AND special delivery on Mother’s Day in Brooklyn. Ordering closes next Friday, so hurry since I’m sure that absolutely none of us (myself included) realized that Mother’s Day was in less than two weeks.

2. We will NOT be at Madison Square Eats this spring, as we are totally booked with Internet Week, Techmunch, the Brooklyn Food Conference, Morrissey’s birthday at Union Hall, Janeane Garofalo at the Bell House, writing our book, and aaaaallll the events we’ve got going on at DeKalb Market (Steve Lawler on the 12th, Roller Derby the 18th, Bike-In Movie the 24th, etc).

But don’t be sad, Flatiron! Even though we won’t personally be there, you’ll still be able to get our Classic and Nutella Whoopie Pies via the Red Hook Lobster Pound!  And speaking of lobstah…..

3. CINCO DE MAYO LOBSTER FIESTA AT DEKALB MARKET THIS SATURDAY! Thirty bucks gets you a 1 1/2 pound steamed lobster, spicy potato salad, Mexican corn & jicama slaw.  We’ll have LOTS of special Cinco de Mayo cupcake flavors and ice cream sandwiches as well, which we’ll post later in the week. And if you need cupcakes for your own Cinco de Mayo celebration, shoot us an email! In other private order news….

4. Our once a year Mint Julep cupcake is being released this Friday just in time for the Kentucky Derby! We don’t have a fancy preordering form for this one like we do for Mother’s Day, so same deal- if you’re having a Derby party and need the fanciest cupcakes on the block, you should definitely get in touch. 

5. THE BLUTH IS BACK! RIGHT NOW! THIS VERY SECOND! GO GET IT! GO GO GO GO GO!!!

Clockwise from front: The Bluth, Tres Leches, Creamsicle, Bea Arthur

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Creamsicle: Orange cake, vanilla buttercream, hand candied orange peel

Bea Arthur: Black coffee brewed chocolate cake, cheesecake buttercream, espresso ganache

___________________________________

Cupcakes Available at:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn 

Hom: Third Avenue and 88th Street, Bay Ridge

Blue Apron Foods: Union Street off 7th Avenue, Park Slope

Tazza: Clark Street off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Battery Place Market: 240 Murray Street, Goldman Sachs Building

Joe Columbia University: West 120th btwn Broadway & Amsterdam, Morningside Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_______________________

Whoopie Pies Available At:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn 

Red Hook Lobster Pound: 284 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Tazza: Clark Street off Henry, AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_____________________

Brownies Available At:

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn 

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Oaxaca Tacos: 250 4th Avenue- Park Slope Brooklyn; 251 Smith Street Cobble Hill Brooklyn; 16 Extra Place, LES Manhattan; 48 Greenwich Avenue, West Village, Manhattan

If you haven’t heard the news over on Facebook or Twitter or Grub Street…..

WE ARE THE FINAL PEOPLE IN BROOKLYN TO GET A COOKBOOK DEAL!!!!

You got THAT right, Macaulay Culkin!

As of this week, Matt and I are officially the legal property of Penguin/Viking Studio! I have had all sorts of crazy stuff going on about this behind the scenes for weeks, and I couldn’t tell you guys a single thing about it. Now that it’s totally, 100% official, I can finally start answering some of the questions I’ve been posed about it.

Question #1: So, is this book just about cupcakes or what? I mean, cupcakes have been over since 1997.

Well, of course it’s going to be about cupcakes. BUT there’s going to be a lot more to it. There’s going to be a lot of attention paid to the “extras” we put on cupcakes. Things like jams, candies, custards, puddings, gastriques, homemade speculoos, pate a choux, marshmallows, etc. In doing this, we’re going to be explaining a ton of technique, and touching on the science behind pastry.

The driving force behind the book, just like it is with our company as a whole, is to use the ubiquitous cupcake to convince people to try something new. This is going to be a really fun book to read, and I’m hoping to inspire some people who would never attempt to make dessert to get into their kitchens and try!

#2: Cookbooks aren’t fun! YOU’RE A FILTHY LIAR!

I’m not lying! The awesome thing about the people at Penguin is that they’re fans of the blog, and believe in the idea of the book being an extension of this haphazard crapshow. That means lots of me being a smartass, comics, and of course, funny essays on such riviting topics as

-The night we fell in love

-Running a business together as a married couple and not getting a divorce.

-How we come up with our flavors

-The traditions we kept from our childhoods growing up in Brooklyn

-How I went into a month long period of mourning after Bea Arthur died

-This one time when Matt got hit in the balls so hard he started throwing up, and it was the funniest goddamn thing I have ever seen in my entire life

#3: What recipes will you be sharing?

Teeeheehee…..um…what was that? I’m sorry. I was thinking about that time Matt got hit in the balls. (teeheehee). Um…yeah, there’s, um…..oh jeez, you don’t understand!!! He was all like “AAAAAHHHHH! MY BALLS!”.  IT WAS AMAZING.

#4: I see a major book deal hasn’t helped the level of professionalism go up around here.

What are we talking about again?

#5: Cupcakes.

That’s right. Don’t worry, the Chicken n’Waffles one will be in there. I know that’s the only one you really care about. 

#6: When will it be released?

Fall 2013! And you’ll be hearing lots about the process of writing the book right here on the Robicelli’s blog. OR I’ll be so exhausted from writing every day that I’ll just post cat pictures for the next 18 months. Really could go either way.

#7: You guys have a title?

We’ve got a title AND a cover!

And what does seeing an image like that do for you? Does it make you hungry? OF COURSE IT DOES! CUPCAKETIME!

Clockwise from front: Tres Leches, Chocolate Caramel Pretzel, Oatmeal Cream Pie, Bluth

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Chocolate Caramel Pretzel: Chocolate cake, salted caramel buttercream, crushed pretzels, caramel & ganache drizzles

Oatmeal Cream Pie: Brown sugar oat cake, vanilla marshmallow buttercream, oat crisp

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

___________________________

Cupcakes Available at:

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery: 94th Street off 3rd Avenue, Bay Ridge

Aloha Grinds: 77th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Bagel Schmagel: 76th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Blue Apron Foods: Union Street off 7th Ave, Park Slope

Tazza: Clark St off Henry AND Henry St off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Eastern District: Manhattan Ave off Eagle, Greenpoint

Brooklyn Standard: Nassau Street off Jewel, Greenpoint

Cake Shop: Ludlow btwn Stanton & Rivington, LES

Brooklyneer: 220 West Houston Street, West Village

Bar 5F at Bergdorf Goodman: 5th Avenue & 58th Street, 5th Floor, Manhattan

Queen City Cupcakes: Patchogue, Long Island

________________________________

Whoopie Pies Available At:

Red Hook Lobster Pound: 284 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Tazza: Clark St off Henry AND Henry St off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_________________________________

Brownies Available At:

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Oaxaca Tacos: 250 4th Avenue- Park Slope Brooklyn; 251 Smith Street Cobble Hill Brooklyn; 16 Extra Place, LES Manhattan

Ok, Super Bowl over. Now back to the real world, guys. Time to nag you about buying your special lady something sexy for Valentine’s Day.  Something like…..cupcakes. (or Chambord brownies- they’re sexy too!)

Yes, there is a “Sexy Cupcake” Halloween costume. Because really, why the hell wouldn’t there be. I mean, I pulled off “Sexy Pepperoni Pizza” so well and all.

For only $50, you get:

One Dozen Cupcakes or Brownies: Choose from either our classic cupcake pack (Creme Brulee, Strawberry Champagne, The Eve & The Ebinger), our nut-free pack, or 12 rich Chocolate Chambord Brownies with a raspberry jam swirl

A Handwritten Personalized Card: I will write whatever filthy, depraved message you want in my fanciest script, and won’t judge you at all for it. (Unless it’s, like, really weird.  I’ll still write it, but I won’t be able to help the silent judgement.)

Delivery: Brought straight to the home or office of your darling in Brooklyn or Manhatttan!

Tax: I’ve got nothing sexy to say about tax.

In contrast, you can get:

One dozen red roses for $39.99, plus a charge for the vase, plus a card, plus tax, plus delivery

A bear in a Forever Lazy for $69.99, plus card, plus tax, plus delivery.

A giant inflatable giraffe for $39.99, plus card, tax and delivery

A pair of Christian Louboutin Exagona Platform Sandals for $1,095, plus card, tax and delivery (you know that I’m a jeans, t-shirts and sneakers girl, and even I get tingly all over when I see these).

Order now, and you don’t have to worry about this crap again til next year! And you know what else?  Provided the Mayan don’t kill us all we’ll have cupcakes in 2013 too, so once you win their heart with them this year, you’ll never have to worry again! An investment in a Robicelli’s gift box isn’t just an investment in your relationship, it’s an investment in your sanity in the future.

If you’re looking to get on anyone’s good side today, or you’re just looking to treat yourself to something pretty, grab one of these cupcakes you see below.  You’re having a rough week- you deserve one.

Clockwise from front: Funky Monkey, Butterbeer, Bluth, Tres Leches

Funky Monkey: Banana chocolate chip cake, peanut butter buttercream, banana chip, ganache

Butterbeer: Butterscotch soaked cake, butterscotch buttercream, edible gold dust

Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

__________________________________

Cupcakes Available at:

Hom: Third Avenue and 88th Street, Bay Ridge

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery:  94th off 3rd, Bay Ridge

Tazza Cafes: Clark off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Battery Place Market: 77 Battery Place, Battery Park City

Joe Columbia University: W. 120th Street btwn Broadway & Amsterdam, Morningside Heights

Brooklyneer: 220 West Houston Street, West Village

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_______________________

Whoopie Pies Available At:

Red Hook Lobster Pound: 284 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Tazza Cafes: Clark off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

_____________________

Brownies Available At:

Crespella: 7th Ave off 9th Street, Park Slope

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Oaxaca Tacos: 250 4th Avenue- Park Slope Brooklyn; 251 Smith Street Cobble Hill Brooklyn; 16 Extra Place, LES Manhattan

Watching Super Bowl.  Tumblr later. Go eat cupcakes, yes, good.

GIANTS WIN!!! GIANTS WIN!!!! SUCK IT, BRADY!!!! (I’m sorry, I REALLY hate dudes who leave their very pregnant girlfriends for other women.)

(And that whole cheating thing too.  Let’s not forget that crap.)

Clockwise from front: PB&J, Pecan Potato Chip, Butterbeer, Bluth

PB&J: Vanilla cake, grape jelly, peanut butter buttercream, roasted peanuts

Pecan Potato Chip: Potato chip cake, pecans, vanilla buttercream, salted butterscotch, roasted peanuts, potato chips

Butterbeer: Butterscotch soaked cake, butterscotch buttercream, edible gold dust

The Bluth:  Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

______________________________

Cupcakes Available at:

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery:  94th off 3rd, Bay Ridge

Aloha Grinds: 77th and 3rd, Bay Ridge

Crespella: 7th Ave off 9th Street, Park Slope

Tazza Cafes: Clark off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Cake Shop: Ludlow btwn Stanton & Rivington, LES

Joe Columbia University: West 120th btwn Broadway & Amsterdam, Morningside Heights

Battery Place Market: 77 Batter Place, Battery Park City

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Whoopie Pies Available At:

Red Hook Lobster Pound: 284 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Tazza Cafes: Clark off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Brownies Available At:

Crespella: 7th Ave off 9th Street, Park Slope

Queen City Cupcakes: West Main Street, Patchogue, Long Island

Oaxaca Tacos: 250 4th Avenue- Park Slope Brooklyn; 251 Smith Street Cobble Hill Brooklyn; 16 Extra Place, LES Manhattan

This week was all about catching up on the paperwork I got behind on during the holidays, and I went so hardcore that it feels like my brain is about to shoot out of my eyeballs.

Ugh.

This is bad for funny Tumblr posts. And my eyeballs. I’m going to ask Matt for a joke.

Matt: Did you hear about the new corduroy pillows?!?!? They’re making HEADLINES! 

Ugh. 

Sorry. That was worse.  Let’s just get to flavors so we can all pretend that didn’t just happen.

Clockwise from front: The Bluth, Bea Arthur, Tres Leches, Chai Latte

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Bea Arthur: Black coffee infused chocolate cake, cheesecake buttercream, espresso ganache

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Chai Latte: Chai cake, mascarpone buttercream, toasted chai spices

Available at:

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery: 94th Street off 3rd Avenue, Bay Ridge

Aloha Grinds: 77th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Bagel Schmagel: 76th & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Crespella: 7th Ave off 9th Street, Park Slope

Tazza Cafes: Clark St off Henry AND Henry St off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Court Street Grocers: Court St off Luquer, Carroll Gardens

Eastern District: Manhattan Ave off Eagle, Greenpoint

Brooklyn Standard: Nassau Street off Jewel, Greenpoint

Cake Shop: Ludlow btwn Stanton & Rivington, LES

Battery Place Market: 77 Battery Place, Battery Park City

Brooklyneer: 220 West Houston Street, West Village

Queen City Cupcakes: Patchogue, Long Island

Happy New Year everyone! You know what my resolution is?

BE MORE AWESOME.

It’s National Meat On Top of Cupcakes But They Taste Really Good I Promise Month!!!!

Is that true? Probably not. I don’t know who the hell doles out these National Food months- probably some advisory boards or something (how do you get on those anyway?).  As an inventor of the Chicken n’Waffles & Buffalo Chicken cupcakes, and being one of the people who put the whole “bacon on a cupcake” thing on the map three years ago, I am grabbing destiny by the horns and using my gravitas to commandeer an entire month in the name of dessert! Why the hell not!

-Chicken n’Waffles Cupcakes!!!

        -Buffalo Chicken & Blue Cheese Cupcakes!!!!

             -Elvis Cupcakes with Peanut Butter, Banana & Bacon!!!!

                   -Yes, They’re Really Delicious! I Swear!!!!

So WHY is it National Meat on Top of Cupcakes But They Taste Really Good I Promise Month?  Because it’s time for football playoffs.  And when a bunch of people get in a room to drink beer and watch football, you will need food.  And there’s only so many bowls of chili and nachos you can consume before your wife makes you start sleeping out on the fire escape.

As you may know, our Chicken n’Waffles cupcakes is rarely released, our Buffalo Chicken one even rarer, and when we do make them they sell out ridiculously quick.  Reason being? Well, for one thing our retail locations won’t sell them. Another, if they were available all the time, they’d stop being special and you wouldn’t want to jump all over them when they finally did come out! And most of all, frying hundreds of pieces of chicken in a teensy tiny pot takes foorrreeevvverrr.

But for the last days of football season? Well by golly, we are more than happy to slave over that pot day in and day out, from dusk until dawn, because if there’s one thing that both meat cupcakes and football scream, it’s that WE LOVE AMERICA.

I will never pass up an opportunity to link to Neil Diamond.

Normally, you need to order 4 dozen of these cupcakes to have us deliver them to you.  But since they’ll technically be “rotation” for the weekends, you’ll be able to order them with a one dozen minimum to Brooklyn, 2 dozen to Manhattan! (And you’ll be able to pick-up any quantities you want in Manhattan starting next weekend!). This NEVER happens!

So if you’re having people over to watch the games, want to make yourself the most popular guy/girl at the bar, or are just one of those people who’s always wanted to try them, place your order for football playoff cupcakes and brownies ASAP!  And if you’re a bar owner who wants to order some for a promotion, email me at Allison at robicellis.com- we have discount rates for businesses ordering in bulk!

Now for the cupcakes heading to stores as we speak- they may not have chicken or bacon on them, or be loaded with 18 types of booze, but they are insanely delicious and will help you stop being bummed that the holidays are over and you had to go back to work this week.  We’re there, too.  Thank Jebus I have a bunch of Bluths to get me through the ritual of taking down the Christmas tree- it’s so sad!

Clockwise from front: Tres Leches, Chocolate Strawberry, The Bluth, Cinnamon Bun

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

Chocolate Strawberry: Chocolate cake filled with strawberry jam, mascarpone buttercream, jam drizzle

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Cinnamon Bun: Cinnamon sugar spotted cake, cream cheese buttercream, cinnamon butterscotch, cinnamon streusel

Available at:

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery: 94th Street off Third Avenue, Bay Ridge

Hom: 88th Street and Third Avenue, Bay Ridge

Crespella: 7th Ave off 9th Street, Park Slope

Tazza Cafes: Clark Street off Henry AND Henry off Atlantic

Queen City Cupcakes: Patchogue, Long Island

Red Hook Lobster Pound: Roving food truck, Brooklyn Flea and Van Brunt Street, Red Hook Whoopie Pies Only

Last day of November, and I’ve already reaching my threshold for tolerating Christmas songs.  This is especially sad as I’m one of those people who LOVES Christmas music.  Like, listens to it in July loves it.  And for this, I blame the fact that we as a society are insistent in playing the SAME TEN SONGS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN FOR SIX FREAKING WEEKS.

Nothing can hold up in that rotation. Nothing. Except Nat King Cole’s “Christmas Song”, which is technically perfect.

In the event that you’re in the same boat, here’s a few songs that I’m actually loving to death right now that are getting me in the Christmas mood- regardless of our 70 degree weather.

Alan Jackson & Alison Krauss- “The Angels Cried”

Probably the most beautiful Christmas song I’ve ever heard. Pay no attention to the fact that the lighting director of this video attempted to make Alison Krauss look like a demon from a Japanese horror film.  Also don’t remember what we were all thinking regarding hairstyles back in 1993.  It’s like we had learned nothing from the 80s.

Sting: “Gabriels Message”

Sting’s a total effing pretentious weirdo, which lends itself perfectly to traditional Christmas music.  Plus he looks kinda hot with that beard.  Yes, I hate myself for thinking that.

Weezer: “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”

Did you know Weezer cut an entire Christmas EP? I had no idea! There’s something incredibly exciting about learning a band you love cut a holiday album, like…..

HALFORD!!!! Lead singer of Judas Priest, heavy metal GOD Rob Halford apparently has a Christmas album.  So that means it’s TOTALLY OK…..

……to now declare Slayer to be the official band of Christmas.  Take that, Bing Crosby! 

Now for the most metal thing of all- CUPCAKES!!!!  The ridiculously popular Creme Brulee is back, and the Chocolate Merlot has returned after an absence of over two years.  Let us know if you’d like to see it return for good!

Clockwise from front: Pear Mascarpone, Chocolate Merlot, The Bluth, Creme Brulee

Pear Mascarpone: Pear cake, mascarpone buttercream, pear chip

Chocolate Merlot: Chocolate merlot cake and buttercream, chocolate shavings, black pepper, merlot reduction

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Creme Brulee: Vanilla cake, vanilla custard buttercream, caramelized sugar

Available at:

Robicelli’s at the Union Square Holiday Market: South row closest to 14th Street, towards the east side, booth C34

Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market: 138 Willoughby Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Hom: 88th Street & 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery: 94th Street off 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Blue Apron Foods: Union St off 7th Ave, Park Slope

Tazza Cafes: Henry Street off Atlantic AND Clark off Henry, Brooklyn Heights

Radish: Bedford Ave off N8th, Williamsburg

Joe at Columbia University: West 120th Street btwn Broadway & Amsterdam, Morningside Heights

Battery Place Market: 77 Battery Place, Battery Park City

Queen City Cupcakes: Patchogue, Long Island

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and we are already over a week into the Union Square Holiday Market.  As awesome as it is to see all of you (and trust me I LOVE seeing you), the fact that I barely get to see my kids at all wears on my pretty badly.

Matt and I insist that we take one day a week, Wednesdays, to do nothing but concentrate on our family (and if you are a small business owner with a family, I really feel it is absolutely mandatory that you do this as well).  You may remember saying that during Madison Square Eats we’d spend one great day with the boys, I’d tuck them into bed and say “I’ll see you next week!”, and they’d each give me six kisses for every day that I would be leaving before they woke up and coming home after they went to bed.  It was tough, and they hated it, but I promised them it would only be for a few weeks, and then they’d have more time with Mommy until the holidays started.

Like all of us, my kids weren’t thinking the holidays were going to show up so fast.

Atticus has not been happy with me at all. He doesn’t understand why Matt and I have to work all the time instead of going to the Children’s Museum or the zoo or any of the fun places we’re constantly taking them to overcompensate for our ridiculous work schedules.  He told me he didn’t want me to go back to work all the time, and then when I told him I didn’t have a choice, he told me he didn’t love me anymore.  Fortunately, Toby slid in with a “Don’t worry, Mommy- I still love you!”. So at least I have a 50% approval rating, which is nice.

Now that they’re 3 and 4 and rapidly maturing preschool students, I thought it was about time I sat them down and really explained things to them, hoping they’ll finally understand.  It’s Economics 101- surely young kids can get that, right?

“Atticus, Toby- let me ask you a question. Do you like toys?”.  Immediately their eyes light up-“YES!”.  Good, I’ve hooked them.  ”Do you like cupcakes and brownies?”, I continue. “YES!” they scream.  Now they’re precisely where I want them.

“Well, it’s Mommy & Daddy’s job to make sure that there’s enough cupcakes and stuff for people to eat. If it wasn’t for us, the world might run out of cupcakes! (side note: HAHAHAHAHAHA!) And when we make cupcakes, people give us money for them, so we can take that money and buy you more toys.  So you see, if we don’t go to work, you don’t get any toys!”.  

This is pretty cut and dry, no?  But yet they sit there and stare at me in befuddled silence, looking at me like I have six heads.  And then finally, Toby speaks:

“But Mommy, that’s silly!  We can just ask SANTA for toys! Now you can stay home with us!”.

Children: 4,212. Allison: 0

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again- there’s very few feelings worse than being outsmarted by your children.  And mine do it about 10 times a week.  

Damn you, Santa.

Clockwise from front: Pear Mascarpone, Tiramisu, Tres Leches, The Bluth

Pear Mascarpone: Pear cake, mascarpone buttercream, homemade pear chip

Tiramisu: Espresso soaked cake, mascarpone buttercream, espresso ganache, cocoa powder

Tres Leches: Three milk soaked brown butter cake, dulce de leche buttercream, caramel shards

The Bluth: Chocolate banana cake, chocolate buttercream, roasted walnuts, ganache

Available at:

Robicelli’s at Union Square Holiday Market

Robicelli’s: DeKalb Market- 138 Willoughby, Downtown Brooklyn

Cafe at Sam’s Bakery: 94th Street off Third Avenue, Bay Ridge

Aloha Grinds: 77th Street and 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Bagel Schmagel: 76th Street and 3rd Ave, Bay Ridge

Crespella: 9th Street & 7th Ave, Park Slope

Tazza: Clark Street off Henry AND Henry Street off Atlantic, Brooklyn Heights

Cake Shop: Ludlow Street btwn Stanton & Rivington, LES

Joe at Columbia University: W120th Street btwn Broadway & Amsterdam, Morningside Heights

Queen City Cupcakes: Patchogue, Long Island

Red Hook Lobster Pound Whoopie Pies Only