During the sick days I took last month, I spent some time browsing other blogs; mostly out of curiosity to see if anybody else has taken the approach of having a catch-all blog for all the offbeat and varied things one is in to. And I hit the motherlode, I present to you my new favorite blog: Dinosaur Dracula. Just the name alone tells you that you're in for a good time. Matt, the blog's author, describes it as "Dino Drac is a never-ending series of tributes to things I like. (Note: I like ridiculous things.)" which I kind of feel is what I also try to go for with the Hobby Haven. Granted, he is far better at it than I am, and has a wonderfully humorous writing style that just draws you in. We both have a lot of nostalgia for 1980s and early 1990s pop culture, although he's way more passionate about it than I am. Frankly, Matt is kind of my blog idol right now.
One of the things that I've realized after reading through what feels like millions of pages on that blog is that I don't do are food reviews. And not because I'm averse to the idea of doing it; it frankly never occurred to me. Trying out new snacks and restaurants is an activity that I share with my closest friends, and I'm a self-admitted sucker for limited-time promotional food.
So what the heck, guys: I'll give it a shot every now and then, huh? But there's no time like the present, so I'll just stick one here under a cut...
So Starbucks pretty much owns me, and given that I signed up for their rewards program, they have a direct pipeline into my daily routine via emails of frothy caffeinated goodness. It's been especially hectic at work lately, so I tapped into my inner Donna Meagle and decided to treat myself after work. No coffee, but something to make relaxing at home a little bit more luxurious.
Well, when I walked in, I saw these bad boys sitting in the bakery rack at the front all by their lonesome:
Now, I've never made this public to you guys, but my favorite holiday snacks aren't from Halloween, nor are they from Christmas. It's Valentine's Day. I love chocolate, and when eateries try to capitalize on the color theme of the holiday by using flavors that correspond to it ("red" fruits like cherry, strawberry, raspberry...drool...), you end up with chocolatey, fruity treats decked out in one of my favorite colors. Me gusta.
What the hell, I tell myself. I haven't had anything seasonal yet, though not necessarily for lack of trying. I'm gonna take these puppies home with me. (I love this particular Starbucks since they will take off 10% if you buy bakery goods close to closing.) There was also a pick, iced, heart-shaped sugar cookie, but I gave that a hard pass. If I'm eating a sugar cookie, it must be liberally coated with cinnamon. It's non-negotiable.
Here's a quick examination of each pop:
Here you've got your traditional design. Chocolate icing, red/white/pink colored sprinkles, and lots of them. Seriously, this is sprinkle heaven. So much better than those weird little dots they put on the other cake pops. (Psst. Starbucks. Those are not real sprinkles. They are sprinkle wannabes.)
Biting into it, you get a good crunch from the sprinkles. Can't taste much of the icing, though. The cake itself is dense, moist, chewy, and very fudgy, more like a lighter version of a brownie. Would have liked the icing to have a bit stronger of a flavor, but it balanced the cake well, so I'd say this is pretty well done.
The counterpart is confusing, to say the least. Who is this? It looks like Uncle Moneybags from Monopoly. Why is he adorning my cake pop? What is Valentine-esque about this? So many unresolved questions. Turning back to aesthetics, there's not much here. It's a very simple design. Just white chocolate and the weird, dark-chocolate face of the Unknown Valentine Mustache Man.
I bit into the back of the cake pop because it felt less gruesome somehow, as if I'm cannibalizing Mr. Valentine Mustache Man like some Starbucks version of The Walking Dead. But once you bit through the chocolate
If I had to pick a winner, I'd go for the chocolate pop; it's got way more going on with it, plus a better cake texture with a richer flavor. I have enough love, however, for all the cake pops in the world. And honestly, I feel that that is what this time of the year is all about: love. And desserts.
Anyway, my dear friends, I hope that this has entertained you and that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed eating these. And if you enjoyed it, good news: there's more to come, possibly as soon as next week! Until then, this is Miss Scarlett, signing out!
