Hey Big Spender

So what comes after the first big business meeting? The first big supply shopping trip, of course!

After dealing with a bad cold and a grueling week of work, I'm still working my way through How to Open a Financially Successful Bakery. Nicole on the other hand spent the week researching low-fat baking and healthier ingredient alternatives. When we met up yesterday night for the big spree, she was sounding more like a chemist than a future baker.
"Now what does that do?" I asked as she plucked a tiny box of arrowroot from a huge rack of spices in Chef Central. "Wow, you really didn't do your research," she scolded me. "Arrowroot is a leavener."

"Well, what's that?" I asked. She ignored me.

Some half-assed Google research of my own says that arrowroot is a thickener, which I don't think is the same as a leavener. But I'll debate this with her tomorrow...

This first stop was mainly to pick up some essentials, including a re-usable pastry bag:

And a whisk:
You can't really see it too well, but that little guy had a cute chicky as the handle.

I tried to act as the voice of reason as best I could, but it was hard for even me to ignore the adorable accessories that they had for sale in the cupcake section:

We did manage to get outta there pretty much unscathed. Nicole might beg to differ:
Then came the fun part of the evening...WHOLE FOODS!!!!!!!
Let me just say, we didn't want to leave. The store has a great energy, with an extremely knowledgeable staff, and, get ready for this...a sugar and salt bar!
From raspberry to cinnamon to green chili sugar, the aromas were intoxicating. Then we turned the corner to find a nuts station where you can grind your own butters. I tried the almond and to quote Alka Seltzer, "I can't believe I ate the whole thing."

We bought a variety of flours and some LEAVENING and sweetener replacements, as well as some alternative thickening agents. All of which are going to help us make our cuppies not a random indulgence, but rather a diet staple. Core competence baby, core competence!

Skinnie Minnie will cater to those who want a healthy, lower-calorie baked good, but don't need it to be wheat-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, or most importantly, taste-free.

Trials begin tomorrow. Stay tuned...

Eat our crumbs!

~AnnMarie

Spring has Sprung!

Sorry I went dark for a couple days. Don't worry, conversations still revolved around all things cupcake but I was spending my free time outside, rather than in, blogging.

That being said, I just want to scream this from the rooftops: IT'S SO GORGEOUS OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This weather is making me so happy after three months of snow and darkness. And it gets me all the more excited for our plans for the Skinnie Minnie Bakeshop.

Let me explain our name choice a bit further. It's not just because Nicole IS a "skinnie minnie," and I ASPIRE to be a "skinnie minnie." We want all our offerings to be much healthier than the traditional baked goods so all of us who love cuppies so much can be able to eat them more freely, without (too much) guilt. Because nothing is sadder than an existence not surrounded by artfully frosted little cakes.

Now how exactly we're going to achieve that is the question. That's what we'll focus on today when we meet for our first serious business meeting, which will probably take place sitting on my sister's bed in the room we grew up in. Very VERY serious...

We've got some ideas and we've been compiling a few secret weapons. One element that we definitely want to try to implement in our baking will be the farm-to-table philosophy. So the best way to truly understand that is to start at home, right?

It was Thursday, I believe, when I got lost in my (our!) favorite store Anthropologie. I by-passed the surprising number of cupcake cook and recipe books they had for sale, including the one from Babycakes (which was also a stop on last year's CuppieTour. See a pic on the right of Nicole outside of the NYC shop, about to dive in.) Instead, I picked up a copy of Grow Great Grub, Organic Food from Small Spaces, by gardening extraordinaire Gayla Trail.

The title jumped out at me because I certainly fit that description. The attic apartment I share with my boyfriend and cat is definitely a "small space." So if she can teach me how to get around that and understand the difference in flavor and texture you achieve from ingredients that are in season and come straight from the ground to the plate, then I'll definitely be indebted to this farm-to-table movement.

Well at first flip through, I love this book! She offers very simple how-tos on growing your own herbs, veggies, fruits and more, no matter how much or how little space you have access to or what your budget is. She even offers some pretty mouth-watering recipes and there is actually a page (27) on how to start your own seed beds with just toilet paper tube rolls! Now I just need to get to a Whole Foods soon to pick up some seeds. I want to get started with fruits (Chapter 8).

And oddly enough, the very next day I was greeted with some great news. There is actually a few yards of gardening space on the side of our house, but it was always occupied by the tenants in the 1st floor apartment--who confirmed they've purchased a house of their own and are moving out next month! I'm going to jump on that and ask the landlord if I can take it over once they're gone.

Alright, I'm going to sign off to get ready and get to our meeting!

Eat our crumbs!
~AnnMarie

A Babycakes cuppie...mmmmmmmm.........