Curry and Ice Wine: The Cup

One thing I love about moving around as much as I do is discovering new favorite places in every city. A few months ago, while catering the appetizers for a 80th birthday party I was treating to an amazing strawberry cupcake. It was moist and flavorful without being sticky; the icing was thick and creamy. The ratio between icing and cake was just right. The styling was simple and elegant, smooth creamy swirls of icing with just a touch of the strawberry colored cake showing on the edges. A deep red parchment wrapper to match the pink cake and off white icing. I've always appreciated it when a chef goes the extra mile with a little detail like color coding the packaging to the food inside.
These cupcakes stuck with me for months. I constantly had the thought in the back of my mind, if I drive by this shop I will stop in and get a second taste. However, I've never came across this delicious bakery on my own. Finally I reached my breaking point and set out on a specific trip to fulfill my carving for these cupcakes. I learned that I've never found this place on my own because it is in one of Lincoln's more historic areas. Sweetly nestled inside and old bottle factory covered in lush green Ivy is The Cup. A bakery / coffee shop / local artist haven / foodie heaven. My soul was instantly soothed as I stepped out of the muggy Nebraska summer heat into a cool, dimly lit little shop. The exposed brick walls covered in eccentric prints by local artists, the colored light bulbs that reflected off the high ceilings and most importantly the sweet smell of cake batter and a warm oven.
There were several varieties of goodies for sale in the display case, I skipped over the muffins and cakes and focused solely on my mission, cupcakes. There were four flavors in the case so I took one of each. I decided to gift them to my dad as a father's day present, which he was more than pleased to accept. I did take a vanilla bean strawberry for my own and it did not disappoint. My memory served me well, these cupcakes are to die for. Anyone in the Lincoln area looking for a good cup of coffee and a perfectly sized couple bites of deliciousness, The Cup is where you need to be. Correction, where we need to be. I would not pass up the opportunity to sample some more flavors from this bakery.

Vanilla Bean with Strawberry Icing