Cupcakes, cupcakes, cupcakes!!!

I think there are few things in the world greater than the comfort a cupcakes gives!  It's the perfect portable, all-in-one, completely versatile problem solver!

Bad day?  Eat a cupcake!
Feelin' blue?  Eat a cupcake!
Friend had a crappy day?  Take her a cupcake (or a dozen)!

:)

Last night I came across a cake mix I had in my pantry, and wouldn't you know I had a pudding mix too, and a block of cream cheese in the fridge.  Well, of course I had the other pantry staples like eggs, veg oil, butter, powdered sugar, and cocoa - so let's GO!

Used white cake mix and vanilla pudding for the cupcakes, and sifted cocoa w/ the powdered sugar for the choc cream cheese frosting.  Don't skimp here, use your finest quality cocoa...your tastebuds will appreciate you for it.  :)

Uhhh, no comments here about the choc frosting looking like soft serve poo...I was in a hurry and didn't use a decorating tip!  lol

Ready to go to the office!

And I reaped the rewards when I brought them to the office today (okay, twice...oh, and once last night.  Cupcakes...we're talkin' cupcakes here people - gutter minds!)

Just look at that spongey/chocolatey coodness!

"Thinkin' of you's workin' up my appetite, looking forward to a little afternoon delight.  Rubbin' sticks and stones together makes the sparks ingite, and the thought of rubbin' you is getting so exciting.

Sky rockets in flight. Afternoon delight. Afternoon delight."
 
Cupcakes people!

PHX-Postino Wine Café

Sat: On my last day in PHX we went to my FAVE place in all of Central PHX, Postino Wine Café, known simply as 'Post'.  Postino's is a wine bar, with 2 large roll-up Overhead doors that open up one whole wall of the space!  It's an old post office (get it, post office and vino, Postino's?) that was converted, keeping the existing structure/brick, and adding on elements to beat the PHX heat like overhangs and stretched canvases to block the sun:

Postino's is nestled in an area called Arcadia, or more common among the locals, The LGO.  And that's because Postino's makes up part of the corner where the LGO's 'strip center' of restaurants and flagship grocery store are.  LGO stands for La Grande Orange, and there's an LGO Grocery, a cute lil' shop/bakery that sells fresh baked bread and sweets from local LGO'ers!

Okay, lemme' explain:

LGO Grocery gives way to LGO Pizzeria, which backs up to Grateful Spoon Gelato, who neighbors with Tammi Coe Cakes and MJ Bread (husband/wife bakers team), and they're all rounded out by Paper Joy.  CUTE-CUTE lil' strip center, if you can even call it that, b/c it's unlike any strip center you've ever seen!  And completing the LGO Hospitality Team are restaurants Chelsea's Kitchen and radioMilano across the street on the adjacent corner lot.  It's quite the little incestuous concoction of players, but it works out great!

Phew, that was a lot!  But I said it all to say this: when you go to PHX, visit 'The LGO', and for sure go to Postino's in that location (also one downtown, but LGO one is better.)  Post is known for $5 glasses of wine any day between 11am-5pm - Uh, HELLO!  And they have the best, best, BEST (read: BEST) assortment of bruchetta you've ever seen.  11 kinds to choose from, 4 kinds to a board, perfect to share amongst friends.  Oh, and get the raspberry/walnut chicken salad - to die for!  I have also eaten at LGO Pizzeria, and it's some of the best pizza I've ever had - and the orange and fennel salad is super yum!

Post uses MJ's bread for their menu, and Tammi Coe serves up her single serving treats at the LGO Grocery.  Talk about getting your stuff local, you can't get more local than the LGO backyard!  :)

PHX-AZ/88

Fri: So after we hung at the house all day with drinking and debauchery abounding, we met up with Kelly and Rich to eat at AZ/88 in the Old Town part of Scottsdale.  Now, I've been to AZ/88 before.  It's a very hip/trendy, yet small restaurant.  They're known for great martini's, and simple foods like their grown-up grilled cheese served with fresh fruit and waffle fries.  This time I had the chicken, goat cheese, apples, and pecan sandwich, and it was super yummy!  They always have these cute biz cards insize their menus w/ quotes - click to enlarge:

And they always have some sort of crazy art installation they're featuring.  The first time I went, there were 6 stantions with acrylic boxes that enclosed life size dog sculptures encrusted in rhinestones and crystals!  The stantions were in a circular formation around the largest table in the center of the room, and the expressions on the dogs faces, and their body alignments, suggested they were ready to attack.  It was quite crazy!  Here's a pic from that visit:

A few months back the installation was pieces of a NYC taxi cab with all the numbers of each taxi driver in NYC on the bar's back wall.  As the story goes, the owner was in a taxi accident in NYC, and this was his revenge.

This time there were manequin legs suspended from the ceiling with thigh-high stockings and garters.  I'm sorry I didn't snap a pic of that, but you can imagine - very sexy and haute.  :)

PHX-Hangin' @ the house

Fri: This morn we kept it low key w/ coffee & breakfast burritos from Accacia Cafe, brought 2 us by Mark. ;o) We're goin' out to AZ/88 w/ Kelly later so we wanted to store up our reserves.

But David got busy on a Bon Appetit recipe, Ham, Artichoke, Potato Gratin. While that's cooling, we're partaking of libations!

PHX-St. Francis

Thurs: We had a late dinner @ the new St. Francis restaurant. It was a really neat concept, a restaurant built around a wood fire oven, mostly constructed of raw materials like sheet metal & rough timber, contrasted by large, sleek removable glass windows & a roll-up see-thru Overhead door that let the outside in.  The building used to be an old bank, and therefore they repurposed the exposed brick of the walls, and hung things like old butcher knives and stacked clay serving pots on top of the brick oven.  Very rustic, yet streamlined at the same time.

Sorry I don't have pics of the food, my BBerry was on the charger back @ the house. Mark snapped a pic of me w/ the cute menu. I had the ahi tuna sandwich w/ garlic aioli & avocado, Mark the roasted chicken, & David the green chile pork stew w/ cornbread. But what stole the show was the creamy corn polenta I ordered at the last minute. So creamy & mellow...I will be copying it soon!

PHX-FEZ

Thurs: Spent the afternoon @ FEZ, our fave spot 4 martinis & harissa spiced french fries-the inspiration for my harissa roasted potatoes a few posts down. :o)

Cherry bomb & pomagranate martini's...mmm!

PHX-Bertha's Cafe

Thurs: In PHX visiting the boys. I got in late last night, narrowly avoiding the 6 inches of snow Dallas is getting today!!!

We went to Bertha's Cafe for lunch & I had the salami/pesto/goat cheese sandwich w/ arugula & sun dried tomatoes on ciabatta...so yummy!