So what's with the modern trend to having cupcakes with everything:
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And now even shops just selling the things. :blink:
Are there not other sweet bakery products about, or is it simply the case of a low cost product (simple sponge and sugar topping) being sold at a high margin.
I think because of it's versatility. It has some many more options to it than a cookie or brownie without getting unwieldy like a cake or loaf. Also, allows someone to feel superior to someone eating a cookie or brownie.
Cheesecake was the thing not so long ago but cupcakes are cheaper and not as fattening.
Quote from: Strix on November 18, 2012, 05:31:33 PM
I think because of it's versatility. It has some many more options to it than a cookie or brownie without getting unwieldy like a cake or loaf. Also, allows someone to feel superior to someone eating a cookie or brownie.
Cheesecake was the thing not so long ago but cupcakes are cheaper and not as fattening.
Ah, that's what I don't get, possibly because over here they're know as fairy cakes.
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=opera&hs=Wyu&rls=en&channel=suggest&tbm=isch&q=fairy+cakes&revid=334544246&sa=X&ei=t2-pUL-VLMexhAetzYHABQ&ved=0CEEQ1QIoAA&biw=871&bih=486 (http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=opera&hs=Wyu&rls=en&channel=suggest&tbm=isch&q=fairy+cakes&revid=334544246&sa=X&ei=t2-pUL-VLMexhAetzYHABQ&ved=0CEEQ1QIoAA&biw=871&bih=486)
Who in the world would feel inferior to anything while eating a brownie? Brownies are at the top of the handheld, baked sweets hierarchy*.
Did I really spell that right? I just threw some letters up expecting it to be wrong and use auto-correct.
This thread is josq-like.
Not a good thing Mongers.
The question you should be asking is "Cupcakes, Why not?"
Indeed. Go get drunk and then post about how supper is dinner but lunch too.
Quote from: PDH on November 18, 2012, 07:36:19 PM
Indeed. Go get drunk and then post about how supper is dinner but lunch too.
The issue isn't what these are called in different countries, it's that they're an inferior baked product; as was pointed out crap compared to things like brownies.
I just don't get the love for overpriced, sweet, inferior cakes.
Quote from: PDH on November 18, 2012, 07:36:19 PM
Indeed. Go get drunk and then post about how supper is dinner but lunch too.
Is it a candy or a sweet?
Fuck it all, I am going to go get drunk and lie down in the street.
Don't worry, Mongers: pretty soon the cupcakes will go away because of unions.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on November 18, 2012, 08:18:00 PM
Don't worry, Mongers: pretty soon the cupcakes will go away because of unions.
Damn UAW.
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn.memegenerator.net%2Finstances%2F400x%2F12543950.jpg&hash=34e39817be8abd1ba14da223b94bc1a28e93d939)
You've just now caught on about shops selling the things? :yawn:
Quote from: garbon on November 18, 2012, 09:33:23 PM
You've just now caught on about shops selling the things? :yawn:
It's yet another positive of living in rural England. :bowler:
Get annoyed by trends a decade after they became a trend?
Quote from: garbon on November 18, 2012, 10:39:15 PM
Get annoyed by trends a decade after they became a trend?
Here's a clue, much of the rest of the world doesn't give a flying fuck for what goes on in hipsterville 5,000 miles away. :cool:
Quote from: mongers on November 18, 2012, 10:42:56 PM
Here's a clue, much of the rest of the world doesn't give a flying fuck for what goes on in hipsterville 5,000 miles away. :cool:
Much of the world doesn't give a flying fuck what goes on in their own town, so won't start threads whining about some cupcake shop opening. :P
Shops selling them aren't the most common of things. They appear over night sending ripples of "WTF?" throughout people who walk down that street, then, just as quickly as they appeared they dissapear due to the stupidity of their existence and nobody wanting to spend 5 quid for a cupcake.
I noticed this trend several years ago and have wondered similarly about them. Some people just have more money than business sense alas.
Quote from: mongers on November 18, 2012, 10:42:56 PM
Quote from: garbon on November 18, 2012, 10:39:15 PM
Get annoyed by trends a decade after they became a trend?
Here's a clue, much of the rest of the world doesn't give a flying fuck for what goes on in hipsterville 5,000 miles away. :cool:
Hipsterville?
There was a cupcake shop in the fucking Yukon, man.
Quote from: Barrister on November 18, 2012, 11:12:34 PM
Quote from: mongers on November 18, 2012, 10:42:56 PM
Quote from: garbon on November 18, 2012, 10:39:15 PM
Get annoyed by trends a decade after they became a trend?
Here's a clue, much of the rest of the world doesn't give a flying fuck for what goes on in hipsterville 5,000 miles away. :cool:
Hipsterville?
There was a cupcake shop in the fucking Yukon, man.
It seemed like plenty of hipsters roll into Whitehorse over the summer.
Quote from: Barrister on November 18, 2012, 11:12:34 PM
Quote from: mongers on November 18, 2012, 10:42:56 PM
Quote from: garbon on November 18, 2012, 10:39:15 PM
Get annoyed by trends a decade after they became a trend?
Here's a clue, much of the rest of the world doesn't give a flying fuck for what goes on in hipsterville 5,000 miles away. :cool:
Hipsterville?
There was a cupcake shop in the fucking Yukon, man.
Desolation is in this season.
Cupcakes became trendy in London a couple of years ago and the bakclash against them has already been and gone.
They aren't the same as fairy cakes. A faircake is all about the cake, there is just a thin layer of icing. A cupcake has loads of icing.
It's part of the baking trend that makes underemployed women feel like they're justifying their existence and undersexed women feel loved.
Way too sweet for me, I feel imminent diabetes just looking at one. Instead I plan to kidnap the handsome man who hands out cheese samples at Liverpool Streee station and take him home to hand-feed me cave-aged Gruyère.
Food Network made the hype by having all those shows dedicated to cupcake making competitions. I've been in at least two cupcake stores, and you pay almost as much for one cupcake as you would for a cake in other bakeries.
Take it easy, cupcake.
NO!
Seriously. Don't want to shop in a cupcake store - don't go to a cupcake store.
NO!!
I want a cupcake now.
Quote from: Brazen on November 19, 2012, 06:22:45 AM
It's part of the baking trend that makes underemployed women feel like they're justifying their existence and undersexed women feel loved.
Really? I thought better of you, B.
By the way, there are any number of men who are also involved in this "new" venture, one of whom opened a shop in our town. (And no, he's not gay, either. He just likes to bake.)
As for the reason they became so popular (and are now on their way out) was because you had so much flexibility and options of flavors to try without having to be wedded to a whole cake of that flavor/decoration. It was a fun, easy, and relatively cheap way to make people happy. Unfortunately, once you've tried all of the "trendy" flavors, it's kind of a done thing. Plus, those most interested in these cupcakes when they came out are the type who like to try new things and then move on when the next big thing to try comes up.
I don't understand the hate, to be honest. It was something cute and fun that lasted for a while and is now on its way out. Some people managed to squeak a living out of it for the time it was trendy, which is never a bad thing.
Quote from: merithyn on November 19, 2012, 10:30:04 AM
Quote from: Brazen on November 19, 2012, 06:22:45 AM
It's part of the baking trend that makes underemployed women feel like they're justifying their existence and undersexed women feel loved.
Really? I thought better of you, B.
Really? And I thought you knew internet forums were the place for sweeping generalisations based on personal observation M.
You only need to look at the adverts for the cakes themselves and the kits, books and classes to see the demographic at which the trend is aimed. I feel the same way about cupcakes as I do about "scrapbooking" - a cynical exploitation of something that was once a harmless and essentially free domestic hobby.
They are the Manolo shoe of the comfort eating, recession-hit generation.
Except that cupcakes started becoming a trend quite some time before the recession. At least here where the trend started.
Quote from: Brazen on November 19, 2012, 10:48:24 AM
Really? And I thought you knew internet forums were the place for sweeping generalisations based on personal observation M.
Just don't understand the distaste for women-led industry, that's all.
QuoteYou only need to look at the adverts for the cakes themselves and the kits, books and classes to see the demographic at which the trend is aimed. I feel the same way about cupcakes as I do about "scrapbooking" - a cynical exploitation of something that was once a harmless and essentially free domestic hobby.
They are the Manolo shoe of the comfort eating, recession-hit generation.
The cupcake trend stemmed out of the cake-decorating fads of the early 2000s, which is pre-recession. It, like scrapbooking, has never been free (or even cheap). That women (and, as I mentioned, a number of men) have found a way to use their talents to make cash while they did something fun seems anything but cynical to me. If anything, the cynical bit is by resenting that they could do such a thing.
Quote from: merithyn on November 19, 2012, 11:04:00 AM
Quote from: Brazen on November 19, 2012, 10:48:24 AM
Really? And I thought you knew internet forums were the place for sweeping generalisations based on personal observation M.
Just don't understand the distaste for women-led industry, that's all.
QuoteYou only need to look at the adverts for the cakes themselves and the kits, books and classes to see the demographic at which the trend is aimed. I feel the same way about cupcakes as I do about "scrapbooking" - a cynical exploitation of something that was once a harmless and essentially free domestic hobby.
They are the Manolo shoe of the comfort eating, recession-hit generation.
The cupcake trend stemmed out of the cake-decorating fads of the early 2000s, which is pre-recession. It, like scrapbooking, has never been free (or even cheap). That women (and, as I mentioned, a number of men) have found a way to use their talents to make cash while they did something fun seems anything but cynical to me. If anything, the cynical bit is by resenting that they could do such a thing.
I don't get the hate towards a lot of businesses, really. I understand why someone doesn't want a junkyard or the like going in next door, but if a cupcake shop goes in down the street, so what? It's not like you're being forced to buy from them.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on November 18, 2012, 08:18:00 PM
Don't worry, Mongers: pretty soon the cupcakes will go away because of unions.
Or at least local government. Monroe County where I live squashed bake sales and any other such food items being sold by anyone without a food preparation license.
Quote from: Strix on November 19, 2012, 11:46:54 AM
Quote from: CountDeMoney on November 18, 2012, 08:18:00 PM
Don't worry, Mongers: pretty soon the cupcakes will go away because of unions.
Or at least local government. Monroe County where I live squashed bake sales and any other such food items being sold by anyone without a food preparation license.
:huh:
Most of these places are licensed bakeries. Few, if any, of the cupcake shops are people's homes. We're not talking bake-sale stuff. We're talking about commercial, high-octane sugar concoctions.
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fgeorgetowncupcake.com%2Fimages%2Fnoflash.jpg&hash=e73b1b56427ded36a608b72f5eded19041f1bf5a)
Quote from: merithyn on November 19, 2012, 11:52:39 AM
Most of these places are licensed bakeries. Few, if any, of the cupcake shops are people's homes. We're not talking bake-sale stuff. We're talking about commercial, high-octane sugar concoctions.
You might be. I got the impression Brazen was talking about Mums selling a couple of dozen cupcakes a week at famer's markets or school fairs etc.
Nobody has a real problem with but it's kind of unoriginal and a saturated market so many of them will lose money (though not much).
Quote from: Gups on November 19, 2012, 11:57:13 AM
Quote from: merithyn on November 19, 2012, 11:52:39 AM
Most of these places are licensed bakeries. Few, if any, of the cupcake shops are people's homes. We're not talking bake-sale stuff. We're talking about commercial, high-octane sugar concoctions.
You might be. I got the impression Brazen was talking about Mums selling a couple of dozen cupcakes a week at famer's markets or school fairs etc.
Nobody has a real problem with but it's kind of unoriginal and a saturated market so many of them will lose money (though not much).
:hmm:
Quote from: mongers on November 18, 2012, 04:53:19 PM
So what's with the modern trend to having cupcakes with everything:
And now even shops just selling the things. :blink:
Are there not other sweet bakery products about, or is it simply the case of a low cost product (simple sponge and sugar topping) being sold at a high margin.
This whole topic is a tempest in a cupcake.
This thread's gotten worse for me, I now have to find out what scrappbooking is; I'm assuming yet another trend that has passed me by. :(
Quote from: mongers on November 19, 2012, 03:17:46 PM
This thread's gotten worse for me, I now have to find out what scrappbooking is; I'm assuming yet another trend that has passed me by. :(
:o
I suspect there are not enough women in your life then Mongers. :console:
Obviously Mongers has not read the Hostess thread, or he'd realize that cupcakes suffer from a "supply and demand" problem that unions can take the blame for.
Cupcakes - low cost of production, high markup.
What is so hard to figure out. The only way these things fail is if enough health conscious people dont buy them so that they go the way of the Twinkie
Quote from: CountDeMoney on November 19, 2012, 04:09:14 PM
Obviously Mongers has not read the Hostess thread, or he'd realize that cupcakes suffer from a "supply and demand" problem that unions can take the blame for.
:D
Seedy's on an axe-grinding roll today. :P
Quote from: MadImmortalMan on November 19, 2012, 04:36:19 PM
Seedy's on an axe-grinding roll today. :P
Indeed. He's now no longer making sense. :(
I like cupcake shops. :)
Quote from: Caliga on November 19, 2012, 09:45:22 PM
I like cupcake shops. :)
Why am I not in the least bit surprised. :P
I want to learn how to drive, just so I can plough my white van into the queue of yapping tourist 20-somethings outside Hummingbird Bakery.
Quote from: Warspite on January 14, 2013, 06:11:22 PM
I want to learn how to drive, just so I can plough my white van into the queue of yapping tourist 20-somethings outside Hummingbird Bakery.
:blink:
You can't drive; is this common amongst the 20/30 something urbane dwellers ?
It's not uncommon. Even if I could drive, I wouldn't want to pay to run a car in London.
Definitely not uncommon here in NYC.
Quote from: Warspite on January 14, 2013, 06:15:45 PM
It's not uncommon. Even if I could drive, I wouldn't want to pay to run a car in London.
All the more cash for cupcakes. ;)
Quote from: garbon on January 14, 2013, 06:19:17 PM
Definitely not uncommon here in NYC.
Wasn't uncommon in Boston either.
I recently stole a Four Square mayorship from a local cupcake entrepreneur. She was certainly not pleased and tweeted some anger at me.
Quote from: mongers on January 14, 2013, 06:13:48 PM
Quote from: Warspite on January 14, 2013, 06:11:22 PM
I want to learn how to drive, just so I can plough my white van into the queue of yapping tourist 20-somethings outside Hummingbird Bakery.
:blink:
You can't drive; is this common amongst the 20/30 something urbane dwellers ?
I just got my driver's license a few months ago, at the tender age of 38. Just one more data point for you :)
It's because hipster loser whores who have no cooking skills whatsoever can make them and think they are running a "business".
Quote from: Martinus on January 15, 2013, 02:04:49 AM
It's because hipster loser whores who have no cooking skills whatsoever can make them and think they are running a "business".
Seems odd that they would take steps to become disabused of that notion. Putting aside of course the odd description of holster, loser whores.
Quote from: mongers on January 14, 2013, 06:13:48 PM
Quote from: Warspite on January 14, 2013, 06:11:22 PM
I want to learn how to drive, just so I can plough my white van into the queue of yapping tourist 20-somethings outside Hummingbird Bakery.
:blink:
You can't drive; is this common amongst the 20/30 something urbane dwellers ?
My son and his mates don't seem to be bothering. The insurance is exceedingly high for youngsters and they are hoping that driverless cars will become the norm by the time they can afford one. Plus they are idle gits.
Quote from: mongers on January 14, 2013, 06:13:48 PM
Quote from: Warspite on January 14, 2013, 06:11:22 PM
I want to learn how to drive, just so I can plough my white van into the queue of yapping tourist 20-somethings outside Hummingbird Bakery.
:blink:
You can't drive; is this common amongst the 20/30 something urbane dwellers ?
I can't drive. I might learn one day.
I don't understand the cupcake thing at all :mellow:
My sister can't drive.
I can't drive, but sometimes I still do.
Few of my friends in London bother to drive. It's so much cheaper and more convenient to use public transport. I do anything possible to avoid driving into central London - the Congestion Charge zone is my convenient cut-off point.
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on January 15, 2013, 06:21:09 AM
I can't drive, but sometimes I still do.
Curiously my Grandma was the opposite. She had a license but had no idea how to drive. She got it before they had any driving tests and just renewed it every year.
That's not the opposite.
We should have a thread about driving.
Quote from: mongers on January 24, 2013, 03:14:04 PM
We should have a thread about driving.
This is a good idea, I should make a thread about it. :)