LUDLOW, VERMONT FARMER'S MARKET

     Walking around Ludlow, Vermont, I noticed a prevalent message, "NO MICKY Ds!" As a kid, McDonald's was one of the best treats and a birthday party haven. Some of the most memorable photographs in our family album are of us sitting with party hats  wearing early 80s shades of brown and orange terry cloth outfits underneath this weird fairy forest tree getting ready to blow out the yellow cake with chocolate frosting birthday cake candles. Its a good thing that these Ludlow tots won't grow up with double hamburger meal nostalgia. 

     It was our first day in Vermont and I was in search of a Farmer's Market and after seeing those signs I had a good feeling one would be lurking nearby. Lucky enough, that afternoon white tents went up on the front lawn of the elementary school. We had just come back from Buttermilk Falls and I was starving. I sampled one of the most delicious broccoli quiches I've ever had. The quiche lady was also selling whoopie pies and chocolate chip cookies. So many food bloggers have been tempting me with photos of their homemade whoopie pies, so I was craving one. I got a banana and a chocolate whoopie pie and a box of cookies for Mike. The banana whoppie pie was the winner. The chocolate was too dense. Whole Foods actually has their whoopie pie skills down. The chocolate chip cookies were delicious and were good at disappearing.

    We bought some Garlic Parmesan Pork Sausages and Grass Fed Hamburger Meat. There was a slight misunderstanding with me and the meat man who I thought instructed me to make the burgers thick, since they are lean, and not cook them for too long so they don't shrink, but he meant thick in diameter not in height, and that night we basically ate steak tartar. It was actually amazing. The sausages were out of this world, too. The raw leftover hamburgers and one odd sausage went into making a delicious hash for breakfast.

    A cool stand was selling clever jewelry made from kitchen utensils. Spoon earrings are all the rage in Vermont apparently.

    There was not a lot of produce up for grabs except some lettuce, but we had CSA veggies to get through. We did get some amazing bread. The whole wheat baguette was something very special. A crisp crust and chewy inside. Perfect. I also got a Kale, Cheddar and Garlic Foccaccia. It was superb.

    We picked up some farm fresh local organic eggs, those light blue ones which I have been dying to try, but in NY they are $8/dozen. These were only $4/dozen. They had the most beautiful yokes I have ever seen and such a distinct egg flavor, not like the poor excuse for eggs you get in the supermarket. I love it when eggs still have dirt and chicken feathers stuck to them because you know how fresh they are.  

   A visit to lemonade stand yielded an unbelievably perfectly sweet and sour glass of cold lemonade and some brioche to make French Toast in the morning. The lemonade man instructed us to slice the bread and let it stale overnight. I would need Maple Syrup and I wanted Grade B. I had seen a Bobby Flay Pancake Throw Down recently versus the owner's of the Clinton Street Bakery, and they preferred Grade B with which they made a Maple Butter. But the maple syrup ladies at the Farmer's Market didn't have their act together, so the next morning I walked to a house a few miles up the road where I had noticed a sign that read, "Maple Syrup For Sale Here." Sweet Rita and her rambunctious grandsons hooked me up with a jug of Grade B and it delivered. Along with all the other local goodies, our stay in Vermont was a delicious one.

A DOZEN EGGS BAKE SHOP

    After a long hike up to see the White Rocks, in Vermont's Okemo Mountain region, we were craving hamburgers and had some delicious local pastured beef waiting at home. We were missing the buns, so I went into A Dozen Eggs Bake Shop hoping to find some English Muffins.

    I didn't find any bread but did stumble upon lots of mouthwatering cupcakes. Mike and I had sworn off sweets that morning while gobbling down french toast drowned in maple syrup and after eating a quarter of Sassy Sweet Treats' Sour Cream Coffee Cake. But, who can turn down cupcakes? Especially gorgeous cupcakes like Laura, the cupcake lady behind A Dozen Eggs Bake Shop creates. 

    Driving by I was drawn by their adorable cupcake logo and the "am I in brooklyn?" well designed egg carton graphic. Their eye catching blue and chocolate color scheme was also pleasing. When I entered, aside from being mesmerized by all the goodies, I noticed some familiar artwork from Everyday Is a Holiday. It was Jenny and Aaron's signature "Keep Calm and Have a Cupcake" Poster, which I just adore! Visit their shop. Everything they do is amazing and this particular piece was just featured in a NY Times article Remixed Messages.

    

     After dragging in Mike to behold Jenny and Aaron's work, we chatted it up with Laura for a while and what a sweetheart she was. Originally from Cape Cod, she has worked in Fashion and as a Personal Chef in Boston. Laura and her husband finally moved to Vermont and started A Dozen Eggs with their signature Sugar Cookies, which are adorable and beautifully detailed. Since A Dozen Eggs has expanded to cupcakes and other goodies, like macaroons and meringues. 

     I was going to purchase one cupcake plus some coconut macaroons for Mike, but Laura Sweet Laura sent us home with a bunch of "samples" to taste for the blog. Wow! So after our burgers, we did a Cupcake Binge Test. I cut the cupcakes up into quarters and Mike and I scientifically devoured them, ranking them on things like deliciousness and deliciousness.

We had: Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting (a favorite cake of mine in general), Maple with Maple Cream Frosting, Yellow Cake with Blueberry Filling and Lemon Cream Frosting, Yellow Cake with Raspberry Filling and Chocolate Frosting and finally Orange Sherbet, which was Mike's pick. 

     This concept of filling cupcakes with frosting is quite new to me and very exciting. I mean cupcakes on their own get me amped, as do Jelly Munchkins from Dunkin Donuts, so the surprise in the middle of these cupcakes was something else. It worked most successfully with the Raspberry Chocolate cupcake. The tart of the raspberry complimented the sweet very light buttery frosting well. I don't think I could fairly judge the filled cupcakes after I cut them in quarters because its that gooey surprise bite thats really effective. I was expecting something different from the Blueberry. I think the frosting was a bit sweet. And, in general I am severely against Orange Sherbet, but Mike enjoyed that one fully. Laura got the idea for the Orange Sherbet from her dad, who described her cupcakes as "orange and a half," and he was right. I could definitely appreciate its likeness to orange sherbet. Laura knows how to mix and match flavors and she apparently experiments with her cupcakes a lot. 

    Next was the Red Velvet, which I was very satisfied with, especially since most bakeries let me down in the Red Velvet department. Laura's was perfectly moist with that signature Red Velvet crumble and the Cream Cheese Frosting was just right, not too sweet and nice and soft, not stiff. I also loved the red sprinkles and blueberry garnish.

    This leaves me with the last and my favorite cupcake, the Maple with Maple Cream Frosting. In the spirit of being in Vermont, this cupcake was my first choice and a good choice it was. Again, Laura is on when it comes to bringing out flavors in baked goods. This moist cupcake was buttery and had a nice hint of maple syrup. And the frosting was perfect to boot, not to sweet and a nice smooth texture. 

    Where most cupcakeries fail is with their frosting, but not at A Dozen Eggs. A lot of people complain first that there is too much frosting. A Dozen Eggs cupcakes were on the heavier side in terms of frosting quantity, but Laura decorates them so beautifully and her frosting is so good that I say pile it on. Quality and quantity sounds like a good idea. So good, because it tastes buttery and not overly sweet or stiff. This girl knows her frosting. 

    It was difficult, but I was happy we saved the cupcake halves, first because it would have been so outrageous to eat 5 cupcakes between the two of us plus the macaroons, which were incredibly delicious. And it lefts us cupcakes to feast upon during the ride home. Even the next day these cupcakes rocked. 

    So if you're in Mt. Holly Vermont, be sure to stop into A Dozen Eggs for some Sugar Cookies and some cupcakes and to meet Laura. And visit A Dozen Eggs' Blog to get the latest info on this delicious bake shop.