Thursday, 14 April 2011

The Hummingbird Bakery


So this little gem of an American bakery fills a key gap in the British baked goods market by bringing joy and happiness (read: real Americano cupcakes and cakes) in to our lives. Fun fact: Hummingbird Bakery were the first bakery to sell/bake/make us love Red Velvet everythings and Whoopie Pies in the UK. God bless you.

So, on this particular day, my friend and I showed a rare burst of sensibility and decided to share one slice of red velvet cake. Mind you, the slices are massive- oh yeah, American serving sizes- so this was actually a good decision. But, if you can rise to the challenge and are a dedicated member of the I-have-intense-cravings-for-red-velvet, then by all means, make us all proud and devour a slice by yourself!

If you are unfortunate enough to not have tasted the gloriousness that is red velvet, then this is what it is- a cake, or now a cupcake, with an intense maroon colouring spaced and topped with a heavenly, smooth, to die for cream cheese frosting. This frosting, if done right, and, boy does Humminbird score 10/10 on this one, is the closest equivalent to getting a warm, reassuring hug on a cold cold night. Yes, the frosting acts as a security blanket to that gorgeous red cake that needs to be shown some love and care and affection and …okay I’m getting carried away.

The Hummingbird Bakery also sells some great cupcakes, pies, brownies and seasonal offerings (check out their Easter cupcakes and sponge cake). They currently are celebrating the launch of their new book and have showcased a few cupcake recipes which, honestly, have the capability of making you (or maybe it’s just me) salivate by just looking at them. These recipes have taken the form of tiramisu, chocolate fondant, s’more (a traditional US American camp-side treat that is made by roasting marshmallows and smudging them with a layer of chocolate and graham crackers), apple crumble, lemon meringue, sticky toffee pudding (sheer genius!) and Boston cream cupcakes.

They even have re-created a few classic cupcakes without gluten for all allergy sufferers!

If you really want to torture yourself, plonk yourself down on the plush red-velvet coloured armchairs in the Wardour Street branch (with a cake of course) and take in the breath taking sights of 50 different Hummingbird creations that rotate on the gigantic flat screen TV.



Since all cakes are baked on sight, they do tend to sell out particular varieties through by late afternoon. Try and visit as early in the day as possible to ensure you get what you want.

You can find delightful branches of Hummingbird in Soho, Notting Hill and South Kensington with a fourth branch opening in the Spitafields market and plans of a fifth in the pipeline.



The Hummingbird Bakery also delivers. You can order online, on the phone or in person and the minimum order has to be £20, which I assure you is quite an easy criteria to fulfil. For your next party, celebration, you know what to do…

http://hummingbirdbakery.com/

No comments:

Post a Comment