Mmmmmm . . . cupcakes

This month's issue of The Atlantic has a drool-worthy article by Corby Kummer about cupcake perfection. Mr. Kummer's arguments about the tiny sweets are spot-on, from frosting preferences to disappointment in how often the actual cake in cupcakes is regarded as an afterthought:

Cupcakes may be largely icing-delivery vehicles, but the cake shouldn’t be cardboard and the icing shouldn’t be grease—twin concepts few artisan bakers (artisan being the new word for homemade) seem to get. Cooked French buttercream, which many of them choose (it shows off Technique), is not a suitable cupcake icing. It’s oily. It smears. A simple glaze—think Hostess, but with good chocolate—is. And best is the simple icing that for many people evokes childhood: butter beaten with confectioner’s sugar and milk and vanilla, light-textured and creamy but with a satisfying snap when you bite into it. Because this icing, when made with shortening, says “cheap supermarket cake” to artisan bakers, they shun it.

You can read the full article over here.