but it’s got everything to do with getting some force behind the Gulf oil spill clean-up.

There’s loads of difficulty in cleaning up a mess that’s 5,000 feet under water.  It’s kinda crazy to have started drilling there anyway since it’s so hard to deal with the clean-up, but until it’s cleaned up, why don’t we BOYCOTT BP? That way they’ll surely get the message: it’s not OK to fumble and bumble your way to a resolution that they you haven’t yet found, and don’t seem likely to. That they had no real plan B is really clear. That’s reason enough, isn’t it?

But also consider that BP doesn’t even stand to lose much money over this. Direct clean-up costs will be high of course, but relative to their profits it’s not much pain. The $75 million damages cap is laughable. Any big oil company would very logically calculate and conclude that drilling in deep waters is worth the financial risk. And, don’t forget insurance–coverage for this type of scenario sounds more like their Plan B.   Congress’s attempt to revise the liability cap to one billion plus are totally going to be challenged in the courts and, if my cob-webbed brain remembers ex-post facto rules correctly, changing the rules of the game after the damages have occurred will not be looked upon very favorably.

So, I think it’s really up to the consumers in the US to send a message that BP, and the rest of the industry, will hear very plainly: take your mess seriously, clean it up, and be quick about it. I’m surprised no one has brought it up–or at least I haven’t seen it reported. I think there is plenty of reason to be angry at what BP and their rig operators did, and it’s just made worse by the lack of planning and readiness to deal with a problem like this. A boycott will tell them people are disappointed and just don’t trust them.

Boycott BP until the spill is capped, perhaps even cleaned. And then decide if their worthy of your hard earned cash.

My wife and I were blessed with the birth of our first baby, Poplar, just 5 weeks ago.  She’s already stolen our hearts and given us tons of joy!

At CakeLove, landed a spot outside the beltway for our fans way west of the city…this will save you from driving into the city for cupcakes. It’s a small, cozy shop, just the way we like it. Drop by and say hi, we’d love to see you.

And don’t forget to vote for us in the Washington City Paper’s Best of reader’s poll. We’d love your vote for Best Bakery and Best Cupcake. My favorite is the Cynthia’s Sin, but unfortunately we can’t vote by flavor

Looking for a good time?

If so, then check out the first comedy festival sponsored by bightestyoungthings.com

http://www.brightestyoungthings.com/featured/bentzen-ball-opening-night-w-patton-oswalt/

it’s a full on comedy festival this weekend right here in DC on U Street!

I’m gonna check out the line-up at the Studio theater.  Here’s a link to the schedule.

http://www.bentzenball.com/saturday/

Have fun!

Try out these cookies I made at home last night. Scrumptious!

A mixer isn’t necessary, but it helps if you have one.

Honestly I didn’t measure so the quantities might be a little off, but they should work out as very chewy and buttery white chocolate-cranberry cookies…

1 ½ cups brown sugar (light or dark) loosely packed

½ cup white sugar

Mix well in a deep bowl.

3 ounces unsalted butter (3/4 of a stick), melted

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir in—it should be damp to wet.

1 egg (size “large” or “extra large”)

1 yolk (size “large” or “extra large”)

Stir in. Dough should be quite wet and sloshy.

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon sea salt

Pre-mix in a bowl and stir in. Dough should clump up and be only slightly tacky.

¾ cup dried cranberries

½ cup white chocolate, chopped off a block into pea sized pieces

¼ cup chocolate chips (optional)

Stir or fold in until totally combined. If it’s a little too dry flick in a tablespoon or two of softened butter and beat in (that’s what I had to do).

Scoop onto a baking sheet lined with a nonstick baking paper or foil.

Bake for 13-15 minutes at 325°F. Remove and cool for about a minute and then get busy with munchin’ on ‘em.

Enjoy!

Most of the spring was spent completing the recipes, copy and pics for my second cookbook, United Cakes of America-recipes for every state. I’m super excited about it and very much look forward to it’s release.

The recipes are from all over the US, dedicating at least one recipe that uses ingredients from a specific state or is too popular in the state’s history or culture to go by unmentioned. I reworked a lot of traditional recipes and created a few new ones–all with an eye toward keeping it simple. Most are really easy and a few venture into the more difficult territory, but that couldn’t be avoided. It’s kind of the perfect book for me since I’m a US history geek and love to cook!

Not sure on the publish date, but it should be late fall and I’ll post it as soon as I know which should be soon.

Thanks for all of your interest and have fun in the kitchen.  - WB

Yes We Can!

All hail the Chief, President-Elect Barack Obama!  DC and the rest of the country (and perhaps the world) are celebrating the election of Senator Barack Obama to be the 44^th President of the United States of America. I’m breathing a huge sigh of relief about this. I’m a history and news freak so please indulge my excitement with all of the historical significance this election brings!

It feels like the nation’s top levels of government has finally caught up with the people!  President-elect Obama brings into office not only my views of how to approach the world and all of our problems, but just about everyone I know. This is a multicultural country. The people within our borders have many views and they all need to be respected and heard. Silencing and restricting the rights of groups on the fringe of our society weakens our nation. There is no threat in a healthy, educated dialogue among people who are all committed to protecting and practicing the privileges afforded to us as United States citizens and the rights endowed to us under the Constitution. I look forward to the restoration of a broader debate about a host of social issues in America during his administration.

Participating in an orderly election is enough to make anyone proud to be an American. On top of that I am very happy with the outcome.  President-elect Obama will bring change to the U.S. which sometimes can be challenging, but in the end, change is good. I’ll be ready and look forward to doing my part!

I just want to say out loud thanks to Kristin for all of your help this summer. SHe’s finishing up her fnial year at Brown University but spent the summer learning all about CakeLove and how we do what we do. Nice work and best of luck next year!

OMG! I’m like a broken record when I say “it’s been a long time since my last blog entry” and now is no exception. I’ve been a bit preoccupied so I appreciate the patience with anyone who even remembers that I keep a blog.

 Anyway, back to business and back to basics! The book is out and peeps have questions- so I’ll blog replies and comments from what I’ve heard. It’s time to celebrate- we won best Cupcake and Best Birthday Cake from the Washingtonian Readers Poll. New stores are opening! CakeLove is now at Tysons Corner Center (Tysons 1). And, CakeLove at National Harbor will open in just over a month! That’s a lot of exciting stuff in the midst of a tough, tough year for the economy. I wanna say thank you! Thank you for choosing CakeLove, thanks for spreading the word about what we do and what you like.

 Now it’s onto a few specific entries…that by now you’ve figured out I posted in reverse order. Doh! So now you know, I write in chunks and then post! Shhh–don’t tell anoyone else!

A beloved friend to the Washington, Dc 14th St mid-city community passed away recently. Noi Chudnoff was the epitome of Go Mama Go! her funky store that offered a wide variety of house wares, art, trinkets, and collectibles all under one roof. She was spunky, energetic, embracing, sassy, and, best of all, friendly. Her store is one of the brightest stars along 14th St and as such draws a regular stream of people who are either browsing or buying. And Noi welcomed them all. Her passing is a great loss for everyone.

I met Noi years ago before CakeLove started. At the time I was baking cakes at Laval’s Food to Go (currently the kitchen of St. Ex). We met when she was scoping properties looking for a storefront to lease for Go Mama Go! It was 2001 and she had vision- way more than me. She could see the future and how the neighborhood would shape and was bound to transform. She took what I thought was a huge gamble on a big space that needed a lot of work. She couldn’t have picked a better location and the simplicity of her store should be a lesson for all entrepreneurs.

I enjoyed watching Noi stroll in the neighborhood or march in the gay pride parade. She was everywhere because she was passionate about living and working and being a strong business woman. I admired her drive and found a lot of inspiration in it.

Noi will be missed and my heart goes out to her family.

This posting is a call to action– please act by April 25th. The mission is to protect chocolate b/c it’s under siege by the FDA.

The FDA is up to no good. They’re looking to mess around with the regulations giverning the composition of chocolate. PLEASE, if you value quality chocolate and don’t want to see the market flooded with cheap knock-offs of vegetable oil painted brown and labeled with something like “extra dark super flavored chocolate (kind of)” then go to this website and click through to add a comment on the FDA’s website. The great folks at Guittard in San Francisco have put up this website as a portal to the FDA’s comment page. Please click through or paste it into your browser.

http://dontmesswithourchocolate.guittard.com/

Below is my comment. Feel free to copy and paste it as your comment, too. This is a serious challenge to what we know, love, and value. It’s chocolate. It needs out help now!

If you enjoy the taste of chocolate and value small business, then don’t change the legal standard for its composition. If passed, the contemplated changes would pave the way for instant reformulations by chocolatiers that will chip away at the beautiful taste of chocolate we all love and treasure. Reducing the current required mass contents of cacao liqueur and/or cocoa butter by allowing the addition of artificial or processed ingredients will permanently hurt the global chocolate industry.

The FDA won’t encourage de facto development of a broader market with this regualtion. This regulation will squash small business entrepreneurs who attempt to enter the market against giant corporate enterprises that push low priced products onto unknowing consumers. This regualtion waters down what we identify as chocolate and that is a great harm to anyone who seeks to consume chocolate.

To be sure, the free market always adjusts to legal expansions to product classifications, but finding quality candy, cakes, and gifts will become extremely difficult as every marketer of chocolate confections competes to lower prices.

Don’t touch the regulations for chocolate. They’re not broken. They don’t need fixing. For the love of chocolate, leave the regualtions alone!