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Dessert First

a san francisco food and travel blog | all things sweet

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{Weekend Break}: All The Cupcakes You Can Handle: At The SF Cupcake Challenge

Jan 26 by Anita 11 Comments

Is the cupcake craze over? Apparently not in the Bay Area, where new cupcakeries are still proliferating. A couple weeks ago DrinkEatPlay invited me to judge at the 2nd Annual Bay Area Cupcake Challenge, where 13 cupcake bakeries competed for Best Cupcake and Best Bakery. Two cupcakes from each competitor equaled a whole lot of […]...

Filed Under: San Francisco, SF Events, Sweet Spots Tagged With: cupcake, event, san francisco

A Winning Blackberry Lemon Cupcake

Dec 12 by Anita 15 Comments

Photo courtesy of Driscoll’s About a week ago I got to be part of an exciting event: Driscoll’s held a holiday cooking and food photography workshop in San Francisco and several local food bloggers, including yours truly, was invited to attend. I had previously got to tour some of the farms that grow Driscoll’s berries, […]...

Filed Under: Cakes, Recipes, San Francisco, SF Events Tagged With: blackberry, buttercream, cupcake, driscoll's, lemon

A Busy Weekend Including Bake Sale for Japan

Apr 5 by Anita 21 Comments

I had an over-the-top, amazingly full weekend, the kind that starts on Thursday afternoon and doesn’t end until you’re catching your breath on a wickedly warm Sunday evening. Too much to share, and some bits I’m saving for a future post, but I did want to talk about a big part of my Saturday: the […]...

Filed Under: Cakes, Recipes, San Francisco, SF Events Tagged With: bake sale for japan, coconut, cupcake, yuzu

{Sweet San Francisco}: TCHO and Chocolate Mint Filled Cupcakes

Mar 16 by Anita 17 Comments

Pardon the slightly disjointed nature of this post; it was meant to be report on my TCHO factory experience that evolved into a St. Patrick’s Day recipe that now includes a mention of Japan. Apologies, but I couldn’t not mention that I fell in love with Japan long before I visited it for the first […]...

Filed Under: Cakes, Chocolate, Recipes, San Francisco, Sweet Spots, Sweet Spots Tagged With: chocolate, cupcake, ganache, mint, san francisco, tcho

{SF} A Foodie Weekend in Three Acts

Oct 14 by Anita 8 Comments

Act I. “Pour Yourself a Stiff Drink, There’s a Lot More to Come.” The kickoff party for Scharffen Berger’s annual Chocolate Adventure Contest has become an Orson tradition. Exotic drinks, whimsical nibbles, and a whole lot of chocolate cupcakes. The theme this year for the Chocolate Adventure Contest is cupcakes – devise a cupcake made […]...

Filed Under: Events, San Francisco, SF Events Tagged With: blogher food, chocolate, chocolate adventure contest, cupcake, elizabeth falkner, good food awards, orson, san francisco, scharffen berger

Chai Cupcakes, Two Ways

Aug 11 by Anita 44 Comments

When I worked at this chocolate cafe, we in the pastry kitchen were responsible for baking up all sorts of chocolate-intensive treats, as well as making the chocolate drinks that were the specialty of the house. From classic hot chocolate to mochas to bicerins, we made the mixes for the drinks in the kitchen, and […]...

Filed Under: Cakes, Recipes Tagged With: chai, chocolate, cupcake, spice, vanilla

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best of dessert first


The Making of Macarons (Sucre Cuit Style)

Hong Kong Eggettes (Daan Jai) for Mom


Tis the Season

A Better Brioche for World Bread Day


Consider the Humble Chocolate Chip Cookie

A Feast of Figs


Pure Dessert, Pure Inspiration

My Own Remembrance of Things Past: Dan Tats


The Slow Drip of Coffee on a Languorous Summer's Day

Still Life of Strawberry Tart

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about pastrygirl

Anita Chu, also known as pastrygirl, is a baker, writer, and photographer with a passion for pastry. She trained at Tante Marie's Cooking School and is the author of Field Guide to Cookies, Field Guide to Candy, and Lollipop Love. Anita lives in San Francisco with her husband, baby girl, and rescue cockapoo Snickerdoodle. More about pastrygirl

my latest cookbook


My newest cookbook, Lollipop Love, is now out!

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