The Mojito

Banana Daiquiris, Brandy Alexanders, and Caramel Apple-Tinis, each of which I savored at 5 p.m. on a Monday evening. No, I did not spend my night in a drunken stupor, but in a sweet sugar high from the cocktail cupcake happy hour at Kickass Cupcakes in Davis Square.

As unfortunate as this may sound, I consider myself to be quite the cupcake snob. Being from LA, I am a wholehearted follower of the cupcake craze that swept the country and now the world. Cupcake shops have sprung up in Rome, Istanbul, Berlin, Seoul, and Sydney, and I’ve made a point to find the best. I’ve waited forty-five minutes for a Sprinkles cupcake in Beverly Hills, tried more artisanal varieties from local bakeries across the country, flocked to Sweet upon its grand opening and, of course, flew to New York for the mecca of cupcakes: Magnolia Bakery.

See the verdict on Kickass Cupcakes after the jump!

My first tipsy tasting was the Banana Daiquiri, a rum-soaked banana baby cake with cream cheese frosting and a banana chip. After fully appreciating the moist cake that is so hard to come by in miniature deviations, I moved on to the Brandy Alexander. It was a wonderfully rich chocolate cupcake with a crème de cacao whipped cream center, chocolate brandy frosting, and a kiss of nutmeg. The frosting was reminiscent of the gooey center of molten chocolate cakes and was completely unlike any I have ever tried before. It was sheer, unadulterated bliss wrapped in the trademark paper liner.  My last cocktail confection was the Caramel Apple-Tini, a cider cupcake with a caramel center, hard cider frosting, and lightly garnished with green apple Jolly Ranchers. Each bite was preceded by an ooze of creamy caramel and followed by an intense, sinfully artificial apple flavor that so characterizes the conventional apple martini.

Green Monsta

Not only did I try the special happy hour cupcakes, I was also lucky enough to sample several of their bestsellers. Not surprisingly, two of these cupcakes, Green Monster and the Mojito, are also alcoholic. Green Monster is a chocolate cupcake with a chocolate-beer ganache center and Sam Adams Cream Stout frosting. Although the pairing may seem far outside of the realm of grandma’s homemade cupcakes, the flavor profile is startlingly affable. The Mojito is a rum-soaked cupcake with sugar cane lime frosting and fresh mint. The light douse in rum, a technique commonly used by cake bakers in the South, leads to an incredibly moist cake, and ultimately adds the Mojito to my list of favorite cupcakes. This, my friends, should be considered a huge honor.

Cocktail Cupcake Happy Hour is offered the last Monday of every month, and consists of three cocktail-inspired cupcakes. Free samples of these tipsy tastings are offered to customers, and are available for sale in miniature sizes. Add the next one on Monday, October 26th from 5-7pm onto your GCal.

Wow, these cupcakes really do kick ass!

Kickass Cupcakes is so much more than what has now become the ubiquitous cupcake shop. New ways to reinvent and share the beauty of the cupcake run awry: food and fashion are combined in their “Cupcakes and Couture” series, where the bakery transforms into a fashion boutique for an evening, and cupcake lovers are encouraged to invent their own creations in a month-long competition. The prize? A year’s supply of cupcakes. More than enough to sate any foodie’s sweet tooth and devastate their waist line.

Kickass Cupcakes is located on 378 Highland Ave. in Davis Square.

Note: The author of this article gained twenty pounds in the extensive cupcake eating that was necessary for thorough journalistic research. Judgment is strongly discouraged.