Sweet Saturday with some Rebuilders

If you'll think back to April 2014, remember that crazy rainstorm that lasted for several days and caused extreme flooding and a massive sinkhole? Unfortunately mangled cars were not the only victims that day. Several truly awesome dessert businesses in Mt. Washington, just off the Jones Falls Expressway, lost their entire shops.

Never fear, these shops are coming back better than ever and in today's post I'd like to showcase them. First up, Mouth Party Caramel.

I first discovered these guys by way of a Facebook post by someone else. Their unique logo and fun name immediately caught my attention, and I vowed to stop on my way home from work one day. Once I did, I haven't been able to stop going back.

Mouth Party lost their entire kitchen in the flooding but have slowly been rebuilding. At first they began shipping to local stores that carry their products (check their Facebook page for locations) and now they have opened up their website again for online orders. A few weeks ago before work I made it a point to visit The Fresh Market in Towson, MD to try to find their seasonal Old Bay caramels. They didn't have them but I did purchase a bag of their Sea Salt caramels, by far my favorite. How cute is the packaging??

Not too much salt but just enough, melt in your mouth buttery, these are the BEST caramels I have ever had. Once they opened up their website I purchased a bag of the Old Bay and a jar of their Original Caramel Sauce, which I have plans to drizzle over an apple tart sometime soon. I also loved the Old Bay, the taste isn't overpowering but it definitely makes me think of a Maryland summer of crabs and the beach!

The second place currently rebuilding is Charm City Cupcakes, located in the same shopping center as the Whole Foods in Mt. Washington. It's a very tiny stand alone shop that is easy to miss at first but don't be fooled by its size, these cupcakes are some of the best I've ever had. The bakery itself is not located in the store, they have a separate location elsewhere.

I stopped by on my way home from work on Thursday and as I approached the store both doors were flung open with a fan blowing to circulate the air. The inside consisted of a display table and a counter along the back wall and that was it. I was greeted by an extremely kind lady who explained about the flood damage and was very willing to tell me about each and every cupcake she had available while apologizing for some of them melting in the humidity. I give this lady a lot of credit because it was HUMID. Her apologizes were not needed though because the cupcakes were great!

I chose four, an apple cinnamon, a Black-Eyed Susan, peanut butter and vanilla, and a banana cream. These cupcakes were a great size with just enough frosting. Sometimes while the frosting is good the cupcake is still drowning in it but these were perfect. My favorite was probably the peanut butter and vanilla. The vanilla cake has that nice buttery taste with the vanilla that I love, and the peanut butter frosting was on point. All the others were good as well and did not last long in my house. I was a little skeptical about visiting this place because a lot of the online reviews had not been favorable, mostly about the customer service, but I have to say that I was served promptly despite the yucky weather and with lots of kindness. I will definitely be going back.

Apple cinnamon and Black-Eyed Susan. Love the decorations!

Peanut butter and banana cream

I encourage you to visit these businesses and support them in the rebuilding process!