Cupcake Quest: Sweet

This post is part of the Cupcake Quest series on Fork it over, Boston!

Sweet is absolutely adorable. It's pink and white and fluffy, just what you'd expect from a cupcakery. I've walked by the Harvard Square location on numerous occasions, and I once bought a few cupcakes and frosting shots (more on that later) at the Mass Ave. location, but my recent experience was take-out delivered by a friend, so I'll elaborate more on the store ambiance after a repeat visit.

Please excuse the blurry cell phone photos. We were being kicked off the steps of our own office building as I tried to quickly shoot these. They were toppling over onto each other and onto the steps, and we were being yelled at (gently) to move. I definitely ate a ground cupcake. (Five second rule!)

I had already started the day with a ginormous chocolate raspberry "muffin" from Gingerbread Construction Co., so I felt a little sick when Julia arrived to our Papa Razzi lunch date with a bag of cupcakes. Huge cupcake + lots of pasta + more cupcakes = probably crossing the line. But the all-important Cupcake Quest trumps all, so I couldn't refuse. Besides, these cupcakes were mini (and oh so cute).

She brought them in a bag, and they had some trouble surviving the trip. There was much frosting mingling, just like in the Cherry Bomb Bakery quest.

Explicit cupcake threesome!

We were hoping that this elaborate cupcake mating ritual would result in even mini-er baby cupcakes, but alas. As it turns out, cupcakes are not able to reproduce.

On to the tasting! We tried to have a picnic on the nice, flat steps of our office building, but apparently building management doesn't like people sitting there. (I've seen plenty of people sitting there to smoke, make phone calls, and even eat lunch, so maybe they were just jealous that we didn't bring them any cupcakes.)

I tried the red velvet ("gentle hint of Bensdorp Dutch cocoa, a classing shocking red hue, and Sweet's delectable cream cheese frosting").

It had some trouble standing up, but it was moist and tasty and sugary. The frosting-to-cupcake ratio is a bit overwhelming...there's seriously more frosting than cake...so if you're not the type of person that enjoyed downing Pixy Stix as a kid, you may want to skip these.

Joy had the cappuccino cupcake ("delectable espresso-flavored cake baked with Callebaut chocolate crowned with signature Sweet frosting and a dusting of cinnamon")...with some remnants of red velvet.

Julia inexplicably loves carrot cake (seriously, who loves carrot cake?) so she got the organic karat cupcake ("moist carrot cake with shredded organic carrots and crushed pineapple topped with classic cream cheese frosting"). The regular-sized version includes an edible petal of gold leaf.

Sweet also has pupcakes ("a yummy combination of applesauce and oatmeal") and frosting shots - dangerous little $1 cups of frosting. Each one contains about the same amount of frosting that you can see in the previous mini cupcake photos. They come in a few flavors; I think I got chocolate when Julia and I made the mistake of ordering these a few months ago. If you want to play a prank on someone, sneak a frosting shot to his or her kids for a major sugar high. (Just kidding...Fork it over, Boston! doesn't suggest or endorse doing illegal or unethical stuff. Play nicely.) After about a half hour of giddy sugar high, we came crashing down badly. Eating that amount of frosting with an actual cupcake seems to lessen the effect slightly, but a giant glob of sugary deliciousness on an empty stomach is apparently not a great idea.

The Verdict: Sweet certainly lives up to its name. The frosting is light and sugary, not buttercreamy. This may or may not be for you. If you do like this style of cupcake, though, Sweet's are made well and come in lots of tasty flavors. Plus, they're really cute. Some potential highlights of the menu follow; I'll report back if I get a chance to eat any of them:

S'mores: "Rich callebaut chocolate cake atop a buttery graham cracker crust. Finished with a swirl of marshmallow and a dusting of graham cracker - campfire not included. (Fall menu 9/22-11/26)

Salted Chocolate: "The brownie cupcake, unfrosted - topped with a dusting of sea salt for a sweet and salty flavor." (Fall menu 9/22-11/26)

Banana Split: "Fluffy chiffon cake stuffed with banana cream, topped with traditional whipping cream, chocolate ganache, and a sliver of cherry. Complete with its own little spoon! Add rainbow sprinkles to your taste at the counter." (Spring menu 4/1-6/20)

Pink Lemonade: "A SWEETer twist on the summertime classic with a hint of cherry juice and its very own straw." (Summer menu 6/21-9/21)

Candy Cane: "Peppermint buttercream frosting drizzled with chocolate and sprinkled with peppermint candy crumble, all atop delectable chocolate cake." (Holiday menu 11/27-12/24)