Winner of "Herbivoracious" and my Twitter Giveaway!

Saturday was the last day you could put in for the Herbivoracious cookbook giveaway. I got the winner the old-fashioned way: I wrote the names down on small slits of paper, put them in a bag, shook it up, and closed my eyes as I grabbed a slip. And the winner is:

Carol Sue!

Major congrats! I'll be emailing you for your address and will send via USPS this week. Hope you enjoy it. And even if you didn't win, Michael has many recipes from Herbivoracious on his website where you can test drive some. If you like what you see/try than I highly suggest getting a copy from Harvard Common Press. It's a great book to have on-hand, especially for those, like myself, seeking to make more veggie heavy dishes with flair.

One giveaway ends and another begins. Yes, I'm feeling particularly giving now. Call it post-Book Expo warm fuzzies.

Since I'm getting close to the 500 follower mark (or have hit it by the time this posts) on Twitter I have decided to hold a giveaway for my followers.

Here are the rules:

1) You're automatically entered if you follow me on Twitter. No need to tweet or comment or anything.

2) Once I get to the 501 mark (as followers tend to waver 1 or 2 per day) I'll randomly choose a winner using Random Number Generator. I will only enter numbers 1-whatever # followers I have that day.

3) I will pick two numbers randomly. From there I will count the followers (yes, count) in ascending order (bottom to top) and determine which follower corresponds with that number. Hard work, but someone's got to do it.

4) If the number corresponds with a spammer or corporation or family member (sorry, but I gotta stay somewhat neutral) they will not be counted and I will randomly pick another number and find the follower that corresponds as long as they are an individual and not related to me.

5) I will announce the winners via Twitter and DM them. If they do not respond within 48 hours I'll repeat steps 3 & 4 to find another winner.

6) Once I get in touch with winner we'll discuss which prize you'd like and I'll get it ASAP. Meaning within the week if possible/available.

So I'm sure you're wondering what the prizes are? Since my website/blog is based around my love of the written word and baking it only seems fitting that the prizes reflect such. So, two lucky, random winners will get a choice between:

• A book (whatever genre) at a $25 (USD) value or less OR
• Dessert from one of the bakeries I have interviewed (check my baking page for direct links to interviews) at a value of $25 (USD) or less. Sorry to say that this doesn't count Cupcakes in Rome as she is located in Italy, however if YOU are in Italy you may be in luck! Please note that some bakeries only deliver to the NYC/tri-state area so we can try and work out another dessert if you have a hankering and are out of location.

Update as of July 14th: A couple days after this post originally pubbed I reached 504 followers and chose two winners randomly from Twitter. They were Jacob G. Adams and Ajit Dhillon! They both chose books. Well Jacob chose a book and Ajit got a $25 Amazon giftcard. So congrats guys and glad you enjoyed your gifts! Thanks again for following!

I'll have another cookbook giveaway in August thanks to Tuttle Publishing for Bee Yinn Low's (aka RasaMalaysia) new book. So stay tuned!

Thanks for following and reading!

Interview with Cupcakes in Rome founder Alexandra (International baked goods on a small scale.)

If you didn’t already know by now I’m a bit of a Twitter addict. It’s become a great venue to meet like-minded people like myself and frankly tweets are all the rage these days. A few months ago I did a post on baking blogs I enjoyed and admired and it was around this time that I was made aware of Cupcakes in Rome (CiR), a new independent baking venture started by Alexandra. Who is also a fabulous photographer. As an up-and-coming baker I was intrigued about what got Alexandra started as she begins to put Cupcakes in Rome on the map. She was super excited about doing an interview and since launching Cupcakes in Rome has made great progress connecting with bakers and bloggers and baking bloggers on the worldwide web. Her cupcakes use no preservatives and natural ingredients a plus these days and she said she rarely makes the same thing twice.

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JBH: Cupcakes in Rome is a small business. What was the moment that made you realize you wanted to start this business? Was it something you had been considering for awhile or did you just wake up one day and realize you wanted to follow your passion in baking?

CiR: I’ve always enjoyed being creative and keeping busy. In addition to this, I’ve always loved baking and cupcakes for me have been the perfect way to mix both these activities.

The idea of starting a business, even if it’s home-based and still very small, sort of happened by chance mainly on the suggestion of family and friends who at every occasion I’d bake some cupcakes, would tell me they were so good, I should sell them!

I guess after hearing this for so long, I just took them up on it! It’s really been more of a personal challenge than an actual business choice, really!

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JBH: On your website you mention having traveled a lot from a young age. Where did you travel and what types of sweets and other cuisines did you try that you particularly enjoyed?

CiR: I’ve been very fortunate because I travelled a lot thanks to my dad’s job. We’ve lived in 4 countries, including Indonesia (in Asia) and this has given me the opportunity to see, smell and taste all the wonderful things these places have to offer, from tropical fruits to different kinds of desserts.

I must say though that, having grown in an Italian household, REAL Italian remains my fave, but I do also love Asian-style cuisine (so long as it’s not too spicy!). As for desserts, American and English are my faves! I guess they remind me of treats during school friends’ parties or other occasions.

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JBH: Why the fascination with American cupcakes? What is it about our type of cake that intrigues you? Is it the texture? Layers? Variety of flavors? How does it differ from ones you’ve tried in Europe and other locations?

CiR: There’s something about these tiny cakes that just makes me smile! I love the variety of decorations I have discovered. I love how one tiny bite-sized cake can often become a work of art… like a canvas waiting to be brought to life! I love how, depending on the flavour and decoration, they can be great for any occasion!

Personally, I have not experimented with too many “cake” flavours, though I plan to slowly expand the variety we offer. Italians have a much less “sweet” tooth than the Americans or English… so I have somewhat adapted the selection of what I offer.

I think that the best cupcakes I’ve had were definitely in New York!

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JBH: You also have a blog that you’ve recently created. The tagline says that you aim to have a loving relationship with food and share that on your blog. By delving into your loving relationship with food do you aim to mainly post recipes that you’ve created and comparisons with baked goods native to you versus those native to America?

CiR: The aim with my blog was and is, to offer simple yet interesting recipes any working girl like me can whip up without too much trouble. I’d say I mainly prefer sharing Italian recipes that not many foreign readers may be aware of or know how to prepare.

On the contrary to my cupcake site, the blog is only in English, because my intention was to share these easy (mainly) Italian recipes and tips with English speaking readers.

The fact that I don’t update it too often, is another story!

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JBH: Beyond cupcakesinrome.com and your blog are there other ways that people can connect with you online?

CiR: I am very passionate about photography, though I’ve somewhat neglected my first love, ever since I got involved in “Cupcakes in Rome.”

My photography has always been just a hobby, but it’s something that I care about and that is another way to flaunt the creative side of my character!

Cupcakes in Rome is on Facebook and Twitter.

Websites where you can see some of my work:

http://alextakesphotos.carbonmade.com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexandra_n

Thanks, Alexandra for sharing your inspiration for baking and these lovely photos of your creations. Wishing Cupcakes in Rome the utmost success!