Sweet Treats: Yodel-ay-hee-hoo

I grew up in the great era of Ring Dings and Yodels. Twinkies were second rate, too sweet and no chocolate in sight. My dad introduced me to the fine art of freezing them and then picking off the outer coating of crispy chocolate and savoring the insides — the cream filling being the best part. I don’t think I could accurately describe how distraught I was upon eating one later in life and finding the cream filling recipe had changed. I researched to find that Drake’s had been sold to another company. The same company also acquired Hostess and it seemed that they also acquired the inferior cream filling. I wrote to them in protest and urged them to reconsider. Disappointingly, my response was a form letter that didn’t even address my concerns. So what’s a girl to do, when her childhood favorite no longer lives up to its memories? Luckily for me I found a solution besides making them myself.

Lulu Cake Boutique, a cute and shiny little operation in Chelsea, has been quietly having their cake elves recreate my childhood favorites. Although they make beautiful custom birthday cakes, for me it’s their Yodels that are really special — a perfect roll of light chocolate cake, filled with vanilla bean whipped cream and encased in crispy dark chocolate. Now, they have signs all over their store letting you know that everything is refrigerated because it is made with real, delicious products like butter and eggs, so you should let it warm up before eating it. And I must confess that I loved seeing those signs. I am totally on board with that program and it made me like them just a tiny bit more for their fine ethics. However, cold is perfect for me, just like the good old days, picking off the chocolate and unrolling the cake, savoring every bite. It’s almost perfection. If only they could steal that secret Drake’s cream filling formula and make it all natural. They also make a bunch of other childhood favorites come to life, including Chocodiles (that’s a chocolate covered Twinkie), Devil Dogs, Funny Bones and Snow Balls and of course the bacon of pastry, cupcakes. But for me, it's go Yodel or go home.