Meet This Month's Tattle Tasters: Cupcake Edition

Today I'd like you to meet this month's Tattle Tasters who are fellow What's Cookin, Chicago members! They have weighed in on some cupcake recipes I've posted all week so here's a bit of background on each of them. Thanks to all our Tattle Tasters this month and be on the look out to see what I cook or bake up in November for another round of Tattle Tasters to provide a review...

Nutella Bottom Cupcakes with Tiramisu Frosting

Bananas Foster Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Pumpkin Cheesecake Frosting

Shawna

"I just really love food. I always have. It is a passion that has stayed with me since I was a small child. I get excited to try new restaurants-when I travel, where and what I will eat are always the first priority. I love reading about food, experimenting with flavors, and of course, smelling and tasting food."

Shawna lives in the Old Irving Park neighborhood of Chicago. She's been a part of What's Cookin Chicago since August 2009. "I just joined, but it seems like a great group, and I am so excited to meet you all!" Shawna joined What's Cookin, Chicago because she wanted to meet other people who share her passion for creating delicious meals, and sharing that food with friends. Shawna's favorite types of food would probably be Mediterranean, but she loves all different types of food. She wanted to be a Tattle Taster because she thinks this is a great idea. "It is a great way to get others' feedback on your recipes, and it is a great way to share your ideas with other people. I am trying to learn more about different flavors and ingredients, and I think just tasting different dishes will be a great way to do that. "

Kelly

"I'm always trying new recipes at home. I like to try to cook some raw or vegan recipes just to see what they would taste like and to eat more healthy. I'm always substituting ingredients in recipes. I just love to cook."

Kelly lives in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. She was just searching the Meetup.com site and found us and has been a member of What's Cookin, Chicago since August 2007! "This group is a lovely idea to get people together from different neighborhoods and backgrounds for a common love...food." Kelly loves all types of food, especially Chinese and she wanted participate as a Tattle Taster because she enjoys making and eating food. "I like to try other people's cooking because I'm always eating mine or my mom's. I think if you're looking for feedback I can definitely give it to you and I would enjoy this new and exciting experience.

Brittany

"I'll try pretty much any food once, and love discovering new things, getting really excited for fun and easy new recipes that I can whip up at home and feel good about myself :)"

Laurel lives in the Lincoln Park/Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. She's been a part of What's Cookin Chicago since August 2009. Laurel joined What's Cookin Chicago by browsing for interesting-looking meetups in my area, and she says, "it looked like a fun way to try new things of course, and meet people with lots of different knowledge to bring to the table (so to speak, hehe). I've just attended two meetups so far, but I had a blast at those and I can't wait to go to more events, I think there will be so much to offer!" Her favorite foods include almost any Asian cuisine, and just really simple good-quality stuff too. "Nice bread, cheese, and fruit, and I'm happy!" Brittany wanted to participate as a Tattle Taster because she's looking forward to being able to give feedback on dishes, but mostly she loves to discover new recipes and actually be able to taste how they've turned out without just relying on paper and pictures to tell her the story.

Cathy

"I love to eat everything. Growing up, I was raised to appreciate any food that was given to me so I am always thankful to eat and try different kinds of food."

Cathy lives in the OldTown neighborhood of Chicago. She's been a member of What's Cookin Chicago since July 2009 and has attended 7 events so far!

Rachel

"I started becoming interested in food when I was a vegan in college (not even a vegetarian anymore- thank goodness!). At the same time I read Fastfood Nation and took a course called the Geography of Food, Cuisine and Kitchenspace in which we read everything from Like Water to Chocolate to watched documentaries on the Green Revolution and the mono-cropping of potatoes in Peru. I started to see food as a political and economic force, and started to remove the cultural blinders from my own food practices. I was working to organize factory workers in central Mexico that live in deplorable conditions, and I would spend hours in workers’ homes as they offered me tamales and atole. There, in the fresh street markets of Mexico, I really began to see cooking as a therapeutic act for me personally. From my “small talk” relationship with the vendors that sold me the produce, to the soothing motion of chopping the vegetables, to (of course) the eating and exploration of trying to make food from home with Mexican ingredients."

Rachel lives in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago and naturally enjoys Mexican street food, but also Southern Indian and Indian street food, along with the simple cuisine of Denmark and the peasant food of Italy. She's been a part of What's Cookin, Chicago since September 2009. "Before I moved to Chicago I looked on Meet-up.com and found it. I attended a few classes and really enjoyed what I learned. Currently I’m living on a student budget, so while I think the events are well priced I can’t go to them very often. I think the science and explanation that Joelen gives is really stellar and more importantly provides a non-intimidating and approachable way of learning more about food chemistry and process."Rachel's thoughts on participating as a Tattle Taster: "Well, quite frankly I don’t have many people to cook for and now that I’ve returned to school I don’t have the moolah for more exotic or exciting ingredients- so, my inspiration and motivation for attempting new recipes isn’t as easy/present. I read Joelen’s blog regularly and I love the experimentation. I’d really like the experimentation. That, and since I’m comfortable talking about food in terms of international politics, nutrition issues and gender concepts, I’m now trying to learn food from a taste, texture and process perspective."