Cupcakes, Tea, and a Gift

What an eventful weekend! I have lots of fun and delicious things to share with you all on this lazy Sunday evening. Earlier this past week, my good friend Greg told me about a new vegan bakery a few towns away from me. Needless to say, I got right to work figuring out the details on this place. Turns out it's called Papa Ganache (you can find them on Facebook here), and I took a trip there yesterday. Their treats are all vegan, mostly organic, and they have gluten-free items too. The goodies include cupcakes (regular and mini sized!), cookies, cinnamon buns, muffins, and breads. They have coffee and tea, too. The storefront is small but very cute, with a little seating area that looks out through huge windows to the nearby bay. I decided to get a few different items to try, mostly because everything looked so good I was having a hard time with decisions. For me, I brought home a mini strawberries n' cream cupcake, a mini chocolate peanut butter cupcake, and a regular size "Mostess", a twist on the classic cream filled Hostess cake (how cute is the play on the white curlicue icing?). I apologize for eating the mini chocolate peanut butter cupcake prior to the photo, I was so excited I just kind of inhaled it in the parking lot. I also got a chocolate chip cookie for Mark. Let me just say, all of the cupcakes were ridiculously good. Like, really, really delicious. It is a good thing this place is a bit of a ride from my house or I'd be in trouble. I had a nibble of Mark's cookie, and that was very tasty too. The texture was a bit of a surprise, kind of crispy on the outside and chewy inside, but overall it was very good. I give this place a big A+. Delicious treats, cute little storefront, friendly people working. I'll be back!

Another place I visited on Saturday was a new tea house in town. It's called NovelTeas. My mom had seen the place a few weeks ago and suggested we check it out. Upon walking in, it was like you were transported. Beautifully decorated, plenty of cozy seating, and a gorgeous backyard garden with more seating greeted us. Off to the side was the register and a wall of loose leaf teas available for purchase. Since we didn't have a lot of time, I just picked up some lemon herbal loose tea to bring home, but I can assure you I will be back to laze about for a few hours with some tea and a book. What a wonderful find in town!
Finally, my wonderful mom got a me gift today! She picked up a copy of Veganomicon for me. I was so excited; I've wanted this cookbook for a long time! I've used it at friends' houses and heard many a person rave about it, so I am really glad to finally have my own copy. I can't wait to get cooking!That's it for my busy weekend. The half marathon is 3 weeks from today! I'm getting really deep into my training, and I'm starting to get excited. Almost there.