Copper Kettle - Not Just for the Meat & Three

While local Nashville spot Copper Kettle has received much recognition for their version of the signature Nashville "meat and three" and for their Sunday brunch, I feel like some praise for another, perhaps unexpected, menu item is deserved - the goat cheese salad.

Although nobody can deny that the delicious Southern comfort food that is served daily (such as the meatloaf, mac-and-cheese, collards and green beans my boyfriend Tyler orders every time) is mouth-watering good, it's not why I make the trip down Granny White. I crave their salad.

Topped with fresh strawberries, mangos, sweet pecans, a homemade vinaigrette with cranberries, and (as the name suggests) a warm, fried goat cheese cake, it is the perfect balance of something that tastes healthy and fresh while still indulgent. I sometimes add grilled chicken, too, for an even more balanced and filling meal.

A lunchtime favorite, for sure.

In Search for the perfect Ginger Cupcake

I have no real idea as to why I am now on the search for the perfect ginger cupcake, except that I do love the ginger cookies from the Cake Shop in Tallahassee and I really like cupcakes. I started my quest with a Ginger cupcake recipe from Cupcakes by Shelly Kaldunski. I used organic ground ginger and ground fresh ginger - the result was wonderfully gingery. It just wasn't a "cupcake". It was gingerbread in a cupcake shape. Like most gingerbread I have had, it was dense and heavy - flavorful and moist but more like a muffin. I even tried filling the "cupcake" with lemon curd and glazing it with the lemon glaze (from the same cookbook). The lemon curd was a great addition, but it just wasn't what I am looking for. I want a real "cupcake" - a small moist light cake with a hint of ginger and lemon. So my quest will continue. Any ideas?

Good, but not the best local cupcake art

My official testing of the Nashville cupcake shops began at The Painted Cupcake, located downtown on 4th Avenue in the Arcade. Although the painted street-side window is inviting and the staff was wonderfully pleasant, the cupcakes were not quite as "artful" as advertised.

I sampled 6 flavors: a "White Wedding", a"Black Velvet", a "Strawberry Fields", a peanut butter-and-jelly, a classic yellow cake with chocolate icing, and a lemon-filled cake with lemon buttercream icing.

Of these, the lemon-filled was the only one that really stood out to me. The filling was delicious and, combined with the icing and cake, there was the perfect balance of sweet and tart.

As for the others, although they were good, they frankly did not taste any better (or maybe even not as good) as some of the cupcakes I've made at home (although much prettier). I could taste all the different components of the standard cream cheese icing, and some of the cake tops were overcooked just enough to take away from the moistness of the rest of the cake.

While tasting homemade can be good, for $2.65/treat at a specialty cupcake shop, I expect something special with a little extra "umph". Overall, I'm not sure if I'd go out of my way to go back, but it's worth the stop if you're downtown and craving something sweet.