Oh! The Places You'll Go: Dazzle Cupcakes
I often hear my peers complain about how there is no frozen yogurt in Hanover. Ever since the first Pinkberry opened in 2005, fro-yo has gained a cult-like following. It’s one of those foods that’s just plain fun to eat, especially when you serve yourself and add your own toppings.
When I was in high school I considered frozen yogurt its own food group. My friends and I frequented the fro-yo places in our neighborhood multiple times a week, and it became such a staple in my diet that I craved it constantly my freshman fall. The soft-serve ice cream machine in FoCo just didn’t cut it.
While Hanover still lacks a frozen yogurt establishment, I am excited to say that a new shop has opened only 15 minutes from campus that sells a food I believe is equally fun to eat: cupcakes! Alexandra Peters, the former owner of the now-closed Brambles gift shop in Hanover, recently opened the Upper Valley’s first cupcake bakery, "Dazzle Cupcakes."
Peters grew up in England and has fond memories of munching on cake in the tearoom after a long day. Pursuing her passion for baking, she enrolled in London’s Le Cordon Bleu cooking school and received her diplôme de pâtisserie. Now based in the Upper Valley, Peters said she is excited to share her homemade cupcakes with the area.
Dazzle features 12 permanent flavors ranging from classic vanilla to mocha to chai to key lime. In addition, there are two special flavors for each day of the week. The most tempting? Wednesday’s sundae flavor and Saturday’s chocolate dipped strawberry cupcake (yes, there is an actual chocolate-covered strawberry on top). Peters takes pride in using locally sourced, high-quality ingredients.
Although Dazzle Cupcakes opened mere weeks ago, and to date has done no advertising outside of Facebook, Peters says she often sells out of cupcakes within the first two hours of opening shop. Peters is the sole employee of Dazzle Cupcakes and does all the baking and sales herself, usually baking 140 cupcakes from scratch each morning.
While I was in Dazzle Cupcakes last week, I couldn’t help but feel that the place would benefit from incorporating elements from the English tearooms Peters used to frequent. The shop is small and cozy, and with the addition of a few tables and a menu expanded to include tea, customers might just feel like they were in London – especially when listening to Peters’ charming accent.
While it’s true that perfectly good cupcakes can be found on Main Street at Lou’s (or at the King Arthur Flour café in the library, if the trek into town is too far), there’s something to be said for going to a shop purely dedicated to the little confections. I can attest to the deliciousness of the salted caramel cupcake and would have eagerly sampled more, had Peters not sold out of every other flavor the day I went. Dazzle Cupcakes is most certainly a sweet addition to the Upper Valley community.
57 Hanover Street, Unit 2, Lebanon, New Hampshire. Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (603) 678-8279