Cupcakes and Cookies Bring Bundles of Joy

With the holiday spirit in abundance, Hokulani Bake Shop has an array of festively decorated treats to fit the mood.

Pumpkin Spice ($3.50) cupcakes are topped with cinnamon cream cheese frosting and colorful sprinkles.

“This one was based off of a pumpkin pie dish,” explains lead baker Danielle Jaffe. “Those two flavors (pumpkin and cinnamon) go hand in hand.”

Eggnog Bourbon ($3.50) cupcakes feature a nutmeg buttercream frosting. And, of course, there’s nothing wrong with adding a little alcohol to a cupcake to jazz it up.

“Eggnog always goes best with some kind of alcohol,” Jaffe says with a laugh. “We put it (the bourbon) in the batter, and it bakes out.

So you get the flavor, and all the alcohol disappears.”

With its island inspiration, Strawberry Guava ($2.50) cupcakes are accented with a cream cheese frosting.

“We use compounded strawberries and guava,” Jaffe explains. “We mix it into the batter.”

Lilikoi ($2.50) cupcakes are coupled with lemon cream cheese frosting and yellow sprinkles. Much like the Strawberry Guava cup-cakes, the Lilikoi cupcakes are made with a sweet passion fruit lilikoi compound.

You might be thinking, “Why lemon cream cheese frosting?” Well, Jaffe has the answer for you.

“It brings out the flavor in the passion fruit,” she says. “If you were to use plain cream cheese, you wouldn’t get as much flavor.”

Decorated Sugar Cookies ($4) are a hit with the keiki, as they are accented with the perfect amount of holiday flair.

There is much going on at Hokulani Bake Shop this festive season, and owner Tushar Dubay says the establishment recently debuted a new line of packaging.

“We have a reusable shopping bag that we give to those who purchase a dozen cupcakes or more,” he explains. “It’s a beautiful shopping bag, and we just completely redesigned it.”

Now, patrons who purchase $30 or more worth of cupcakes or cookies will receive a shopping bag.

“It’s a great gift bag,” Dubay says, also noting that new cupcake and cake boxes are in the works.

“The box has a window in it, so you can see all 12 cupcakes,” he says.

With all that’s going on at Hokulani Bake Shop, customers can look forward to exciting things in the coming year.

Hokulani Bake Shop

500 Ala Moana Blvd. Ste. 4B, Honolulu (additional locations at Windward Mall, Hyatt Regency Waikiki, Pioneer Plaza and Pearlridge Center)
536-2253
Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.