The trees are filled with the green of a long-awaited spring, and soon there will be another welcome green sight around Chester County – the vibrant Dia Doce cupcake truck!
Downingtown alumn Thais daSilva returned home from New York City with a mission to bring the gourmet cupcake experience to Chesco and the surrounding areas. With her grandmother’s recipes and a flair for the unique, Thais has been building a following by baking for birthdays, confirmations and other celebrations.
Now as we head into warm weather and festival season, her calendar is filling up with fun events that call for her tasty creations. And in about six weeks, Thais’s long awaited cupcake truck should be fully renovated, decorated and rolling through a neighborhood near you.
First up on the menu for this weekend is Sheep & Wool Day at Springton Manor Farm in Glenmoore on Saturday at 11am. Sheep will be sheared at this large annual event, filled with crafters, vendors and of course, food. Thais is planning cupcakes for the adult palate (such as lemon basil) and for the kids, she’ll decorate their favorite flavors (vanilla, chocolate & strawberry) to look like farm animals.
Sunday, May 1st is May Day, and West Chester is celebrating with a festival of the arts at Everhart Park from 11am. Special occasions deserve special treats, so look for Jackson Pollock and Georgia O’Keefe inspired cupcakes on Sunday!
Dia Doce’s cupcake philosophy focuses on a gourmet experience through local ingredients (eggs and milk from Glenmoore; local, seasonal fruit) and refined recycled packaging. Green on the outside and the inside, the truck also strives to be eco conscience. Its electric generator, charged up overnight, will power the on-board fridge and oven, rather than running the engine while out on the town. The mini oven will be baking fresh cupcakes all day, and that scent is sure to draw customers from miles around.
“I’ve always wanted a truck,” Thais says, “instead of a storefront.” Her mobile store will have one window that converts into a display case where you can ogle the cupcakes before selecting a flavor. She plans to carry a half dozen flavors on board at any given time, including standards (chocolate, vanilla and red velvet), two seasonal flavors (like berries in the springtime) and then one other fun flavor, relating to current events, like the Royal Wedding or a holiday.
Of course, Dia Doce’s strength lies in the creativity of flavor combinations. Uber popular red velvet is dyed naturally with beets, and the cream cheese frosting enhanced with vanilla bean specks.
A chocolate cake is baked with a blackberry surprise inside, then finished with rich dark chocolate icing and a fresh berry atop. You get the idea – basic will never be boring.
Every flavor Thais detailed topped the last. Her favorite flavors include lemon cake with lemon curd filling and lavender icing and a caffeine boost treat of ground up chocolate covered espresso beans baked into a chocolate cake.
Ideas swirling around in her head include a savory maple bacon breakfast creation and a goat cheese & fig combo – both possibly in the works for The PA Ren Faire’s FlavorFest happening Memorial Day weekend.
“I try to think what I like to eat together,” said Thais on the origins of her flavor ideas. Evidence of this is her idea for a cake with a crispy chocolate chip top and beer icing – stemming from her love of beer and chocolate chip cookies. Inspired by kids, including her young son, Thais is toying with the idea of a sour patch cupcake dusted with sour sugar powder. As if you could make kids love cupcakes any more!
I tested her with some of my own favorite tastes: an elderflower cocktail becomes pomegranate cake with sparkling champagne and elderflower buttercream; a bar snack of fried pickles transforms into a corncake with sweet pickles throughout and a salty fried streusel topping. I’ll be on the lookout for when those flavors hit the streets!
The Dia Doce truck should be in operation in mid-June, and PA Eats is sure to have the details for you at that time. Right now, order your cupcakes for special occasions by getting in touch through the website. Dia Doce makes cupcakes (regular, mini and jumbo size), as well as larger cakes (regular and 4” mini sizes). Regular size cupcakes retail for $3 each or $33 for a dozen.
Photograph credit: Amy Strauss
