Penn, Drexel students battle it out in 'Cupcake Wars'

Cupcakes are generally a treat for the taste buds, even if not for one’s waistline. On Saturday, cupcakes were abound as two dozen Penn and Drexel University students competed to come up with the best cupcake decorations as part of a fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House.

Six teams of Penn and Drexel students came together in Houston Hall to participate in the first Penn-Drexel “Cupcake Wars,” as sponsor Cream and Sugar owner Blythe Dim called it. Teams had to pay an entrance fee to try and decorate the best cupcake for cash prizes and a chance to claim honor for their university. The event was organized by the Penn Undergraduate Assembly and Penn Appetit in conjunction with two Drexel junior marketing students.

The event started off as the marketing project of Lawrence Mahoney and Avani Dev, two Drexel students who work at Cream and Sugar, a bakery on 40th and Spruce streets.

“The proceeds of this event will go to continuing deliveries to the [Ronald McDonald] House,” Mahoney said.

According to Dim, 10 percent of all competition profits went to the House, a nonprofit organization that serves breakfast to the underprivileged.

“It’s great to see for-profit and nonprofit components in an event at college,” Mark Pan, College junior and UA Vice President said.

“I didn’t think people would be so intense about decorating,” said UA associate member and College freshman Dan Bernick, who served as a judge for the competition. “I really wish that I’d entered — it seems really fun.”

The competition had 20 participants, half of whom were from Drexel. All teams were decorating until the very last minute of the competition, which ended about an hour into the event. By the end of the decorating round, each team’s three cupcakes had been molded into creations ranging from cupcake hamburgers to dinosaurs.

“This competition was literally very close. It was not easy making this decision,” Bernick announced as he began announcing the competition winners. “Each team was very creative,” Dim added.

First place went to Claire Masteller and Hannah Commons, College junior and senior, respectively, for their triceratops cupcake. Masteller said that the cupcake was inspired by the paleontology class in which they are both enrolled.

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