Sugar junkies from all across the Bay Area gathered at Stable Café on Folsom Street Oct. 18 to slog through 22 different versions of the classic cupcake -- while enjoying that special high, which only empty calories can offer.

SF Food Wars hosted the Mini Cupcake Clash on Oct. 18 as an opportunity for amateur and seasoned bakers, cooking fiends and sugar-friendly residents alike to not only compete for the honorable title of SF Food War Champion, while sharing their talent and creativity with like-minded cupcake-connoisseurs.

"I love eating and making cupcakes equally," said competitor and passionate home baker Sharon O'Malley, 26. "I'm ready to feed the masses, and I can't wait to see the competition."

The gloomy San Francisco weather didn't dampen the spirits of the roughly 170 attendees, who, for an admission fee of $10, had a choice of unique cupcakes baked by 22 different teams, with proceeds going towards the San Francisco Food Bank.

Tables with the delicious treats lined the backyard of the Stable Café, each filled with colorful creations more impressive than the last. Ranging from moist, dry and fluffy, sweet to savory and traditional to outrageous, the bakers tended to every mouth's desire.

"There are two unexpected things at this competition," said Marcia Gagliardi, a food writer for tablehopper.com. "I'm impressed with the variety of vegan entries and how much people played with savory cupcakes."

One of the more surprising entries was the "Tossed Salad (Dressing)" cupcake by local San Francisco team Yahtzee B****cakes. Consisting of olive oil and topped with a light-brown, creamy Balsamic vinegar frosting, the cupcake was an interesting mix of sweet and sour.

"I tried an olive flavored ice cream once, and that made me think about how olives are technically a fruit and lend themselves to sweetness," said Jane Davis, 27, an event planner who thought of the unique recipe.

Oakland resident Carolynn Webb's Spiced Mocha Vegan cupcakes were also in high demand among the sugar-hungry crowd.

"It's such a fun event, and it makes me feel good," said the pre-school teacher, who won second place at San Francisco's first Food War in August for her macaroni and cheese dishes. "There's a lot of hard work that goes into the preparation, and it's good to know that the money is going to a good cause."

"I'm not a cupcake person," added Gagliardi. "But I was excited about cupcakes today."

Jeannie Choe, the person responsible for the event, also founded SF Food Wars in the summer of 2009.

When Choe relocated from New York to San Francisco, she realized that this food-friendly city was missing one crucial ingredient -- the healthy competition.

"A good friend was organizing food wars in New York all the time," said Choe. "I figured there's nothing like it out here, and this city loves food. It's like a shoe-in."

According to Choe, calling up the sponsors was the hard part, but tickets to the event were sold as quickly as hot mini-cupcakes.

"The Mac Battle Royale w/Cheese was the first Food War ever in San Francisco, and it was a huge success," said Choe. "But the Cupcake Clash sold out in just one hour and three minutes!"

While the competition at the Mini Cupcake Clash was just as ambitiously brutal as the Mac and Cheese throw-down in August, it unfolded on a much sweeter note.

"I'm looking for creativity, but I still want the cupcake to taste good," said San Francisco Chronicle's food blogger Tamara Palmer, who was one of the three judges for the event. "I was a judge at the Mac and Cheese Food Wars, and some people just went overboard. I want something that tastes good because I have a huge sweet tooth."

After much tasting and deliberating, the judges reached a verdict. While six winners total were chosen in the categories of "Photographer's Choice," "People's Choice," and "Judges' Choice." San Francisco team "Cinnaholics" with Florian Radke and Shannon Carlson was selected as the judges' and photographer's favorite.

"I didn't see this coming," said Radke, who plans on opening a bakery in January and sees his sweet victory as a good omen. "We usually don't do cupcakes."