Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Photo-Shoot Wedding Cupcakes

Katie Guth of Katie Guth Photography requested a dozen cupcakes for a bridal photo shoot she was doing this last weekend.   These are what I whipped up.  I can't wait to see the "real" pictures!!!






Friday, August 22, 2014

Bre's Sporty Cake

So what kind of cake does one make for a 13-year old young lady who is incredibly athletic and in to all sports?  A cake that represents a few of her passions, that's what!  Bre chose two of her favorite sports (basketball and volleyball) and asked me to make a basketball and volleyball out of cake and then stack them into a cake.  Sounds interesting?

Here's the basketball.  Getting that "orange" color was a bit of a challenge.  For those of you interested, to get a basketball orange, it's a combination of orange, red, brown and copper.  I couldn't even begin to tell you how much of each because it took about 20 minutes to get this color.  But now you know where to start!

Because you couldn't really see all of the basketball's lines after it was stacked, I'm happy I took a quick shot of it before it was gone.  This tier was a chocolate cake with Oreo buttercream filling.  The frosting was very much like a cookies 'n cream flavor.  It was divine!


I made the volleyball cake and stacked it on top of the basketball cake.  The top tier was a vanilla bean cake with cookie dough filling - Bre's invention!  I accented the top of the cake with gum paste/fondant bow in Bre's school colors.  It added a little bit of girly flair that I think she really enjoyed!

 



Happy Birthday, Bre!!  I hope that 13 is your best year yet!!!

Monday, August 18, 2014

Harley "Chick" Cake

My wonderful neighbor, Michelle, requested a cake for a coworker, Gayle.  She told me that the birthday girl was a Harley girl and wanted a cake that would incorporate that.  

A Harley cake for a woman?  What FUN!  

So I placed the Harley logo on the top of the cake and lit up the flames on the side of the cake.  I think it's a totally Harley cake, yet one cool enough for a lady!  




This cake a chocolate-flecked cake with a traditional buttercream filling and frosting.



I hope the birthday girl is surprised and has a wonderful birthday celebration!  

Stacy & Mike's Wedding Celebration

It was so much fun to celebrate Stacy and Mike on Saturday night.  They had a beautiful wedding celebration with wonderful friends, beautiful families and lots and lots of great music!  Stacy is one of my "besties" (we met freshmen year in high school when we sat next to each other in band) and it was so awesome to see her all decked out and beautified (she's beautiful no matter what!!) and having such a wonderful time, surrounded by those who love her and her hubby, Mike.  I am so happy for her happiness and the wonderful family she has.  It was truly a wonderful celebration!

She asked me to make the cupcakes for the night.  I usually don't "do" weddings, but I simply couldn't say no to Stacy.  And cupcakes I can handle.  My kitchen?  Eh...  But I was up for the challenge.  In almost everything, Stacy has THE BEST taste and chose her cupcakes wisely.  

Here's the entire display including the "wedding cake".  


First up is the vanilla bean cupcakes, filled with creamy vanilla buttercream and topped with a browned butter buttercream.  They were simple, light and sweet, but not too sweet.




Next up were the red velvet cupcakes filled and topped with a creamy cream cheese frosting.  These were the first to go!



Next were the chocolate cupcakes, filled with a homemade caramel sauce and topped with salted caramel buttercream.  Words cannot describe the deliciousness.  No words.  Totally my favorite baked good I've ever made.  




Last is the wedding cake.  Stacy requested a gluten and dairy-free cake so that she, too, could enjoy some sweetness on her very special night.  This is a gluten-free vanilla cake filled and topped with a very meringue-y 7-minute frosting.  It's an older recipe and super light and sweet.  And I love how it shines!



I couldn't be happier for Mike and Stacy and the wonderful adventure they're already on.   I'm so happy I got to be a part of their very special night!  I wish them both the very best!



Arielle's Peace, Love, and Happiness Cake

Arielle (Ari) is our super sweet next door neighbor who celebrated her birthday a few weeks ago.  I was so excited to be asked to make her birthday cake.  Her mom ordered a chocolate cake with fudge and Oreos and buttercream filling.  It's a very rich cake, but if you're a fan of chocolate, it's a little like heaven.  The Oreos are just an added bonus.  I used a boiled buttercream to frost the cake.  It's a delicate frosting and not too sweet, with real vanilla bean specks throughout.  Personally, it's MY favorite frosting.  

Ari's mom gave ma  few ideas for the design of the cake.  She said that Ari's room is pink and she really loves peace signs.  My daughter is friends with Ari and told me that she has teal, purple, orange and green in her room as well and she loves hearts too.  

So with all of that "intel", I came up with this design for Ari...



I cut out a bunch of flowers and leaves and made them into a peace sign on the top of the cake.  


I decorated with hearts along the side of the cake.


I hope that Ari had a great birthday celebration!   Thanks for asking me to be a part of it!  :)