I was asked to make cupcakes for 2 very special people’s 60th Wedding Anniversary. Not many people can say they were married 60 years, such an amazing accomplishment. Cupcakes were vanilla and carrot cake with cream cheese icing.
Category: Cupcakes
Cupcake Flowers
Easter Cupcakes
Bridal Shower Cupcakes
My cousin is getting married soon and we co-hosted a bridal shower for her. This is what I came up with for the cupcakes. They seemed to be a big hit!
Frozen Cupcakes
I really like how these ‘Frozen’ cupcakes turned out. I had never used the melting chocolates to decorate before, and I think my first attempt went well! The white balls were an absolute must in the request!
I look forward to adding new elements to my cakes with this chocolate technique
Nerf Cupcakes
I was asked to make Nerf Cupcakes for twins 9th Birthday. They each got their own special 3D one.
Poop Emoji Cupcakes
I love when I get asked to make a fun cake! I laughed right out loud when I saw the request. Don’t get me wrong, I love doing them all, but when you are just not interested in the theme, sometimes it’s hard to get into it. These were not the case. I had so much fun making these ‘Poop Emoji’ cupcakes. Most people thought they were hilarious, some slightly offended, others didn’t think they would be able to eat them. But int he end all that matters is the Birthday Girl liked them! Can’t wait to see what the next request is…
My Top 10 of 2011!
Wow! Where did 2011 go? Seems as I get older the years just fly by. This year I did a lot of baking, most were good, some were amazing and a few were total flops! There were some new recipes and others were tried and true favourites. The Daring Bakers took me way out of my comfort zone as I was truly dared with some amazing recipes. As for the “flops” I posted them too, not everything can turn out well. I thought I would end the year with a “top 10” list of my favourite recipes of the year.
10. Perogi Day
Perogi Day was a day I will never forget! Mom, Etta, Jen and myself were at it for almost 12 hours. We made 9 different flavours, used 25 pounds of potatoes, 7 tubs of sour cream, almost 2 bags of flour and a lot of bacon, cheese and onions. We ended up with, get ready for it……471 perogies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They were delicious, not sure I will be able to go back to the frozen ones from the store. It was a great day and the results were amazing! We all agreed that we would definitely do it again, just not anytime soon…
9. Apple Sauce Muffins
These Apple Sauce Muffins were something I stumbled across when visiting Gramma one afternoon. They were hot and fresh and delicious! You can’t really taste the apple sauce, they are a little bit sweet and have an amazing texture. I think I have made them at least 6 times since then. A wonderful recipe with simple ingredients, Thanks Gramma! 🙂
8. Baklava
This one was special for me. I was asked to be the host of the June Daring Bakers Challenge! Being host meant that I was able to pick any recipe and have all the members make their variations. I had always said, way back when I joined, that if I ever got the chance to host I was going to pick Baklava. It was amazing to see the different variety of baklava that were made. I was a little daring (mean) and had everyone make their own phyllo dough. Some people enjoyed the process, a lot did not, but all in all it was a wonderful experience. It was a true honour to be picked to be the June 2011 host. My baklava was delicious. I will definitely be making it again but, like many other members, I will probably use pre-made phyllo!
7. Puppy Chow
Puppy Chow was new for me, I had never even heard of it. Jen had come over to do some Christmas baking and she brought all the ingredients for Puppy Chow…hmmm. I was pleasantly surprised! Unlike the name this is a wonderful treat!!! Very simple, cereal, chocolate, butter, peanut butter and icing sugar. It is very addicting! It was a great gift to give away in little Christmas sacks. Thanks Jen for a great recipe that I will be using for many years to come. I may have to come up with a more appealing name….
6. Cupcakes, Cupcakes and more Cupcakes!
This was a scary one! Making 130 cupcakes for Kris and Selena’s Wedding! I had never done anything like this before. I mean I had made cupcakes but never 130 in one day! I was a nervous wreck, as I think the wedding cakes is a huge deal. Sadly it’s the food aspects that people remember more at a wedding then the actual ceremony. I thought if they don’t turn out I’d have people thinking “god, their cake was horrible”. Thank goodness everything went smoothly and the cupcakes were a hit! So much so that there was not near enough 😦 If there is a next time, I will know people will eat more than one! Thanks Kris and Selena!
5. Bachlorette Cake
When Coralee asked me to make Chrissy’s Bachlorette Party cake I was thrilled! I had just recently taken the Wilton Fondant course and figured this would be the perfect opportunity to give my new skills a try. For my first try at creating a formed fondant covered cake, I think it turned out pretty good. I hope to make more in the future. Unfortunately I fell ill that night and was unable to make the party, so I didn’t get to try it. Hope it was good!
4. Wedding CakeS!
No, I did not make a typo in the title I meant for the ‘S’ to be big! This was by far my biggest baking event ever, let alone in 2011. I was asked to make the cakes for Jen and Martin’s Wedding. At first I was terrified and think I even tried to talk her out of it, as I mentioned above, the wedding cake is a huge deal! When I calmed down I was truly honoured and accepted the challenge. Jen had a wonderful idea of having a cake on each table. The cake would then be “the wedding cake”, centre piece and dessert. It really was a good idea. It was a ton of work but I enjoyed every minute of it and would do it again in a heart beat! Thanks Jen!!
3. Povitica
This recipe was from the October Daring Bakers Challenge hosted by Jenni of The Gingered Whisk. She introduced me to something I had never heard of. Povitica?? I could barely say it let alone make it. As it was a bread recipe I was very hesitant in even trying it, bread and I do not get along well. I was pleasantly surprised, it was an amazing dough and so versatile. I was able to make both savory and sweet loaves out of the recipe. They were delicious!! This one rang in on my top 3! I will be making this a lot more in years to come. Thank you Jenni!!
2. Whoopie Pies!
I was a little late jumping on the Whoopie Pie ban wagon. Not sure what rock I had been living under but I just heard about these in July. Apparently they were quite the craze a while ago. There is even a “Whoopie Pie War” with two States as they both say they are the founder of the Whoopie Pie. Well, I don’t care who came up with the idea, I’m just glad they did!! These are little pieces of heaven! Surprisingly they are not sweet, they have a lovely light texture and a wonderful marshmallow filling. I have only made the “Classic Whoopie” but I have a book and plan on making many different kinds. What a wonderful find!
Drum roooooooooooooooooooollllllllllllllllllll…………………….
1. Salted Caramel Shortbread Bars
Without question this was my favourite recipe of the year! I mean look at at…it’s not only the best tasting dessert bar ever, it’s also a thing of beauty! This recipe was not even intended for me, haha. When Jen came over to do some Christmas baking, it was for her to take to her baking exchange. I had one bite and almost had to sit down. It is one of those treats that after your first bite you have to stop before you start chewing and your eyes grow twice their normal size as you cant believe this piece of magic in your mouth. It then turns into an eyes closed slow chew as you take in all the textures and tastes, and then it hits you…the salt! Your taste buds jump into high gear. It is like no other dessert experience I have ever had. Don’t believe me, Try them!!! Thank you Jen for my FAVOURITE treat of the year! This recipe will remain at the front of my recipe book to be made time and time again!
I would like to thank my many followers for stopping by throughout the year to see whats up in my kitchen. When I first started this whole blogging thing, I really didn’t think anyone other then family would read. I was shocked and so happy to see when I had over 20,000 hits!
Thanks again and Happy New Year! Please come back to see what’s baking in 2012
Cupcakes, Cupcakes and more Cupcakes!
This weekend I had the honour of make the wedding cake for my sister-in-law-to-be and her bride. Months ago when Kristy and Selena asked me to do their wedding cake I was terrified!!! To me the wedding cake is a huge deal, EVERYONE sees it, EVERYONE eats it, most people photograph it. I see it as a huge part of the day. I actually tried to talk them out of it because it was like nothing I had taken on before. They assured me that they had faith in me and absolutely wanted me to do it. I accepted the challenge.
Knowing that the cupcakes were going to be tasted by A LOT of people I got right to work testing recipes. This is where everyone at work came into the equation. Kris and Selena wanted a variety of flavours, chocolate peanut butter, vanilla, banana, carrot and red velvet. I tried 2-3 recipes for each flavour, (yes everyone at work had A LOT of cupcakes!!!) everyone at work tried them and gave feedback then the best ones were presented to Kris and Selena. The recipes and icings were picked and I nervously awaited the big day.
I live in Ontario and the wedding was in New Jersey so I was not able to bring familiar ingredients, only measuring spoons and cups and spatulas. Friday was shopping day, struck off to Shoppe Rite to get almost everything I needed. I was a little worried because a few things I have baked down there in the past didn’t turn out as they usually do. I am not sure if it is the ingredients or the weather but I was hoping it would not be affected this time.
Selena had just gotten a Kitchen Aid Mixer just weeks before the wedding, I was thrilled because I didn’t have to lug KAM down. I named hers KAMMIE cuz he was tiny 🙂
I feel in love with the splatter shield, I must get one! Really cut down on the mess.
10:00 AM Pulled all the ingredients out to get started…
No pictures as I usually do, I didn’t have time
11:00 PM Complete! 130 cupcakes and a layer banana cake
Red velvet with Cream Cheese Icing
Banana with Chocolate Icing
Vanilla with Chocolate Icing
Carrot with Cream Cheese Icing
Chocolate with Peanut Butter Icing
Banana Layer Cake with Butter Cream
They turned out quite well, visually, but I was still nervous about how they were all going to taste.
Now the big challenge, getting them an hour away all in once piece on the highways of New Jersey. A major problem was averted, it was a very chilly day. Usually it is hot as hell and humid in New Jersey, but I was lucky, so the icing stayed in tact. When we arrived I opened the trunk holding my breath, all was well, I could breath again! When it was time to take them into the hall…we were locked out! We had to wait outside for 15 minutes for them to let us in. Then I was trusting people I didn’t know to help carry them up a HUGE flight of stairs. I was not calm until they were in the hands of the restaurant. It was a stressful day, you would think it was me getting married lol
The restaurant displayed them beautifully! They didn’t put them all out at once.
You would think at this point all would be fine, but I was a nervous wreck! Usually if I make something I drop it off and I am not around when it is being eaten. If they didn’t like how they tasted I would be devastated.
This was the stampede when they announced that the cupcakes were served…
They were a huge it! Everyone loved them! I finally relaxed! One woman came up to me and told me how she is a huge fan of Red Velvet and has been buying it at a bakery in Brooklyn for years but mine was way better. I was shocked. She went on and on and on and said she just had to meet me and tell me. I promised I would make her some when I came back down 🙂 That comment and others like it made all the work worth it.
This was brought to my attention the day after the wedding. I had to take a picture of it 🙂
One of their photographer took a picture of the other holding my cupcake and posted it on their Facebook wall…
This was the comment she put under the photo
I was truly honored to have been part of Kristy and Selena’s day and wish them a Life time of Love and Happiness!!!
Mummies
This year for the kids at work, and for a student teachers Thank you, I made Mummy cupcakes. I was looking for an easy way to decorate Halloween cupcakes, this was the easiest one I could find. They turned out, but tasted great!
Erica's Edibles 