Ashley's Monthly Bake Sale - June

Well my first ever "Monthly Bake Sale" went over really well!! I picked a recipe from 500 Cupcakes...White Chocolate & Macadamia Nut. I had to do some doctoring with the recipe, but they came out buttery & delicious. The icing was amazing with the melted white chocolate in it. Everyone at work said they were great, so I think they were a success! I'm so thrilled that my idea worked, & I'm really looking forward to next month's selection. (I'll reveal what it is next week!)

Trying New Things = Unexpectedly Good Results!

Just a little preview of what I've been working on this week...




Fondant Roses!!! I'm pretty proud of myself for these little beauties! I owe you guys a couple of posts, & I plan on getting those to you this weekend. I just couldn't wait to show these to you!

Thank you, Cupcake Lady!!

My boss had a birthday on Saturday, & today at the office we had a little mini celebration. Since I'm the resident cake girl, I decided to make some cupcakes for the occasion. I've been trying to make everything from scratch here lately, so these would be no exception. Our cabinets at home are pretty bare, but I did have all of the ingredients to make simple vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream icing. Plain ol' vanilla just seemed boring, though, not fit for a birthday celebration. After digging through my cabinets, I found a bottle of cinnamon & an idea was born. I threw a tsp in the cupcake batter along with the other required ingredients, & another 2 tsp in the icing. Let me just tell you...after these things came out of the oven, they smelled so good that I wasn't sure they'd last long enough to get icing put on them let alone make it to the office this morning. Alas, I was a good girl & only ate one "naked" cuppie. Oh man! They tasted just like a snickerdoodle cookie, & I was thrilled! Snickerdoodles are one of my favorites! (Honestly, though, I haven't met a cookie yet that I don't like, so a cupcake that tastes like a cookie is okay in my book.) The icing was good too, but I'm not a big fan of buttercream in general. *Cue gasps of horror*


They look a little rough because I over-filled the cups & had to decorate them in a hurry, but they still tasted yummy!

Having survived through the night unscathed (i.e. uneaten), the cupcakes came with me to work today. They were a big hit! Everyone in my office liked them, & I took a few of the remaining ones to the office next door. I think they lasted all of 45 seconds over there! Even a couple of gentlemen from our corporate office got in on the cupcake action before they were all gone...I got a handshake & a jolly "Thank you, Cupcake Lady!!" as I left the office. All in all I'm throughly pleased that my lastest baking adventure was a success.

This is a busy week for me, my first Monthly Bake Sale is Thursday, & I've got a couple of other orders. I'll also try to post some stuff I did last week that I'm pretty proud of. Stay tuned to see how everything turns out!

Introducing - Cupcake of the Month!

In my constant effort to improve my skills as a baker, I have come up with an idea that I feel is absolutely genius. (It's my one good idea for the year, so I guess I better make it count!) Since I've started this little cake/cupcake venture, I've found so many recipes that I've been dying to try. Let's face it, though, I'm just a single gal trying to make ends meet, & I can't always afford to bake on a whim. Now that's where my genius idea comes in! I have decided to start a cupcake of the month club at work, more appropriately titled "Ashley's Monthly Bake Sale". The idea is that I will be picking a new recipe each month & allowing my co-workers to pre-order, so to speak, a few of the cupcakes. I will only bake a specified amount so that I'm not baking dozens upon dozens every month, & once they're gone...they're gone. In return for this yummy cupcake goodness, I'll only charging a little, & I do mean a little, bit of money for each cupcake. I'm not looking to make money off of this thing, just enough to cover the expenses of making them & that's it. This is really all about helping me try out new recipes without going broke doing it.

Well after speaking with a few of my coworkers (who were extremely excited, I might add), I decided that June would be the 1st month for my bake sale. The selection this month is White Chocolate & Macadamia Nut, & they were all spoken for within a few hours of e-mailing everyone! I will definitely post pictures next week once I get the cuppies made! Hopefully this idea will go over as well as I'm hoping...keep your fingers crossed!!

I'm just a rebel without a clue!

So I did something wild & crazy last week. (Now mind you...wild & crazy don't exactly fit into my personality profile.) I got a tattoo of a cupcake on my foot! Now tattoos are not a new experience for me...this one was #4. I had seen a few pictures on Flickr & decided that I too needed a cupcake tattoo. Little did I know that my foot was going to swell up like a balloon, but I love the thing...it's so cute!! The swelling has now gone down, & it's healing nicely. Many many MANY thanks to Jeanie at Altered Images in Oklahoma City!

Betty's got nothing on me!

Tonight was my first venture into the world of homemade cupcakes. I can make any boxed cake mix taste extra yummy, but I wanted to try my hand at something homemade for a change. My sister & I are having a jewelry party tomorrow night, so I thought I'd make some mini cupcakes for the occasion.

I found a recipe in Crazy About Cupcakes for strawberry-lime cupcakes & another for lime frosting. Add a little tequila, & you'd have yourself one tasty strawberry margarita, but that's another subject. The recipe was very easy to follow; it called for either fresh or frozen strawberries, & I chose the latter. When the minis came out of the oven they seemed a little dense so I was worried that I hadn't mixed the batter enough. After a taste test, though, they weren't as heavy as I thought they were. I wish I would have used fresh strawberries instead of the frozen ones; I think they would have helped keep the cake more light & airy. The lime frosting was absolutely delicious though! The perfect blend of sweet & tart. I didn't use all of the lime juice that the recipe called for, but it turned out really well. I'm glad I made the minis though, I think a little of the frosting goes a long way.

I made my guinea pigs (Mom & Dad) do a taste test, & they both agreed that they were pretty tasty. The true test will be our party guests tomorrow night. All in all, I'd say my first homemade cuppies were pretty successful. I'm definitely excited about trying more recipes!

Playing Catch-Up!

Wow...it's been way too long since I've updated this thing! Spring is in the air, & I'm loving every minute of it. I've done quite a few things since I last posted, so I thought I'd just give you a few pictures. Enjoy!



These are a few of 6 dozen cupcakes I made for a girl's 18th birthday party. There were 2 dozen each of strawberry, chocolate, & vanilla cupcakes all with vanilla buttercream.



Our friend just had a baby boy, & she's always asking if we have any cake around the house. This little 6" white cake was a surprise present for her.



Last month I was hired to make a cake & mini cupcakes for a wedding shower, & this is what I came up with. Their wedding colors are black, red, & white. This was my very first time using fondant, & I absolutely love it for making decorations. I'm not quite sure I want to try covering any entire cake with it yet, but I can definitely get used to the little stuff.