Monkey Baby Shower Cupcakes

Loved this shower theme!! Vanilla cupcakes - one half with chocolate buttercream, the other half with vanilla buttercream icing swirls, topped off with hand formed gum paste/fondant monkey toppers for a Baby Shower! :)

Zebra Stripe Birthday

This Birthday cake was for a special little girl who loved both zebra stripes and the color pink! Vanilla buttermilk cake with vanilla buttercream filling, covered with white fondant, then black fondant zebra stripes! Then I used a strip of pink fondant to edge the bottom of the cake and added pink and green curli-ques on top! :)

Beach Ball First Birthday

This was one of the cutest themes I think I've seen for a Summer 1st Birthday - Beach Ball/Pool Party! Seriously, how cute is that?! The sheet cake was a rich, chocolate cake with all vanilla buttercream icing, even the details and accents. Then I made a little vanilla cake for the Birthday boy and used vanilla buttercream to give him his very own beach ball smash cake! Loved all the bright colors and designs with this project!

Pink Baby Shower Cupcakes with Handmade Flags

These were a fairly simple order, but just thought they turned out so lovely! Rich, chocolate cupcakes with vanilla swiss meringue buttercream swirls and my own hand made ribbon flag toppers! :)

Blue Elephant Baby Shower Cake

I don't seem to get too many opportunities to do the more "boyish" cakes even if they are baby boy cakes...somehow I'm always doing girly cakes - which don't get me wrong, I love!! But, it's so much fun to switch gears and change direction every once and a while! :) With this cake, my task was to match the Carters' Blue Elephant bedding collection, which is being used in the nursery - fun!! White vanilla cake with strawberry swiss meringue buttercream filling, covered with blue fondant which I marked to match the circle design found on the bedding. I then added a chocolate brown fondant strip at the base of the cake and finished if off with two little elephants I cut from fondant/gum paste mixture! Had so much fun with this design and was so in love with how it turned out!

Butterbeer Cupcakes and a Fond Farewell

So I've seen Butterbeer cupcakes popping up left and right ever since blogger amybites posted the recipe and I finally succumbed after I had the chance to make some toppers to go along with my cupcakes...I mean, you can't have naked cupcakes right?! Especially not when you're making the cupcakes in honor of the end of one of your favorite book/movie series! To fix that problem, I decided to make golden snitches and broomsticks as toppers using fondant and gum paste and a little bit of shimmer dust! I went by Amy's recipe exactly - didn't try to change a thing and the cupcakes...wow, were they ever rich! Yummy, but definitely not for the faint of heart! Have your glass of milk nearby! :) Butterscotch cupcake, butterscotch filling, butterscotch buttercream and a butterscotch drizzle?! Wow! But could it really be any other cupcake when you're saying goodbye to one of your favorite characters? No, of course not! Many, many thanks to J.K. Rowling for sharing her wonderful world (and imagination!) with the rest of us! And...are you working on any other projects? Just curious... :o)

Pink, Black and White Scrolled Shower Cake

This was another fun task of matching a cake to an item - in this case the shower invitation! The bottom tier was chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream filling, covered with white fondant. The top tier was vanilla buttermilk cake with vanilla buttercream filling covered with white fondant. I used pink fondant to edge the bottom of each tier, then added black fondant dots before attaching pink fondant/gum paste flowers that matched the ones on the invitations! I then cut black fondant scrolls using my Cricut Cake and attached them around the sides of the cake. I was very pleased with how the whole design came together - loved how the colors looked on the cake! :)

Hello Kitty Birthday Cake

Matching a cake to an outfit is one of my favorite things to do - it's just so much fun! Such was the case with this Birthday cake - Mom wanted to match the cake to a custom t-shirt she'd ordered for the big girl's special day. Bottom tier was vanilla buttermilk cake with vanilla buttercream filling covered with pink fondant. Top tier was chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream filling covered with pink fondant. All the accent pieces you see (even Hello Kitty!) are fondant as well! Another Hello Kitty cake that amazingly was able to leave our house (had to sneak it out when Taylor wasn't looking lol!)

Firetruck Cupcakes

These cupcakes were such a fun design! Vanilla buttermilk cupcakes with vanilla buttercream swirls topped with either gum paste stars bearing the Birthday Boy's age or a red gum paste fire truck complete with all the bells and whistles! Just loved how the bright red and yellow looked together too - Happy Birthday to a very special little Fire Chief! :)

Her Royal Highness Cake and Cupcakes

Since I have both a Son and a Daughter I love the fact that I get to enjoy both "girly" things and "guy" stuff...however, since I am myself a girl I have to admit I have an affinity towards the girlier things in life! Needless to say, I have SO been looking forward to this project!! A baby shower done in a princess theme! The small cake was vanilla buttermilk with strawberry swiss meringue buttercream filling and vanilla meringue buttercream icing piped into mounds of beautiful pink ruffles - oh, the ruffles!! I then fashioned a banner out of white fondant and added "HRH Emma Paige" in gold lettering for the coming Princess and topped off the cake with a hand made gum paste tiara! The cupcakes were also vanilla buttermilk with vanilla swiss meringue buttercream, topped off with pink gum paste crowns, pink flowers and a touch of shimmer dust! Altogether a lovely welcoming for the little Princess-to-be! :)

Lego Star Wars Birthday

So it's just been me and tiny fondant lego folks the past few nights as I've been working on this cake! :) Both tiers were chocolate truffle cake with peanut butter buttercream filling covered with blue fondant. I used yellow fondant to cut out the lettering and stars, then painted the stars with gold food coloring airbrush color. The lego figures were all hand formed (many with the aid of my Son's books for reference lol!) from fondant then some details painted on with coloring. Another fun challenge!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Cupcakes

Yes, they truly are what the name says! Fluffy, decadent chocolate truffle cupcakes with swirls of yummy peanut butter buttercream icing topped off by peanut butter cups! Have mercy.

Heavenly Key Lime Pie

I have confessed in the past to Key Lime Pie being one of my absolute favorite desserts of Summer and after making it over the weekend, I thought I'd share what's in my opinion, the best recipe I've yet to come across!

Heavenly Key Lime Pie (as adapted from Southern Living Magazine)

Ingredients:
1-14oz can sweetened condensed milk
3 egg yolks
2 tsp key lime zest (which I omitted for my quick version!)
1/2 cup key lime juice
1-9in. graham cracker pie crust
1 cup whipping cream
3 tbsp powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together condensed milk and next three ingredients until well blended. Pour mixture into pie crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until pie is set. Cool completely on a wire rack (about an hour). Chill in refrigerator one hour before serving. Beat whipping cream at high speed with an electric mixer 2 to 3 minutes or until soft peaks form, gradually adding powdered sugar. Top pie with whipped cream and garnish with key lime slices if desired.

*So I totally cheated this time around and went the "quick, fast & in a hurry" route with the recipe! I didn't use fresh key limes - we visited A Southern Season yesterday and I picked up more of the same bottled key lime juice that I used in my Key Lime Cupcakes - a brand called "Nellie & Joe's", so I was a little worried about how it might turn out as I'd actually squeezed all those tiny key limes by hand last go-round! Turned out wonderfully!! I couldn't tell any difference in taste and still had use of my hands afterwords, which was also nice to say the least! :)

Hello Kitty Cupcakes

As connoisseurs of Hello Kitty at our household, I have truly been looking forward to this cupcake project for quite some time! And now that the moment has finally arrived...behold the awesome cuteness that is...Hello Kitty in all her pink bowed glory!! (Taking it a bit far, yes I know - I apologize, just got a little carried away there) There were two dozen cupcakes for this Birthday girl - one dozen vanilla, one dozen chocolate both topped with a swirl of pink vanilla buttercream. I then placed toppers formed from gum paste/fondant on top - some even had a sprinkling of edible rainbow shimmer dust for added girly glee! Ah, the cuteness of it all! :)

Simple 60th Birthday

This was a simple request for a Mom who loves both the beach and pound cake with cream cheese icing! Pound cake with cream cheese icing (and filling) edged with crushed graham cracker "sand" and fondant shells. "60" for the top of the cake was cut out of fondant and brushed lightly with bronze shimmer dust - loved the simple elegance of this cake!

Yummiest Chocolate Cupcakes Evah!

Truly, the title says it all...these cupcakes are just wonderful! :) I've been wanting to try my hand at Italian meringue buttercream ever since discovering that was what I enjoyed every time I dined on the heavenly cupcakes at Sugarland, but it just always sounded so complex and honestly anything that involves a candy thermometer just scares the daylights out of me!!! But, after watching a few youtube videos and finally gathering my courage (and the required 7 & 1/2 sticks of butter - yes, you heard correctly!) I finally decided to give it a try! I thought my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe, my ultra-moist chocolate espresso would pair nicely with the smooth, creamy buttercream so I started with that as my base. I did burn my first batch of syrup (drats!) and have to move on to batch #2, but other than that, all went very well and out came a beautiful batch of smooth vanilla italian meringue buttercream! Success! I then decided to top it all off with some chocolate shavings - ah, yes - just right!

Army Guy Birthday Cake

This was a Birthday cake for a special little guy turning five who is especially into "army guys" right now! :) Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream icing, topped with a chocolate army helmet cake covered in cammo colored fondant and accented with fondant "dog tags" bearing the Birthday boy's name! (All the green army guys you see on the cake were plastic toy soldiers)

Funky Pink and Black Wedding Cake

I actually had the pleasure of working on this wedding cake back in May, but have been anxiously awaiting the photographer's views of the cake as I was so focused on getting the cake and all my gear to the venue that I forgot my own camera!! I loved, loved, loved the colors, design - just the free spirit that both the Bride-to-be and her cake embodied! :) Bottom tier was white vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream filling, next tier was chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling, next tier was vanilla buttermilk cake with vanilla buttercream filling and finally the top tier for the Bride and Groom was white vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream filling. All layers were covered with white fondant and all the detail work was black or hot pink fondant. The Bride-to-be provided the beautiful brushed metal toppers which couldn't have been designed to match the cake any better or so I thought! :) Many thanks to the talented Stephanie's Creative Photography for the wonderful photos!

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes

The strawberries really weren't the main reason I wanted to try out this recipe (shocking, I know!) While the hubby loves strawberries, my main draw to this recipe was trying my hand at swiss meringue buttercream which I've never made before. Nervous, yes - but determined! :) Strawberry cupcakes (made with two whole cups of chopped strawberries no less!) topped by strawberry swiss meringue buttercream and fresh strawberry slices! *Side Note - I almost gave up on the icing (!) after adding the butter - I was dismayed that the consistency turned soupy, but decided to put my Kitchen-Aid to good use, kicked up the speed, walked away for a few minutes and when I came back - voila! Perfect consistency swiss meringue buttercream!*

Princess Belle Birthday Cake

Belle Birthday cake for a very special little princess turning 6! Both the square cake on the bottom and Belle's dress (the skirt) were fudge marble cake with vanilla buttercream filling. Square cake was covered with pink fondant imprinted with a pretty vine pattern. Belle's dress was all yellow fondant, set off by a pretty pink gum paste flower! Happy Birthday, Miss Savannah! :)

Little Miss Matched Birthday Cake

Oh, if only Little Miss Matched had been around when I was growing up...I mean we had Lisa Frank, but still! LOVED this cake!! Both layers were yellow vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream filling. Bottom square cake was covered in blue fondant and black zebra pattern fondant (which I just loved the way it really popped against the blue!) Top round cake was covered in lime green fondant and varying shades of fondant circles, edged in orange fondant ribbon and an orange fondant bow. The whole crazy thing was topped off by fondant/gum paste curly-que's in varying shades! Now that's what I call a cake! :o)

Key Lime Cupcakes

I've done it! I've done it! (Let me point out I feel a bit like an evil Doctor in my laboratory at this point) One of my absolute favorite recipes of Summer is Key Lime Pie - just LOVE it!! The graham cracker crust, the refreshing tartness of the limes, the whipped cream on top - YUM! :) I've been searching high and low to find a cupcake recipe that I was happy with but to no avail, so I decided to work on my own combination until...finally today - SUCCESS!! I started with a brown sugar cupcake, combined that with a key lime curd filling, used a stabilized whipped cream icing, topped that with crushed graham crackers and finally some little beauties I picked up at A Southern Season - key lime flavored jelly candy slices! Voila! My masterpiece was complete! And the best thing - it tastes exactly as I wanted it to - it channels that key lime pie flavor so beautifully! I am a happy girl indeed! :)

Chocolate Cherry Coke Cupcake

Honestly, I was a little hesitant about trying out this recipe when I found it...while I love my Coca-Cola, I'm really not that big on cherry. Don't get me wrong - I love cherry airheads, snow cones, jolly ranchers...just not baked things - blech. Not my cup of tea. So, finally got around to trying this out last night...and wow, was I ever proven wrong! The flavor combination is so unexpectedly wonderful - just perfect! And it really does make such a lovely cupcake! :) Chocolate cupcakes infused with Coca-Cola, cherry buttercream icing, drizzled with a thick chocolate sauce (also infused with a little Coca-Cola) topped off nicely with a cherry! I can hear the Monkeys' song in the background "...now I'm a believer!"

Lemon Curd Filled Cupcakes

The great (and sometimes not so great!) thing about being a baker is, if I'm craving something badly enough and I have the ingredients on hand (okay, having the time helps too - I'm a busy Mom) problem solved! Such was the case with these beauties! I'd had lemon curd on my mind - it's been forever since I've fixed it too, so why not brush up on my skills, right? Makes sense? :) I made vanilla butter cupcakes, filled them with my lemon curd and topped them off with this awesome buttercream that's not your traditional buttercream - it's completely smooth and creamy like meringue buttercream but uses all the ingredients of traditional buttercream - SO YUMMY! I piped it in a different pattern than I've used before - it looks like a pretty pink rosette on top of each cupcake - so pretty! Loved how they looked and craving was taken care of - mission accomplished!

Little Prince 1st Birthday

I had the immense pleasure of making this Birthday cake and matching cupcakes for some very good friends of ours who's little guy just turned one! For the main cake, the bottom tier was white vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream filling covered in dark blue fondant with a quilting detail. The top tier was chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream filling covered in light blue fondant with some dark blue fondant details. The whole cake was topped off with a regal golden gum paste crown with white fondant around the rim and black painted "fur spots". :) I then made two dozen chocolate cupcakes with dark blue vanilla buttercream swirls which I topped with hand made golden gum paste crowns! Loved how they all looked together when placed on the cake table - so cute! (But I have to admit...not half as cute as the Birthday Boy!)

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake

Given that he's the huge strawberry addict that he is, the hubby was VERY excited to be the official taste tester on these new cupcakes! Lemon cupcakes topped with a swirl of strawberry buttercream icing - two thumbs up from the official! :)

Carolina Graduation Cake

I sooo enjoyed doing this cake!!! (and really and truly NOT just because I myself am a Carolina fan - honest!) This design is based on a beautiful cake seen by the grad's Mom on the site of one of my absolute favorite bakeries - Sugarland! Bottom tier was white vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream filling and icing with dark blue and carolina blue accents made out of fondant. Top tier was chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling and vanilla buttercream icing and the University symbol cut out of fondant. I then made a tiny chocolate cake and filled it with vanilla buttercream and covered it with carolina blue fondant to make a graduation cap for the topper!