Step by step homemade baking recipes
I spent a lot of the time in a minivan while growing up.
A. Lot.
Constantly on the go, our family was alway driving back and forth to my sports events, or back and forth to my brother’s sporting events. Being that Cranbrook is realively in the middle of nowhere as far as sport competition sites, we had to drive, usually for hours, to play a quality game against quality competition.
I saw this idea on Pinterest, which is slowly taking over the world!!! Hahaha . . . it might not be taking over the world, but it’s surely taking over my spare time, and what little I have of it! If you haven’t seen it yet (where have you been) make sure you go and request an invite (makes it seem like an exclusive club or something) and try it out! It has tons of ideas for everything! I use it for kindergarten ideas, along with cakes, cupcakes, and recipes galore!
All you need for this simple activity are some glass marbles, cupcake liners, and cupcake batter! [Read more…]
No, it is NOT too early to post about Valentine’s Day cupcakes! I went into good ‘0le WalMart yesterday (sorry Dad if you’re reading this . . . pretend you didn’t hear that! . . . he doesn’t go to WalMart as they’re non-union) and the shelves are already FULL of pink, red and white chocolates, marshmallows and candies! If you want to argue with me about it being too soon, don’t bother, take it up with the huge box stores! I’m just a little minion, following in their wake 😉
But in all seriousness, Valentine’s Day is extra special to us, as it is the first time we ever had orders come in for JJ’s Custom Cakery! You could say that Valentine’s Day is how it all got started. What were you expecting I say? It’s when Paul and I declared our LOVE for each other?? Hahaha! Nope! BUT, it WAS when the LOVE of our business sealed us together, forever! That has to be romantic on some level? [Read more…]
We started out the 2011 summer season by setting up a booth at the Cranbrook Farmers Market, which is held in downtown Cranbrook every Saturday morning throughout June-September. We met so many amazing people, and other vendors, that when the possibility of getting to take part in a Winter Market, we jumped at the chance!
My first thought was, “No tent to set up! Yay!”.
Paul, while I was manning our cupcake booth, managed to make his way around to many of the other vendors. I feel like I got to see a bit of the market through the lens of his camera. After seeing these pictures, I’m almost glad that I was stuck behind the table as I surely would have put a serious dent in my wallet!
Last December, my good friend had her first baby . . . and named her London. This baby and I were meant to be friends . . . since she was named after one of my favourite cities! Despite the fact that she spit up all over my new LuLuLemon jacket during one of our first meetings, the love has stayed strong . . . albeit from a distance. I would love to be able to spend time with this little sweetheart.
She is the cutest, and most well behaved baby ever! During her grand first birthday party, she was pretty much the only child under the age of two who wasn’t crying, yelling, or snotting! I <3 her. Other babies . . . not so much!
Now, a year has gone by and she is a one year old!
To celebrate, we provided the sweet treats! I felt a lot of pressure providing the birthday cakes for such a sweet, amazing little girl, but I came through . . . with A LOT of cake, right Janine??
Owl Birthday Cake
The Owl Birthday Cake was for the family after the party.
We are on a roll with the Christmas decorating videos these days! It’s so much fun! The ideas are endless, there are unending Pins to Pin on Pinterest and it’s just a jolly good time around this holiday. The thing that gets me every year, and I’m guilty of it, is that WHY IS IT SO STRESSFUL?
Every year, I approach the season with excitement, but as soon as December is two weeks old, I’m freaking out and a ball of stress!! There is always so much to do at home- baking, decorations, finding the perfect tree, wrapping all the presents. At school- Christmas Concert practice, Secret Santa, decorations, Gingerbread Houses, and now, add a business to the mix- cupcakes, cakes, cookies, platters!
There are always so many gifts to buy, despite the fact that every year I say “I’m going to give the gift of time with my family” as if I’m gift enough . . . hahahaha! I’d like to think that I am 😉 but I’m sure they would think differently. I know that I must be on crack when I have those thoughts as they just delay my inevitable freak out, as I run around shopping to buy things I swore I wasn’t going to.
Bah humbug!Just kidding. I live with a bah humbugger, but I definitely don’t feel that way! But, after a week of 22, 5 year olds with Christmas excitement, I’m about ready to boycott the holiday. There are only two more days of teaching left though, so I’m sure I can make it through . . . and then I will be basking in my unlimited time time off to bake!
Unlimited? Ha! Christmas cupcakes! Christmas Cakes! Christmas Cookies! Christmas Platters! They are all on my agenda for my time away from the day job.
I have found the time to put together a couple of Christmas Cupcake videos for you to enjoy. These Christmas Cupcake ideas are dead easy. Dead! I promise. If you don’t think so, you can leave a mean comment in the comment box . . . like some people like to do! Honestly, why waste your time commenting, if all you have to say is something mean? I just don’t get it. [Read more…]
I’m back into the land of blogging, after WAY too long of a break. They (who “they” are I have no idea, but lets just go with it) say that having your own business is like having a baby. You have to feed it, love it, encourage it, encourage it, promote it . . . and while all those things are being done, my blog has been NEGLECTED!
Over the last couple of months, some of our encouragement, promotion and love for our business has found us doing Bridal Fairs, craft fairs and Winter Markets! My favourite thing about running this business is getting out and hearing from our fans. It makes the hours and hours of hard work worth it. Here are some of the comments that we get regularly:
“How to you make your cupcakes look so beautiful?”,
“They look like pieces of art!”
. . . and the number one comment I get?
“They look too beautiful to eat!” . . . and my response . . . “Then buy two! One to look at, one to eat!” Duh.
Paul and I put together a number of YouTube videos to teach our readers, customers and watchers exactly how to do it yourself! It must be the teacher in me . . . and the marketer in Paul. Watching others decorate cupcakes on YouTube is exactly how I learned to do this myself . . . a mere 8 months ago (how times flies!). Google searches and blog pictorials were helpful as well. Watching someone else do it and then trying it myself, is definitely my learning style.
The following four videos are going to show you how to do the following things:
How to get the perfect swirl on a cupcake using the 1M tip,
How to pipe hydrangeas as a cupcake topper,
The 1M Open Star Tip (Swirl) is also sold as Tip 2110 from Wilton. Find it here.
How to decorate a cupcake using the 1A round tip:
1A Round Tip. Find it here.
How to use a 2D drop flower tip to create a swirl top to your cupcake
2D Tip Drop Flower Tip. Find it here.
My tips that I use in the video are from Wilton, but you can purchase similar ones from any cake decorating supply store. Hope you find the videos helpful!
