Surprise Birthday Cakes

Just before I left on holiday I got a request for 2 cakes from V who had arrived in Seoul just 2 weeks before.  It was her husbands birthday and she wasn't sure what the office culture here was like and whether there was going to be cake... well she was going to make sure there was going to be cake! : )  

I know what it is like to be arrive in a new office so I thought it was a wonderful way to surprise him to celebrate his birthday.  She also wanted another one for a smaller celebration at home the following day which was his actual birthday which fell on a Saturday. 

I've always loved the way the Hummingbird Bakery in London decorated their cakes so I attempted theirs simple swipes here to give the buttercream texture.  I think next time I won't be so gentle, and use a heavier hand to get deeper grooves and some nice light and shadow going.  It will make for better pictures too.

See what I mean about the pictures not turning out so well?  My camera had problems adjusting to the whiteness of the cake so the shadows weren't captured very well.  I am sure there are ways to get around it but I'm not sure how to adjust the settings on my camera. Seems like photography lessons are on the books for next year.

 When it came to the cake, she had a clear idea of what she wanted.  They both liked cakes that weren't too sweet and they enjoyed fruit toppings on cakes.  V's husband also liked apples and I incorporated that into the cake which was the one for celebrating at home and it was a Chocolate Chiffon cake (Cake No. 2) layered with apple and Italian Meringue Buttercream.

Chocolate & Apple Cake with Italian Meringue Buttercream, topped with seasonal Korean grapes and chocolate curls.

The first cake which was for the office was an Orange Chiffon cake layered with peaches and cream. I chose a selection of seasonal fruits to top the cakes.  I had some problems with the chocolate curls as the chocolate bar was either too warm or too hard.  In the end after a messy start and with some help from my Mom (hee hee) I got some nice curls going and that went on top of cake number 2.

Orange Chiffon cake layered with peaches and cream, topped with Mandarins and a selection of seasonal Korean grapes.

Ok, I admit I was a little excited about delivering the cake to the office.  It was a bit like receiving flowers when you're at the office (hasn't happened in a looooong time, Maddog if you are reading that's a hint!) except this time I am not the receiver but the delivery girl.  Weird huh?  It was a surprise afterall and it went without a hitch.

The cakes were eaten and people were happy.  My work there was done.

**New Flavour** Coconut

This flavour tastes like Pina Colada but without the alcohol.  Coconut shreds are actually used quite often to cover a Red Velvet cake that has been frosted with Cream Cheese in America.  Although I haven't tried it yet on a Red Velvet, it looks really nice ie. must taste good.  Or I would hope.  Admittedly Coconut is not for everyone but this flavour is quite subtle with a Italian Meringue Buttercream infused with a subtle flavouring of coconut milk and coconut cream.

My First Cupcake Stand at the SIWA Coffee Morning

4 days ago, I went to the Seoul International Women's Association Coffee Morning and set up a table to sell my cupcakes. I am a member of SIWA and was encouraged to sell some cupcakes there to get some publicity for my little cakes. I hadn't done this before but really relished the idea.

Here's Yoko helping me set up

Here we are all good to go

When I was in school, we had Canteen Day once a year where each class would bring things to sell in a sort of bazaar where parents and students buy coupons and use those to buy whatever goodies they wanted to during that day. I used to love bringing food or drinks and selling them. I think that started my appettite for sales which grew into a enjoyable career for me.

These were how the individual cupcakes were packed when someone bought one

I found these small chubby tumblers in Saero in Bangsan Market

I did a lot of work to prepare for it including scouting for packaging items for my mini cupcakes and getting durable (and nice looking) boxes that can hold 1 and 2 cupcakes. Yoko a friend who lives 3 doors down came to help me prepare the night before and also helped out at the event. She was fantastic! I think I made more sales when I wasn't even at the table!

The Lookbook was created to give people an idea of what I can do so it was filled with pictures of the cakes and cupcakes I have made in the past

This is me posing with my cupcakes. I was conscious that people were watching while I was taking numerous photos of the table (I was the only one doing it) and then of myself. How vain right? But I wanted to capture the moment

The cupcakes got a lot of attention and I think we had the prettiest table amongst the other 20 vendors who were there simply by the nature of what we were selling. I created 3 flavours and made a dozen of each. A new creation was the Chocolate Cherry Truffle cupcakes which was a Valrhona Chocolate cupcake with a Chocolate Cherry Brandy Ganache center and frosted with a Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate Buttercream. It was then topped with hand-shaved chocolate curls and a red rose petal dusted with sparkle. It was decadent, rich and so SO fragrant. The Red Velvet with Cream Cheese frosting was very popular and the Strawberry cupcakes weren't too shabby with a large floret buttercream frosting and a shiny pretty butterfly sitting on top.

Chocolate Cherry Truffle Cupcakes

I also had 6 boxes of 6 mini cupcakes which sold out. They were Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream, Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting and Vanilla with Vanilla Fluffy Frosting. People thought they were "so cute" in their little egg carton boxes so they were gone in a flash. They make great gifts and favours as well. I can always customise the flavours to suit your occassion in case whoever is reading this may be interested in ordering. Hee hee.

These are the adorable mini cupcakes with the sample box on top

My OH, Maddog said I should have made more just the night before. But that was 11pm and I didn't have the time or energy. Like Donna Hay says, "Beautiful food tastes better." So I hope it was fantastic for everyone who took some home.

**The Mini Cupcakes Nesting were featured on the CutestFood blog on 23 September 2010**

My First Appearence on the Cupcakes Take the Cake Blog

I was so uber excited to find out that my bridal shower and moustache cupcakes made it on the most popular cupcake blog around, Cupcakes Take The Cake!!!  When I first started to decorate cupcakes, I had always aspired to have a cupcake featured on that blog and I cannot believe it has happened so quickly. 

I ran around the room waving my arms in the air going, "EEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" 

My kids thought I was acting really weird.  

But who cares?!  It's the kind of encouragement I needed.  My husband is probably going to give a big sigh when he reads this as he will probably be thinking, "Great, as if she needs more encouragement.  We're in for even more late nights now".

Giving the Oven a Break

It’s been a tiring few weeks with orders every week (fantastic), replacement cake decorating classes for when I will be away starting next week and making sure the kids are entertained. A few late nights in a row can really wear on a person and I must admit I don’t ‘recover’ the way I used to. Age… can’t run away from it.

I’ve been having good fun and stress (the Thomas cake) baking and decorating. I think the most memorable moments had to have been seeing the first Moustache face come together for the Moustache cupcakes and when we were covering the Thomas & Friends cake with fondant.

I also had my first overseas order. This was from a family friend who heard about my cupcakes from my Aunt. She liked Red Velvet and was a big fan of Coconut so those were what I was tasked with. I am always… did I say always? Yes… ALWAYS happy to bake Red Velvet cakes or cupcakes. I just love the incredible flavour and the deep intense red colour! Paired with Cream Cheese Frosting it’s really a cup of heaven in your palm. I’ve tried several different recipes and tweaked the recipe to get it to the right kind of dense crumb and flavour.

I’m off on holiday soon and I will miss my mixer, oven and the feel of the piping bag in my hand but I will be back mid-October and hopefully be back to baking and decorating for you again.

Cupcakes at SIWA Coffee Morning

If anyone is interested to sample some of my cupcakes without making a huge order, I will be at the SIWA Coffee Morning this Wednesday, 15th September from 9.30am - 11.30am at the Grand Ambassador Hotel, Seoul.  That day is also their enrichment classes sign-up so if you are interested to join SIWA and sign up for some of their classes, come by.  

I will be bringing along 3 flavours of cupcakes including one from my Indulgence range - Chocolate Cherry Truffle.  It is a little on the decadent side but oh so rich and flavourful.  Valrhona Chocolate Cupcake with Chocolate Cherry Brandy Ganache truffle centre and frosted with Ghiradelli Chocolate Buttercream.  

Those on a diet beware.  Resistence is futile.

You will also be able to sign up for a 'Cupcake Decorating Basics' class with me in December.  This is a 3.5 hour class for up to 5 people to learn some techniques to create cute and classy cupcakes.  More details will be available at their Tour and Events table.  

See you there!

Mini Cupcake Tower for a 1st Birthday Party in Seoul

2 weeks ago I had the opportunity to be a part of a little boy’s (Super J) Doljanji (1^st birthday party). Instead of just the traditional Korean rice cakes for the occasion, his mother wanted some mini cupcakes to be a little different.

Since it was a kid’s party, I wanted to go for something colourful, so we worked out the colours of the cupcake liners and frosting colour to pair it with so that it would compliment the colour theme for Super J’s party. The cupcakes were Vanilla with Fluffy Vanilla Frosting then topped with sprinkles or 100’s and 1000’s. I also made fondant letters spelling “Super J” which I planned to put on top of 6 cupcakes on the top most tier.

When I got to the party with my Mom and my 1 year-old, I quickly got to work assembling the 3-tier dessert stand and arranging the cupcakes. While I was trying to do s, my daughter was being very unco-operative and insisted on having a cupcake. She already had 6 the night before and 5 that morning!!

To appease her, I had to give her one and my Mom had to try to distract her with the balloons (that lasted a minute) so I could get back to the cupcakes without toppling the whole display. It looked very attractive when it was all set up but I must admit I was a little nervous arranging the cupcakes. The pressure was on as there were already some guests there and they were watching. I was chanting in my head, “Don’t drop the cupcake. Don’t drop the cupcake”.

These little babies are just nibbles. I saw several people having 3. They just pop into your mouth and they’re gone. We erred on the side of caution and more then doubled the amount of cupcakes to the number of guests and I think we estimated well.