Cupcake Ornaments

Sweet Cakes from a Bridesmaid

What could be better than wedding cupcakes made by your very own bridesmaid?  These beauties were all hand-decorated by a lovely and creative bridesmaid (I won't say your name) that I encountered this weekend.  I tried the vanilla cupcake, which was extremely moist.  The frosting was perfect, not overly sweet, and the cupcake liner was silver--perfectly matching the yellow and gray decor of the wedding.

Great job!

Down Home Family-Style Wedding Cake

This wedding cake sat in the middle of the head table, which wasn't your traditional head table, mind you.  It was family style, the whole them of the wedding itself.

At this reception, the main wedding cake was a two-tier cake resembling packages.  Surrounding the "packages" were Ball jars filled with Chex Mix--takeaways for the guests to enjoy later.

On each table sat a crate like this one, with two chalkboards on 2 sides and Ball jars on the other 2 sides.  Each table was named after a favorite TV show or book of the couple.  Each table also had a small wedding cake, enough for 6-8 people to enjoy.

The cake was incredibly moist and we think it was a sweet potato cake, but not 100% sure.  The fondant was excellent--very moist and chewy, how I like it.  Not much buttercream was used, which was such a blessing, too.

Edible Art, Raleigh, NC

Tonight I was incredibly lucky enough to attend an event where Edible Art of Raleigh NC had a booth.  They had three flavors for clients to sample.  I could not stay away from the orange cake.  Those who know my tastes know that if I say I can't stay away from a particular cake, it must be phenomenal.  Well...this one is phenomenal...and it's made from scratch!

Not to say that their white cake and almond cakes were not phenomenal (they absolutely were!!!!!) but the orange cake really got my attention.

Edible Art switched hands last year.  They have rebranded their logo and style, and have produced some new recipes, such as this age-old orange cake that is so good I could have taken the entire cake home with me.  The next kid in my family gets an orange cake for her birthday regardless of if she wants-it-or not-type-of-good.  Get my drift?

ORDER THIS CAKE!  You won't be dissatisfied.  (Unless you don't like orange cake I guess.)

Oh, and here are some samples of what their wedding cakes can look like, ladies.  Note the incredible (edible) art on the cake?  Want a tasting?  Call them now and tell them The Cake Critic referred you!
(919) 856-0604 

Sweet Memories Cake

Understated elegance.  This cake was superb; so good that I'm not sure if any of the cake was left by the end of the night.  Tiramisu flavor, oh so moist...slice not large enough.  :)

Donut Muffins

Donut Muffins

 I found an interesting muffin recipe on a blog yesterday. Donut muffins.  Who doesn't love donuts or muffins?  What a great combo!

This morning I made the muffins.  They are super quick to bake and the kids loved them.  I used 3/4 tsp nutmeg in the recipe but next time I am cutting it back--mainly because so much nutmeg in this recipe does not seem so critical.  It was a little overpowering for my taste.  If you like nutmeg, by all means, use the 3/4 tsp.

National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day

© Taste of Home

Today is National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day!  Since I am up to my ears in business-related work, there's no way I can make a lemon chiffon cake.  (Although I make a rather mean one, to be honest)...

Hence my search for lemon chiffon cake in my area.  So far...no good.  You'd think bakeries would know about today, right?  (joking!!!)

The closest thing to a lemon chiffon cake I am finding is at Olive Garden, and I'm rolling my eyes as I say that, too.  What's a girl to do?  It's such a beautiful day here in Cary, NC--sun is shining, the temperature right now is at 75 degrees, and lemon cake sounds like such a wonderful idea.

I'll keep calling around until I find one.  Wish me luck.

Cub Scout Cake Auction 2012

Every year our Cub Scouts make cakes to auction them off.  The funds generated helps pay for expenses such as camping gear, trips, patches, etc.

This year's theme:  U.S. National Parks.  Check out the really cool cakes made by kids ages 6-12.