Baking tips and tricks

 Welcome back lovelies!

I hope you all are doing awesome and enjoying  the decent  weather outside! I have been baking for almost  a decade...that has given me a lot of time to figure out the do's and the don'ts of baking. In this blog I would like to share some of them to you  guys for your baking at home! Let's get started!

Let's start off with the baking instructions. Now whether you are making your treat from a box or from scratch it is very important to not to guess when measuring. Baking is a  science which requires special attention to measuring. Now you don't have to be spot on, but don't just eyeball it either. If you were to add too much liquid for example, it could cause the inside of your  cake/cupcakes to become mushy and deflate due to the heaviness of the extra moisture...and trust me...there is enjoying a nice moist and fluffy cupcake...and then there is a soupy paperweight. 

Another tip for following instructions, and this mainly applies for when you use a  stand mixer (but should still be utilized in any form of baking), always scrape down the side of your bowl. My rule of thumb is whenever I turn off the mixer then the sides of the bowl are getting scraped...no questions. If you don't then your dessert will not turn out right because some of the ingredients may be at the bottom/sides of the bowl instead of incorporated. An example I had of this is when I was making my vanilla cupcakes one day and I had already scraped the bowl like 3 times. Well, not all the butter and sugar got mixed in so when they were done baking the tops of the cupcakes had crystalized bubbles on top. Those bubbles would be the unmixed sugar that had just been baked and crystalized. I don't know about you but I don't want my cake to be crunchy lol. It is a good habit to just take the extra couple seconds to scrape the bowl so you don't have to start completely over. 

A good rule of thumb to have also is do not over mix your batter! This is key when trying to achieve light and fluffy cakes. What happens when you over mix is you end up building up the gluten molecules and gluten is what gives things like bread their elasticity and chewiness...not what we want for our cakes...unless you do...then you do what makes you happy! :) These are just  tips, you have free control on your baking! When you are mixing your batter I like to alternate my wet and dry mixes. I start by adding half of my dry, mix just until I don't see anymore flour, scrape the bowl, and then add all my wet ingredients. I repeat that same process till my wet ingredients are just combined, scrape the bowl, and then add the rest of the dry mixture. Now for this last time of adding and mixing the dry, this is where you really don't want to overmix.  Just mix in all the flour until you don't see anymore, after that, you are done mixing. Make sure there are no clumps of flour not mixed in...I like to fold in my batch of dry ingredients...I find it makes it smoother and I have a less chance of overmixing the  batter. 

Before I even start baking a take all my needed ingredients out of the fridge to warm up to room temp. Most batters require you to cream soften butter and sugar together, and  if you add a fresh out of the fridge cold egg...well...that will solidify you butter again and not only will it cause your batter to be weird...but it won't bake in the oven properly either. Your batter will have little clumps of butter and when that butter bakes it will cause big air bubbles in you cake/cupcakes. I always just take my ingredients an hour before I start baking. I have some other tricks up my sleeve so if you need the ingredients to be warmed up quicker but just be careful when doing so. The first is for when you need soften butter quick, I stick  the cold stick of butter in the microwave and I do it in 5 second increments...no more than that...you do not want melted butter. Melted butter  will change your whole batter and baking. I just do the increments till when I touch the butter, it is not hot nor warm, but I can leave an indent with my finger, Depending on how warm your butter already is, then you may have to adjust how many times you put it in for 5 seconds. For eggs, I have found if I take a bowl and put luke warm water in it and submerge the eggs for about  5-10 minutes then that helps warm them up. Depending on how cold your eggs are, you may need to change the bowl of water a couple times because the cold eggs will cool the water down quickly. I just leave them in there till when I hold the egg for a few seconds it doesn't feel cool at all. Don't use too hot of water or you will cook your eggs! Also, always crack your eggs in a separate dish. That way if any eggshells fall in then you can get them out before it being all throughout your batter. It's not yummy biting into a piece of eggshell in your cupcake. If you need to warm up liquid ingredients, you can do the 5 second microwave  thing in a microwave safe bowl, but just be careful not to curdle your milk or anything. I would not recommend using  the microwave method for ingredients like yogurt or sour cream, because you don't want those to become runny. Overall, it is just best to take them out a little bit prior to baking. Trust me, I understand that last minute baking where you need them now lol.

A big tip that I discovered throughout the years of baking, and I live by this, is to double line your cupcake tin! I can't tell you how many burnt bottoms I have had from not double lining. Growing up we had an older oven, so it didn't bake the most even. It would be a hit or miss if the bottoms were burnt. I would find the bottoms are cooked fully, but the middle isn't...and when the middle was cooked fully...the bottoms were overcooked. So I started experimenting on how to prevent that, and I noticed all the ones  I accidently had two liners on rarely burnt on the bottom. Since then I have been double lining my pan and it has worked WONDERS! I always double line if using the paper liners, but when using the foil ones (like I use now for my cupcakes) they are much thicker and don't really need to be double lined. Also I know when you get the silver foil liners and it  has the foil piece and the paper piece...some throw out  the paper piece, but I use both. I put the paper piece on inside where it will bake with the cupcake and keep the foil piece on the outside when baking. Double lining also helps when the cupcakes are done baking, the paper liners can tend to soak up oil from the batter and the second liner helps hide that to make it look pretty! If you get a designed paper liner I have found that after baking it can be  hard to make out the design anymore, so once again double lining helps keep the pattern prevalent. 

Whenever I place the cupcakes in the oven, I always bake it 5 minutes less than what the recipe calls for. Every oven is different,  and every time something bakes my be +/- a couple minutes when baking then when you baked it last. Each time you bake the same recipe, your baking times may still vary.  You eventually will get to know how your oven likes to work. For example, you may find it bakes faster on one side than the other, or the recipe said to leave it in for 20 minutes but it was overcooked by then, or leave it in for 20 minutes but it took me 15 more minutes for it to fully bake. It's all just watching and trial and error. You're gonna have some overcooked ones, that's fine, those are the ones that will show you if your oven just bakes hotter and you need to bake at less time. So whenever something calls for a certain time of baking, I always do 5 minutes less and watch from there. I always bake with the oven light on also...just so I can keep and eye on them to make sure they are baking right and not overflowing or the tops are burning. Once your timer goes off, stick a toothpick in the middle of the cupcake/cake and if it comes out clean, then it is done! I always  take my cupcakes out of the pan and onto a cooling rack right when they come out of the oven. I don't want the hot pan to keep baking the cupcakes once they are  out. PLEASE BE CAREFUL if you do this!! They are just out of the oven and you can burn yourself badly! Once they are on the cooling rack, I put that rack in the fridge to cool them down completely and stop baking...it also lets me frost them quicker too! Feel the top of your cupcakes once they are cooled for a bit, if they are still warm then leave them in longer. Only frost them once they are completely cooled or your frosting may melt off. 

That is all the baking tips and tricks I have for right now! If I think of any more then there may be a part two, but I also didn't want to make this too terribly long lol! If you have any questions or can think of any tips you'd like to find out, then please feel free to ask me! I love answering any questions about baking!! (any excuse I can get to talk about baking or veterinary medicine then I am in!) Thank you guys so much for reading and I will talk to you in the next one! Continue having a wonderful day!!

xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Holiday Cupcakes!

 Welcome back lovelies!

I hope you all are having wonderful holiday's! Speaking of holiday's, that is what this blog will be about! I wanted to briefly discuss about our upcoming holiday themed cupcakes :) Let's dive in!

I knew back in November of 2020 that I wanted to bring something fun to 2021, holiday themed cupcakes. I figured what would be better since the new year was starting and holiday's would be starting over. I immediately started designing up the ideas for this year!

Starting with Valentine's Day, I really wanted to something with pink velvet. I tested my normal red velvet recipe but with pink dye instead...it turned out really good, but it was going to take so much pink food coloring that I wouldn't be able to make many batches and afford all the coloring while selling it at a reasonable price. I went with the next best thing I could think of to still have that festive pink color. I know just dying vanilla cake pink was simple, but I just loved the color it gave off. I decided to go with something smooth and decadent; pink vanilla cake, our famous cream cheese frosting, and festive heart sprinkles. They sold really well and I want to thank you all for all the great love and support! 

On to St. Patrick's Day! My all time favorite limited time St. Patrick's Day treat was a shamrock shake from McDonald's! I needed, emphasis on needed, that as a cupcake in my life! I wanted a minty yet creamy tasting cupcake to represent that famous treat. I decided on vanilla cake dyed green, lightly minty vanilla buttercream, and festive green sprinkles on top! I made sure to make the frosting only slightly minty. I wanted you to taste it but also get the vanilla flavor to represent the milkshake. Plus no one needs a cupcake that is so strong of mint that it taste like toothpaste...I mean...nasty. I was really proud of how they turned out flavor and look wise! They tasted just like the nostalgic treat of my childhood!

For Easter I had so many ideas and it was hard to pick just one! I know that I could have released multiple but I wanted to save some so I can release them throughout the years. What I finally decided on was a cute little birds nest! I love the Cadbury chocolate eggs that come out for Easter, so I thought it would be so adorable to replicate a little birds nest with those eggs! I decided vanilla cake, vanilla buttercream grass piping, chocolate "nest" swirl, and topped with the chocolate eggs!

The following Holiday's are a surprise for when they come up ;) I hate to leave you guys on a cliff hanger but I don't want to ruin the surprise of what they will be! I will say this year, since it is the first year of me doing limited time Holiday cupcakes, they are simpler this year. I plan on next year they being a little more "gourmet" with fillings inside! I wanted to kind of test drive how well they would do this year. Each year will be different so keep an eye out for that! The Holiday cupcakes are sold just like the gourmet and/or seasonal ones for $25/dozen! As always I can do a variety dozen with 6 of one flavor and 6 of another, but it does cost extra. 

I hope you all are as excited as I am for these! I've stated in previous blogs how much I love bringing you all new flavors and content so any excuse I can get to make a new cupcake I will take! If you have any suggestions then always feel free to let me know :) I would love to try and make any ideas you would have! I can't wait to see what the future holds for all the new flavors and ideas! Thank you all so much for your love and support in letting me be able to keep creating new flavors for you to enjoy with friends and family! Enjoy and I hope you are having a wonderful day! Talk to you next blog :)

xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Releasing new Spring seasonal flavor!

 Welcome back lovlies!

I hope you all are as ready for spring as I am! To celebrate I am going to discuss our new spring season cupcake! I’ve been ready for this cupcake, and I know you all have been ready also! Introducing...our new spring seasonal flavor...orange dreamsicle!!!

One of my favorite cupcakes is our lemon cupcake strictly because of the nice citrus flavor. We already sell lemon and lime margarita so it was only fitting that the next citrus cupcake be a childhood favorite of orange dreamsicle! This cupcake is orange flavored cake, (with fresh orange juice instead of orange extract!) orange and vanilla flavored swirled buttercream, and topped with orange sanding sugar! I knew the cake and frosting had to have natural orange juice and zest for the flavor. I try to avoid artificial extracts as much as possible. If they are not used right then they can be way over powering and give almost a burning sensation down your throat...nobody needs or wants that! The cake is so nice and fluffy with the subtle hint of orange, while the buttercream is silky smooth and light with that subtle and natural orange flavor! For the frosting I knew I wanted to swirl vanilla and orange because that is what makes an orange dreamsicle! The vanilla adds that creamy flavor into the orange. I made sure to ever so lightly color the orange buttercream with orange food coloring that way you got a nice swirl of the white and orange to look more like the classic treat! The sanding sugar is just that nice subtle decor to top it all off! I always buy fresh fruit and juice them myself for any fruity cupcake! I make and buy everything fresh by order, because I want you to have the best and nothing less! 

I needed these to be a spring seasonal cupcake for the fact of how bright and cheery that these cupcakes look (and taste!) I wanted this to get everyone in the spring mood and looking forward to the warming weather! I like to also try and keep my fruity cupcakes more in the season of the fruit since I do use fresh fruit. That is why my chocolate strawberry cupcake is a seasonal one as well. I still wanted you all to have access to fruity cupcakes all year so I did put the lemon and strawberry on our regular menu! These orange dreamsicle cupcakes will be available all of spring and I allow you guys to start ordering the next season a month before the new season starts...so no worries you can get your seasonal cupcakes a little early ;) They run the same price as the gourmet cupcakes, so &25/dozen! I can always do a variety dozen of 6 in one flavor and 6 in another, but that does cost a little extra. 

My taste testers absolutely loved these cupcakes! They gave me the approval of releasing it all to you! I have so many more test kitchen recipes to try and release! All the way from new seasonal ones, to new regular ones, new gourmet, and even the holiday ones! If you guys ever have any suggestions as well, then I am all ears to hear them out! I love thinking of new flavors for you and testing them out in the test kitchen! I hope you all enjoy the new flavor and childhood classic combined into a cupcake! I can’t wait to release the next new seasonal one coming in summer! (hint: pineapple... ) I hope you all have a wonderful day and if you are going on vacation soon then I hope you have a wonderful time and stay safe! Talk to you next blog!

Xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Dog care services!

Welcome back lovelies!

I hope you all are having a good 2021 so far! We are one month down! In this blog I want to kind of discuss my dog care services!

Along with making yummy cupcakes for humans (and now pups!),  I also offer services to help with your fur baby! I am currently in the process of becoming a Registered Veterinary Technician. For those who don't quite know what an RVT is, it is basically equivalent to a Register Nurse in the human medical field but for animals! I knew for Cupcakes & Canines I wanted to offer as many services for your pup as I could. My ultimate goal was to be able to help you and your pet, and I know for some it can be hard to get to the vet.

I know for some it can be difficult to get your pet to the vet especially if they don't like going. For others it could be that their pup just does really good and taking to the vet, paying the office fee, then paying for the basic care service for them to be there only for 10 minutes, then drive all the way back home can be aggravating for some. That's why I offer the services I do! I wanted to be able to come to the pets environment and help the owners/pet where they are comfortable. I've noticed in my past that some pets just honestly do better in their own environment where I let them get comfortable with me instead of taking them somewhere where they are not used to causing them to panic more. I have had some pets where they do better away from their owners but majority I have worked with feel way more comfortable with their owners staying by their side. 

I work along with the pet, that meaning if the pet gets stressed then we take a break, I'm on their schedule when it comes to this. I try to look at it from their point of view, if I was them I wouldn't want a stranger grabbing my paw and trimming my nails, they don't know that it won't hurt them, we can not tell them that and they understand what we just told them. I schedule my dog care appointments a certain way to where I don't have a time limit. If I have to do one paw then take a 15 minute break, then that's what we do! I also offer my services to come back a couple days later if they get too stressed and we can't finish all in one visit. My ultimate goal is not over stressing the pet. I want them to associate this as a friendly and non scary thing. If they are getting worked up and I continue then it could just push them to be scared and defensive, and I don't blame them if we are looking from their point of view. I have had a couple pets where I just could not trim their nails. It wasn't that the pet was bad or hostile, they were just scared and I am not going to push them over the edge. Some dogs just do better in a veterinary clinic where they have all the extra hands to help. 

I always give a disclaimer when I first arrive to the owners about how dogs have blood vessels and nerves that run through their nails, called their "kwiks," I give a heads up that it is possible that I could cut too far and it does clip them where their kwik is. It's just like when we trim our nails and we might trim a little too far. I always try my absolute best not too but sometimes it happens. It could happen if the dog moves or pulls their paw away, and even if they have black nails where you can't tell where the kiwk is. In that case, I always trim a little longer and slowly work my way back. It is a situation that I explain always looks worse than it actually is. Since the dog is nervous their blood pressure spikes causing them to bleed faster, so what was just a real quick clip, can bleed a lot more than what the trauma really is. I always carry with me "kwik-stop" which is a styptic powder that when it comes in contact with the blood, hardens and creates a seal over the nail to stop the bleeding. With puppies or dogs who are new to the nail trim I tend to leave their nails a little longer because I don't want to risk clipping them at all. Since it is new to them I don't want them to get hurt and then no longer tolerate nail trims. I want them to see it as a routine maintenance that does not hurt. 

I always ask before hand also when owners are making the appointment if they feel comfortable helping hold if need be. I've had some pets that just sit there and let me trim theirs nails quick and do really good, but most of the time nail trimming is a two to three person job. I've found it helps if the owners holds because they will be more calm since they know the person, while the owner holds I sweep in and trim the nails real quick. I do always carry muzzles with me of all sizes. I don't use them as a form of punishment, but more of a distractions. I have found that some dogs when you put it they just stop moving and become almost "paralyzed" till we take it off. I also have them so if the pet does not care for the nail trim I want to keep the owner, the pet, and me safe. It is not at all to punish the dog just to keep everyone safe, and like I stated before I understand if the dog is aggressive about it, they don't know what is going on and are scared. I have multiple tools to try and help with the nail trims. I carry peanut butter with me, all natural calming treats, calming spray, and etc. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, but I have them just in case. 

Nail trims are definitely my most requested dog care service, but I do offer others such as ear cleaning, anal gland expression, dog sitting, and any medical help. I have just basic ear cleaner to help clean your dogs ear to help prevent any possible ear infection. If you notice them shaking their head a lot or scratching at their ears then this could help clean them to help rid the issue. If the shaking and scratching continue (or they begin to smell) then it is probably best to follow up with your veterinarian! If you notice your dog scooting or chewing at their butt a lot then this could be a sign up full anal glands. I offer the service to help empty them because leaving them unattended can lead to anal gland abbesses and will rack up a hefty vet bill and not to mention cause your pup a lot of pain. Normally they should express on their own when they poop, this is what leaves their scent, but sometimes they just get backed up and need a little help. If they aren't expressing on their own either then it could be a sign of infection, which would need further treatment. When I help with anal glands I always check to make sure it is normal material and not a possible infection starting. For the medical help that could be anything from helping give pills, at home IV fluids, at home injections, and etc. I've had vets in the past send owners home with all of this and the owners have no clue how to do it. That's where this service comes in and I can help if you don't understand the vet's instructions, don't feel comfortable doing it yourself, or just don't know where to start. I know for some clinics they offer you doing it at home yourself because it can be cheaper. You don't have to pay an administration fee if you do it at home. My grandma used to do that for her old dog and just have me come over and administer everything since that is what I was doing when I worked at a veterinary clinic anyway.

My dog sitting has a couple options I offer. I offer to either do multiple check ins through out the day or I can stay overnight at the house with them. Some owners just need me to check on their pet a few times throughout the day and they do fine by themselves overnight. For the check ins that could include feeding. pottying, playing, cuddling, and medical need, and etc. I usually do 3-5 check ins (depending on what the owner wants) and I always a stay a minimum of an hour (usually more.) That way the pup gets quality time. My biggest pet peeve is when dog sitter come over, let them out, then leave ;/ No they need the time to play, get energy out, have some attention. For the ones where I stay overnight, that is pretty much the exact same thing as the check ins but I stay there also during the whole night. It all just depends on what the owner wants and the pet needs. The check ins also work for even if you aren't necessarily need a sitter the whole day but just need the pet taken care of while you're at work or out of town for a few hours. I would just pop by, check on them, do any care they need, and it's an hour long as well. That offer is just paid by the hour rather than the sitting which is paid by the day. 

My services can also be extended to some other pets also! I can help with nail trims for cats, guinea pigs, reptiles, and etc! I just want to be able to give your pet the maintenance care they need while also helping you out by making it easier to accomplish that. I absolutely LOVE meeting all the pets when I do my service appointments. It's like making new friends each time! I look forward to it each and every time! I always tell owners never to feel bad if their dog tackles me because I absolutely love it!! If I get taken out by a 120 pound great dane then that is how I go :) My dog sitting schedule has been filling up fast so if you are needing a dog sitter coming up then message me ASAP! Message me also for any upcoming dog care services and I can get you all scheduled. I hope you guys enjoyed and I can't wait to talk to you in the next blog! Stay safe and I hope I get to meet you and your pet in the future!

xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Introducing...Pupcakes!!!

 Welcome back lovelies!

 

I want to start off the blog by thanking you all because without you guys and all your support I wouldn’t be able to expand my menu like I am! Thank you and I want you all to remember how amazing you are! Today’s blog is about our new pupcakes!!!! I’m so excited to officially release them, so let’s dive in!

To start off I released these on a very special day to me, January 25th, 2021 is my little pups 11th birthday! It was just yesterday I was bringing her home and she was the size of my hand! I wanted to release them on this day so it could be in honor of her...and so I would have to make and bring her some to enjoy ;)

I knew exactly what I wanted these pupcakes to be. I wanted them to be all wholesome ingredients that are healthy for dogs, no added sugars or sodium, smaller than normal cupcakes so little pups can enjoy them and it not be too much for them (and so you can give them more if you want!), and human safe so if little ones happen to get into them. Since working in the veterinary field and all the veterinary training in college, nutrition for dogs is important to me! Our pupcakes all contain base ingredients of whole wheat flour, egg, olive oil, plain greek yogurt, and baking soda for the rising agent. Whole wheat is a great source of wholesome fiber, egg for healthy fat and protein, olive oil for healthy fats, and greek yogurt for protein and healthy gut probiotics. The rest of the ingredients just depend on the pupcake flavor chosen. We offer a variety of flavors from peanut butter, pumpkin, apple, blueberry, and etc! From there the pupcakes get their sweetness from those ingredients and their natural sugars. The “frosting” is simply 2 ingredients; peanut butter and greek yogurt. Whip the two together and it looks and pipes like normal buttercream! To top each pupcake off I use a little tiny Milk-Bone treat, a fan favorite in my doggie household ;)

Testing these pupcakes was so fun! It was something so new to me, yet still recognizable. I made the first batch in all different sizes because I haven’t made mini cupcakes in forever that I forgot how full to fill up the liners. I messed around with how much frosting to put on to fit in the container and still look nice. The most important part of the recipe testing was obviously the flavor and taste...not for me of course! I took the test batch to the best taste tester I could think of...my two pups. My little one, Dixi, can be picky on her treats so I knew I wanted to test the flavor on her to see how well she would enjoy it. I also wanted to test the size of pupcake for her little-self. It ended up being a good size for her, big enough to be equivalent to a dog cookie to a larger dog, and she loved it! Fastest I have ever seen her inhale a treat. For my other medium dog, Reggie, I knew he was just going to engulf the pupcake without even savoring it! He likes to maybe chew a treat twice then swallow it whole, where dixi normally takes her time and enjoys it. Needless to say he went nuts for them and started drooling uncontrollably when he knew they were out. These were a good size where if I wanted to give him something light one was perfect or if I wanted to spoil him then two were perfect. I got the two paws up from the both of them and left them wanting more once they realized we were out. 

I wanted these pupcakes to be reasonably priced also and easily storable. I’ve been to a few dog bakeries where it is ridiculously priced for one cookie. I made it to where you can get a dozen mini pupcakes to last you a lot longer than one or two cookies for the price of $15/dozen! As far as storring goes, they can stay out at room temp for the day, but just pop in the fridge till intended use since the frosting is made out of yogurt. 

That’s it for this blog! I hope you and your pups love the new pupcakes! Orders have been racking up and I appreciate it so much!!!! I have been so ready to release them to you all, and from the questions/comments I have received, you guys have been ready for them! Thank you all again for your support in this small business letting me be able to branch out my menu. You guys mean the world to me! Continue having a wonderful day and I’ll talk to you next blog!

Xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Local Cupcake Wars experience!

 Welcome back lovelies!

I hope you all are having an amazing day and are staying safe! In this blog I am going to share my cupcake wars experience at my mom’s work! I did it for 3 years, lost the first two but made my comeback on the third. Let’s get started!

Now I am going to be honest, I don’t quite remember what three years this consisted of. I am going to take a rough guess and say 2011-2014ish, give or take a year. I remember my mom coming home and telling me that her work was going to put on cupcake wars. I was ecstatic!! I was always a good kid in school, always went, maintained good grades, and just obeyed all the rules, so when I found out the event was going to be on a school day during school time I got a little worried I wouldn’t be able to participate anymore. My parents made a deal with me, I could miss this one day for the event if I continue to keep doing good. They described it as not skipping school but as a reward for always going to school. I was so happy that they were going to let me do this! I knew I wanted to come up with an awesome idea. 

This was the first year they had cupcake wars so the rules were kind of confusing. This was more of the trial and error period. We were getting graded on our display of the cupcakes but little me wasn’t sure if that meant the display to showcase your cupcakes or turn your cupcakes into a display. I took it as turning my cupcakes into a display. Since it was being held at the Hospital I decided to make their logo out of cupcakes. I dyed the frosting different colors to match and lined them up in the shape of the logo. I went with a new cupcake recipe that I had never tried before...rookie mistake. It came down to the day before the competition and that is when I decided to test the new recipe. I went with a flavor my sister suggested to me previously, cookie dough. I looked up recipes for it and it simply said to let the cupcakes halfway bake then put a ball of raw cookie dough in the center then let the cupcakes continue to bake. Well since I waited till the last minute, it was too late to do any other ideas once I realized my original plan was not working out. I kept with it and just had my fingers crossed. 

The day of the competition arrived and I, along with the other competitors, showed up early to set up. That was where I realized that the display situation was to set up a display to show off your cupcakes. I continued to set up my cupcakes and made them into the shape of the logo. For it being the wrong type of display, it turned out pretty nice. I wish I had a picture of it but unfortunately I can not find one. The competition was pretty straight forward, we had a handful of judges, they went around and tasted each cupcake, then got together and graded all of them. They were grading on taste, creativity, and display. I was for sure the youngest one there. Most of the others were employees at the hospital or frequent visitors that were older and had WAY more experience in baking than I. I didn’t win the first year, but that was ok because I was for sure going to have a better understanding for next year. The one thing I really wanted to win for was the mixer and you get to be a judge in the next year competition.

Next year I stepped up my game a little. I decided to make non-alcoholic margarita cupcakes. It was a lime cupcake, lime buttercream, I rimmed the frosting in green sanding sugar to represent “salt”, and placed them in a margarita glass with a gummy lime on the rim of the glass. It was definitely a case of “looked better in the moment.” When I go back and look at it now, there are so many changes I would have done, and made it look a lot cleaner. It was pretty sloppy I will admit, but it was pretty good for a self-taught 13 year old baker. I’ve added it onto my current menu, but that is because I’ve fixed all the little issues. I didn’t win the second year either, but I was READY for the third year. I already knew what I wanted to do!

When the third year finally came, I already had my plan. I laid in bed one night and wanted to come up with something really gourmet and decadent. I thought of the flavor s’mores. I knew there were a ton of different ways I could play with those flavors and they were flavors that all went so nicely with each other. I came up with a graham cracker crust, chocolate cake, marshmallow filling, toasted marshmallow buttercream, chocolate drizzle, and topped with a graham cracker piece. The flavor became such a hit that I for sure added it to my current menu. I’ve adjusted it a little since then but it’s still the same idea. I’ve cleaned it up and made it look more fancy. I knew for my display I wanted it to look like a campfire. I gathered stones, twigs, and leaves (don’t worry I disinfected all of them.) I took a brown pillowcase to represent dirt, set my stones up in a circle to represent the fire pit, put my red/yellow leaves in the center to look like fire, and put marshmallows on the twigs to look like I was toasting marshmallows. It was really cute!

I felt really confident this year! My parents, grandparents, and sister all showed up to support me. I had to leave the room while they were testing everyone's flavors, but my mom came and got me when the results were being released. I was so nervous and just kept staring at the person announcing the winner. While she was speaking she looked at me and nodded. Right then and there I felt a huge amount of happiness and relief come over me! I started crying and hugging my family. They were so proud of me and I was so happy to have their support on this exciting day. Totally worth missing a day of school and having to play catch up the next! I got to get a picture next to my new mixer and shake all the judges hands! One of the judges was the mayor at the time but I can’t remember his name. I think it was Kevin something ;) That whole day was just surreal! I almost forgot to mention that after the competition they would sell the remaining cupcakes and the money would go to charity. The winners cupcakes would be sold for a dollar more. They were gone once they went on sale! I was so happy they were a hit. Not only to make me feel like a good baker but because it was helping the chosen charity at the time. We stayed till all the cupcakes were done selling and then headed home with that fancy new mixer!

It’s a good thing I won the third year because little did I know it was the last one for the Hospital cupcake wars. I was so disappointed I didn’t get to be a judge, but I was just happy to compete and finally win one! I still use that mixer to this day and it’s been through so much with me and has grown with me. Numerous birthdays, baby showers, a wedding, holidays, and experimenting new flavors! It will be by my side till the day it gives out, you can believe that! I am so happy to have that experience because it has shown me new techniques, challenges, ideas, and that I want to pursue baking as a living! 10/10 would recommend and would do it again! I hope you all enjoyed the story of me growing as a baker and the ups and downs! I love sharing my experiences with you guys! As always I hope you all continue having a wonderful day and I will talk to you next blog!

Xoxo, Cupcakes & Canines

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Beehive cupcakes ordered from Google!

 Welcome back lovelies!

It’s another wonderful day, and I hope you all are staying safe! This blog experience was a fun one for me. It kind of went out of my comfort zone and challenged my inner artist. It’s also a double bonus because this was also my first official Google order! Up until then, all my customers have been by person, phone, friends, and etc. 

Let me just start off by saying these cupcakes were SO much fun to make! The best part of making cupcakes, besides making customers happy, is watching your vision come true. 

Let’s begin with the unknown phone call for this order. I’m actually pretty embarrassed when I think back on it because I was thrown so off guard. It was one of the moments where you think you’re ready till it actually happens then you’re lost a little. I was in the middle of helping my grandma when my phone rang. Now up until then all unknown calls I have received were robocalls. I would still answer my phone just in case, but I would just answer with a quick “Hello?” When I saw my phone ringing this time I again went completely into it thinking it was just going to be another robocall. I did a quick, “Hello?” and that’s when she asked if this was Cupcakes & Canines! I quickly changed my tone and got very excited! She was calling to inquire about ordering two dozen cupcakes for a gender reveal party. She told me that the theme for the party was like bumble bees and beehives. Already sounding so like a cute idea! To make it even cuter, she wanted the cupcakes to look like beehives with little edible bees on top and chocolate honeycomb pieces! I told her I could absolutely do that because I already had the picture of them in my head. I’ve seen bee themed cupcakes on Pinterest before so I already had a general idea of what she was describing. She wanted to know if I had any honey themed cupcakes, sadly I had to tell her no we don’t at the moment, but I could make a honey flavored buttercream on top of our other cake flavors! She decided on a dozen lemon cake and a dozen vanilla cake, and all with the honey buttercream. I love to do special orders and not only make my vision come true but the customers as well! I told her that my phone number is a cell number so she could feel free to text me with any inspirational pictures, questions, or concerns. The order was needed for November 20th, and she was going to pick them up. I let her know that I am a home baker so pick up is at my house. All she has to do is text or call me when she is in the driveway and I will bring them out and do contactless pickup by placing them in the car. She was completely ok with that, and I finished getting the final bit of information for the order. I asked her if she found us on Google and she said yes! I was so happy because this was my first order from someone searching bakeries on Google! That means I’m getting noticed! Once we hung up she texted me some inspirational pictures of what she is looking for, and it was exactly as I was picturing as well! Now I have to go buy my tools to make this cupcake perfect! Oh, and I now only answer unknown numbers with, “Thank you for calling Cupcakes and Canines! How may I help you?” regardless if it is a robocall or not. 

I originally thought of topping the cupcake with a fondant bee so everything would stay edible. I’ve dabbled with fondant in the past but it’s not the easiest thing to work with. You need a large space and it can get messy with it sticking or putting powdered sugar down so it doesn’t stick. I was googling more inspirational photos of the design idea and I was that Wilton (a baking brand) makes these little edible bees meant to top on cupcakes. I just thought they were so cute, so I decided to go that route rather than make them from fondant. I’m sure they will be much tastier than fondant and look cleaner. I made sure to purchase those in advance so I would have them in time. 

To make the honeycomb chocolate piece, you need clean bubble wrap and the chocolate of your choice. I went with yellow melting chocolate because it will look more like honeycomb and that’s what the inspirational picture had too. I’ve never made this before, but I had watched a ton of video tutorials on it in the past. I always make sure to test something days prior to actually needing it so I know if it is going to work or not. I bought bubble wrap and made sure to wash and dry it very good before using it. I melted a handful of normal chocolate chips and spreaded it on the piece of bubble wrap. I was mainly testing to see how easy I would be able to get the chocolate off or if I would need to spray it with nonstick spray. After sitting in the fridge for about 15 minutes, I was able to peel off the chocolate super easy! The coolest part was it worked! It had a honeycomb design and was super easy to do. Now I was getting even more excited to put it all together. My excitement had to wait a week until the day before pick up to actually make the cupcakes. I always make them a day before (or if it is a later in the day pickup then the morning of) pickup that way they will be fresh. 

Jump forward and it is November 19th, the day I get to make them! I start off by always disinfecting my work surfaces and my utensils. Once that is done I start on the cake. I wanted to start with the lemon cake because it has more steps than the vanilla. Funny thing is I had to make the lemon batter twice. I pulled a rookie mistake on the first attempt. First thing I do on baking days is pull out all my refrigerated ingredients so they can start coming to room temp, and that morning I had forgotten. I can bring butter to room temp pretty quickly, but eggs and milk on the other hand are tricky. I had my butter mixture ready, I added my milk and eggs, and they were so cold from the fridge that it solidified by butter again. I mean that is an ammature move for me! I could tell right away the batter was not going to be smooth and I can’t give that to a customer. I will not sell someone cupcakes unless they are fully up to standards, because I would not want a messed up cupcake that I was paying for. So I scrapped the batter. Luckily I always buy extra in case something happens, so I had enough ingredients to make it again. I pulled the second round of refrigerated goods out and made sure they all came to room temperature. Once they were good, I re-made the lemon batter. It turned out WAY better this time and how it is normally supposed to. I got those in the oven to bake and started on my vanilla batter. Vanilla went very smooth since I remembered to let things get to room temperature. Once the lemon came out of the oven, I threw in the vanilla. Trust me, I’m not going to let myself live down that mistake lol!

The cupcakes were finally all done baking and in the fridge to cool down. It was time to make my honey buttercream. Now I have never personally made honey buttercream, but everything I have ever read or seen just says to add honey to your normal buttercream recipe. I always start off with adding a little because you can always add more if need be. I make my normal batch of buttercream first then add the honey (or other flavorings) at the end. Once I got it to the taste and consistency I wanted, I added yellow food coloring to make it look more like a beehive! I pulled my cupcakes out of the fridge (being very careful to remember which flavor is which,) and put them in their containers to start piping. I always pipe the cupcakes in their containers, that way I don’t risk messing them up by placing them in the containers. I filled up my huge piping bag and used a big round tip so I would get smooth rings of frosting. I did a nice little swirl to really make it look like a beehive. One some of the cupcakes I topped them with two of the edible bees, but on the ones that only receive a single bee, I put a little piece of my honeycomb chocolate piece. I made my honeycomb piece after I had piped all the cupcakes and put bees on them. It wasn’t going to take long to set up. I just melted my yellow chocolate, spread it on clean bubble wrap, and then off to the freezer for about 5 minutes. It peeled off the bubble wrap very easily and I just started breaking it into pieces and placing them in the frosting. They are done!! It was so exciting placing that last piece of honeycomb and seeing the vision come together and hard work pay off!!! AHHH I just loved it. It was so much fun and got me to try new things! I packaged up the cupcakes and labeled on the container which flavor was which. They went into the fridge where they would stay till the customer came to pick up.

The next day was pick up day and I was both excited and nervous. I was excited for her to finally see them in person, but nervous because this is my first Google customer and I want it to go great! I texted her the day before a picture of the finished product and she loved them! I was just hoping she was going to love them just as much in person. I do my pick up protocol right now where you text me when you’re in my driveway (since I am a home baker) and I put them in your car. It’s our contactless pick up system. She came to pick them up around 11:00am. She let me know she was here and I took them out to her. She said she just absolutely loved them! She especially loved the little bees on top! I can not stress this enough when I say I was in cloud nine!!! It was everything I have ever wanted and dreamt of for my baking career. I remember being 12 and imaging giving cupcakes to my customers, and it finally happened! I told her that I loved making them and I hope the party is a hit! I also sent her home with a couple business cards ;) You got to use that free advertisement! Overall it went perfect and I couldn’t have asked for it to go any better. 

This goes down as one the best moments of my life! I am so happy that the business is getting noticed and is growing! I love you all and I’m so happy to have you as part of the Cupcakes & Canines family! I mean it, you guys mean the world to me and I can’t wait to give you all exciting new items/cupcakes! Thank you! 

That is going to wrap up this blog. I hope you enjoyed it and look forward to new ones in the future! After this experience, I was back in the kitchen baking more cupcakes! I couldn’t have had it any other way! I love you guys and hope you all continue to have an amazing day because you deserve it! Contact me for any of your cupcake needs or doggie needs!

Xoxo. Cupcakes & Canines

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