These may be the prettiest cupcakes I've made in a long time. Rose cupakes in ivory, pink and purple and they are just so pretty and beautiful and delicate looking that I wouldn't blame anyone if they didn't want to eat it!

Bomboniere cupcakes for a few close friends of the Bride and Groom at their wedding dinner just before Christmas.

I never thought I'd work in the IT industry - just didn't think about it.

So it's kind of funny and highly coincidental that my 9-5 consists of working very closely in the IT industry and lots of my orders are from clients with close relations to that. 

And for this particular weeknight, the brief was to create 168 beautiful and delicious vanilla and chocolate cupcakes for a launch party.

They look good and smelt so yummy. I think cupcakes are a great idea, especially if a company like this one is going to personalise it with their Company Logo. Stays in the minds of their guests.

Without being told, I could guess the age of this birthday boy! 10.

Patience is a virtue with little squares. And they take so much longer than you can expect.

I don't really know what all the pixelated items are but the axe is cute?

I can count the number of times I've been invited to a baby showers with the fingers on my right (or left) hand!

I made some mini cupcakes with baby themed marshmallow fondant and a super cute (almost Disney's Belle-esque) tummy cake for mummy! I personally find it a little weird to 'cut' a tummy cake but at the same time it is so delightfully cute. I mean, it is the mother who bears the child from almost 10 months isn't it? So why can't we also honour her as well as bubba!

A tummy cake is amazingly easy - so long as you have the right pans. Two smaller semi circle spheres and a larger one. I used two silicon chocolate moulds and one of the semi-spheres of the Wilton Sports Ball Cake Pan. Perfect sizing. And here's a tip, if it's not, just use more ganache to reshape so the proportions look okay. The great thing is that there is no right or wrong!

And you can pretty much design the "dress" however you please. I just did some really easy pleats with ribbon of fondant, finished with a little flower.

I've seen buttercream roses, elaborate lace designs, sequins, pearls, etc. I guess this is where it's easy to design the cake to suit the mum-to-be.

It's an early Easter this year! And although completely not religious, sometimes (time permitting), it's fun to create some easter treats. We're pretty full with cake orders next week and due to other commitments, we're having some fun in the kitchen this afternoon instead.

Trying out our new flavour White Chocolate Earl Grey with these midi sized cupcakes (they're good, really good). Dark chocolate whipped ganache and speckled Cadbury eggs. I think I'm going to be a popular person at work on Monday!

Oh boy... was it a busy weekend or what?

However I love what I do and at this very moment in time, I would not trade it for anything else. 

And so starting 8 PM Friday night (after a loooong day at the office), it was vanilla butter cupcake time. 120 times!

I'm so thankful to have my mum around. She did all the perfect tying of the ribbons. Luckily, I thought ahead and pre-made the boxes a few days beforehand. When I had a few hours free and was watching TV (I actually never sit down and watch TV so this was strange!).

Again, great thing that I thought ahead and made the cupcake toppers a week in advance. Less stress the night before and also gave them time to dry out so they were stiff enough to just place on the top of the cupcakes.

Batch mixtures are really important. I think that batches keep the 'home made' and 'non commercial' taste in my cakes. I don't just simple double or triple recipe quantities to make more. I make a second or a third (or in this case 5 all up) batch so that each batch is made with the exact amount of love as any other. Trust me, it makes a massive difference to taste and how your cakes turn out. 

I think I managed to take some really awesome shots too... and my absolute favourite of the three was the rose. It also took the most amount of time to make too but ohhh so pretty. I would definitely do this again and again.

Then there was the daisies and butterfly. Plunger cutters put to work. Cute but not as beautiful and elegant as the rose (yes, I am going to compare them all to the rose!). If I was at the wedding, and I didn't get a rose cupcake, I would try and swap with someone else :P

And the bow. I really like this one too. I think it is simple but elegant at the same time. So this would be my second choice!

I had 4 hours of sleep in the wee hours of Saturday morning. And then was up as the sun came up to drop off three deliveries!

These are for a special friend of mine who turned 30 over the weekend. I didn't really know what to do with these Vanilla bean & Passionfruit cupcakes until the very last minute! I just knew I wanted colours, pretty things and flowers.

And what a pretty dozen we made...

We pretty much covered all things Christmas-y this holiday with the one exception of Cupcakes! Arguably, we saved the best till last (or last minute!).

Fancy a Christmas Pudding but not a fan on the real deal? Pudding Cupcake!

Wanted a Winter Wonderland this year? Snowflake Cupcake!

Or perhaps you were after just a pretty looking box with some nice ribbon and bow... take your pick! We have them all covered...

Even with our own Santa and Santa's belt after a few too many Christmas treats ;)

We're almost there, just one last cake to decorate on the morrow and then it's time to celebrate.

Merry Christmas everyone and thank you so much for the support this year. As always, couldn't have done it without you. xxx

Gourmet selection of cupcakes as part of a wedding tasting. Looking for contract in 2-tiers so two light colours and 2 darker colours.

- Coconut white chocolate

- White chocolate passion

- Peanut butter chocolate and crowd favourite...

- Hazelnut dark chocolate

Mid-week (most of your might refer to it as 'hump' day). And what better way to give flower than to give edible blooms? Pretty pastel (and rather bold red hues) cupcakes. We've got a fair bit going on here with the butterflies and mini daisies to the hand-made flowers with edible pearls. Sure to brighten up the rest of someone's week!

Happy Hump Day!

Mid-late week orders seem to be popular at the moment and I would say most people prepare for the weekend!

Bride-to-be cupcakes. They're having a pink-themed party so I think these are cute little additions. So happy with the piping - they almost look like flowers (carnations maybe?)

Bit of much needed stress relief from the long hours in the office...

And itching to get started on the HoHo wedding cake and cookies! Stay tuned!

I think I'm rather pleased with how it looks... ON THE OUTSIDE.

It was supposed to be a rainbow cupcake... but I think the storm clouds gathered and didn't disperse in time because the inside is pretty much a fail. Where to start... too many dark colours, the red decided to take over the cupcakes and exploded, the blue was too blue, the yellow turned brown and the purple dissipated. . . one word: dreary.

So yes, if I am going to make this again, I am changing the recipe!!! I am going to get this right! (I would insert a quote from Suits here but will refrain).

Anyway, I think the yellow with the pink and the orange (or variations of looks okay). Looks harder that it really is.

I was attempting ruffles in the beginning but that was another fail. Things just like to go wrong on weeknights for some reason... I blame this concept called a second job... 

When orders flow, they come in droves! Christmas 2012 has been a bit hectic but a lot of fun!

Over the last 5 days, we have created 20 gingerbread trees, 2 macaron trees, over 30 gingerbread men, 100 macarons, 2000 fondant cookies, 4 large fruit cakes, 48 cupcakes and toppings, fillings, decorations to match!!

It's been a long week from day time job to night time job (it's a good thing I LOVE TO BAKE!). A lot of early starts (day time job) and late nights/early mornings! And I can't thank the tireless efforts of my parents enough. Who else was going to help me package over 300 bags of cookies? Deliver them and still be smiling after only a few hours sleep!

These macarons below turned out amazing. So happy with both the colour and the feet. And that jaffa orange filling is awesome, especially with that little kick of Cointreau.

Next came the most time-consuming order of them all. The order for 2000+ cookies, individually gift-packaged into 300 bags. This was a mammoth task that took a few days and great planning to achieve. Again, so happy with the result - we managed to get the colours of Christmas in there!

Follow that (there's no stopping!) with an order for gift boxed cupcakes. These were my favourite to make. Love the flower sitting on the holly leaf. Adds that bit of Christmas touch! And the candy canes (hand made of course) aren't so bad either. However, I am partial to pretty things and I love the flowers.

And to finish it off (okay, there was a lot more in between but I think you get the gist), gingerbread trees as my gift to friends, family and colleagues. These will go down a treat I am sure!

Time for a break though - hope you all have a safe and very Merry Christmas. We'll be back in the New Year with more baking adventures (and finger's crossed, more orders!)

xx

Wynnie

The secret is to plan. And to plan well! And to plan for the unknowns.

Truffle mixture. Macarons. Cookies. Icing. Fondant. Cupcakes.

Easy right? Not a walk in the park by any means and definitely tested one's time management but I am quite pleased (and relieved) at the way everything has turned out!

Macaron shells can be pre-made a couple of days ahead of time. You don't have to necessarily fill them right away. (Hint: Macarons almost always taste better after resting for 24-48 hours). So these were timed perfectly.

Next came the truffles (sorry, no photo). Fairly straight forward. Just requires refrigeration time. A good day or so will do the trick. Them you need to hand make each and every one. Roll them in your choice of topping and you're done. Good idea to keep them in the fridge and bring them out to stand for about 20 before serving. Quote colleague today "these are like gold".

And then you do cookies. Make dough, roll, cut, bake, fondant, ice, wrap, seal. Repeat. And repeat some more when you need to make 80! I have to say though - this part was a lot of fun. And the final product looks so pretty!

Cupcakes. Lots and lots of cupcakes. These of course, I saved till last. Made these the night before for optimal freshness and I am so pleased the way they have turned out. Alas, I didn't have enough time to put them all on a tree for a tiered photo but there is always next time. Imagine 80 of these little beauties sitting on a wedding stand. They are mighty delicious too!

So happy to have been able to cater and be apart of this wedding. The bride-to-be came and picked up these goodies on her way to Kangaroo Valley today. Congrats to Kelly and wishing her and her husband all the very best for the future!

Finally Friday! Albeit a wet one. Not that that deters one from baking...

So whilst Cat is in the US - possibly picking up the pieces from Superstorm Sandy (?!) and enjoying herself immensely (Hawaii, the Big Apple, checking out the US in general so she can tell me what to do and what not in Feb!), I took up the awesome job of making 40 cupcakes for her cousin's 20th Birthday. I would crash the party too but I think I'm too old :-(

In true St Georgian style, she was super prepared and had already made silver stars and blue letters for the cupcake toppers. One less job for me! And they look pretty awesome.

Took my time tonight and still got it all done in a couple of hours. How one loves efficiency and her kitchenaid. And so rare that I take pictures of my WIP (not the photographer in the fams). Have to say though, looking pretty orderly!!!

Happy with the piping. Thought about chocolate overkill on the top (monkey tried to encourage it) but decided to be reasonable. Moderation is an important word. Even the cookie monster preaches cookies are a "sometimes" food.

Then decided to take them to another level anyway...

Then boxed them all up in these awesome 12-cupcake boxes that were conveniently delivered JIT today. And that's me for the week!

The best thing about cupcakes is that they are so versatile and you can come up with endless different combinations, designs, patterns and themes for any occasion.

I tried a few different combinations for these cupcakes this week and so easy to mix and match!

First off, we have a mud chocolate cupcake with silky smooth dark chocolate ganache topped with mini marshmallow flowers. I think the contrast in colours - dark brown and red - can be quite dramatic and goes pretty well together.



















Next and always a favourite - Red velvet cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting. I tried to keep these as simple as possible, with just two lovey dovey hearts on the top and a touch of red sprinkle to finish. Great for weddings or Valentine's Day too!















Finally, we have a super moist white chocolate cupcake with whipped white choocolate ganache topped with a pretty marshmallow daisy. Simple and elegant, these always look great in a crowd!

Hey guys! Some of you may have heard that I have started taking orders for cakes :) (some might say finally...!) Starting from the bottom, one step at a time. I finally have that facebook page set up so please do visit it @ wynwyn's place. You'll find a few of my projects there also. Or drop me some mail at wynwynsplace(at)gmail(dot)com.

 It's been a pretty busy week non-baking-wise but still managed (or committed!) to two order's this week! I made a dozen cupcakes for a hen's/engagement party as well as a White Chocolate Mud Cake for a birthday (funnily enough, my sources tell me that she use to go to my school... small small world).

 Think there's a couple of other cupcakes orders in the pipeline and my cousin and I have been talking about doing another fundraising event for his church. This time bigger and better!!! More sugar, chocolate, macarons, brownies, caramel slice, cookies, etc etc! Probably coming up in the next 3 or 4 weeks. If you are interested in donating or ordering, please do let us know!

Makes 12

Ingredients:
1 punnet blueberries
2 t vanilla sugar
1 egg white, lightly beaten
125 g butter
1/2 t vanilla
2/3 C sugar
2 eggs
2/3 C dried mixed berries
1/2 C silvered almonds
2/3 C plain flour
1/3 C SR flour
1/4 C milk

Use either cream cheese or buttercream frosting.

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Line muffin cases on tray.
2. Brush each blueberry lightly with egg white and dip in vanilla sugar to make berry topping. These will need to dry for over an hour on a piece of baking paper.
3. Beat butter, vanilla and sugar until combined. Add eggs one at a time until just combined.
4. Sift in flours and add dried berries and almonds.
5. Mix in milk until just incorporated.
6. Divide among 12 patties and bake for 18-20 minutes. Allow to cool before decorating.