A D.C. cake for a D.C. Friend

When I moved to Northern VA after grad school I got a job teaching 1st grade.  I was lucky enough to get teamed up with some great women, Sarah included. We've grown very close in my three years at the school and she has walked me through a lot of my big life moments. I look up to her like a big sister!

Her awesome husband Tim contacted me right before her birthday about doing a surprise cake. Since it was her 30th we all pulled out every stop to make it memorable. I was so thrilled to get to make her a cake! She loves red velvet, and she has a darling red Mini Cooper so we started there. It was originally going to be a 1 tiered red cake with white racing stripes like her car... simple but obvious.  As I was adding fondant I kept thinking of ways to make the cake more personal. In the end it was a two-tiered tour of D.C., and I couldn't be happier to share it with you!

What I forgot until I arrived at the party was that Sarah and Tim got engaged at the Washington Monument, and ran their first 10 miler (the Cherry Blossom) as an engaged couple.  There are always certain parts of the city that make her nostalgic and I had added them to the cake without realizing it.

 It was a very special night for sure. Thanks for letting me be a part of it in so many ways!

A First Time for Everything.

This changes everything! I'll be the first to admit that carving a cake into the shape of anything is tough, especially if it's a shoe.  I learned a lot throughout this process, and I'm so fortunate to have come across party planner Stefanie.  It was a pleasure to get to know her as we planned this cake for her boyfriend's birthday! I also learned a lot about shoes.  For example, I now know that the one this cake was modeled after, the Nike Galaxy Air Foamposite is a big stinkin' deal in shoe world.

Thanks Stefanie!

A Wonderful Woman Retires

Happy retirement, Mary Lynne!!

I had the pleasure of working with Mary Lynne for almost 3 years during my time at JMU.  I worked at an office called Student Activities and Involvement where all of the behind the scenes work was done for the clubs and organizations on campus.  When we found out she was retiring this spring the current student employees gathered supplies, ideas, and past employees to celebrate her.  I was so excited to be a part of this, and honored to be asked to make cupcakes.  Mary Lynne was the mother of the office for so many years, and she will really be missed on campus.  She touched a lot of lives and has some BIG shoes to fill!

This was also my first time dipping cupcakes in ganache.  They were extra chocolatey, and extra delicious!

Featured flavors: Yellow cake with vanilla frosting and pearl dragees, Fudgy chocolate chip cake with vanilla frosting and dark chocolate ganache.

*Thanks to Kristin Muncy for sending me some pictures of the guest of honor!