♪♪ summertiiiimmmmme and the living is eeaaasyyy....♪♪

Absolutely nothing beats waking up on a Monday morning with the sun trying to peak through your curtains, and for the 1st time in a VERY long time waking up all by myself, instead of being forced to get up. One thing i am not is a morning person. So at 5 AM on a sunny Monday for the couple of minutes of sanity/quiet i was given, i lounged in bed lol (am usually forced awake between 3:30-4:30 by the toughest drill Sergeant trio, they are persistent and show absolutely no Mercy :P)

Yesterday was definitely needed and the Sunshine and warm weather does this Fairy a world of good, and everyone just seems nicer lol. Today was also a MUCH needed day off, May has been a very nutty month, and the day off was welcome. the only issue with days off is that it gives me time to think of the 100000000000001 things i want to do next.

Because i still haven't manage to grow the extra pair of arms i keep asking for every Christmas i am hoping that you will be willing to help with one of the 100000000000001 things on my i want to try list. I am running a wee little contest over on my facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=214058451961711&set=a.214058408628382.64613.133430670024490&type=1&theater#!/media/set/?set=a.214058408628382.64613.133430670024490) I am looking to introduce a new summer time cupcake to my menu, and it's completely in your hands. Do you have a flavor combo you wish you could get somewhere, something a bit different that you would like to see in cupcake form? Then please step right up!!. All you have to do is post a summer themed cupcake flavor and get your friends to vote for your choice. On June 13th (8PM EST) the flavor idea with the most likes will win. I will whip up a dozen of the flavor idea and it will be delivered straight to your front door (Ottawa residents only please). As it's only fair that you get to taste test your creation. It will then be part of the Fairy menu for the months of June,July and August. The cherry on top? 50% of every dozen sold will be donated to the CIBC Run for the Cure in which I am taking part with the Breast Dress Project Team.

http://www.runforthecure.com/site/TR/RunfortheCure2012/Ontario?px=1365092&pg=personal&fr_id=1284


http://www.runforthecure.com/site/TR/RunfortheCure2012/Ontario?pg=team&fr_id=1284&team_id=17560


So when you think of Summer what flavor(s) scream out at you?

Pear cardomom cupcakes with rose infused vanilla bean custard & white chocolate ganache

I stumbled on the sweetest kitchen's mystery box cupcake challenge by pure accident during December and have been drooling from afar at all the entries so far. I have been procrastinating and grumpy all day, so the only cure for that of course is to bake. also the perfect time to try a new recipe and de-stress plus finally take part :).I have to say it worked wonders lol, but now i face playing catch up . it was worth it to make these cupcakes! they were a completely unexpected and a delightful surprise (if i do say so myself :P)


This month's theme for the challenge is flowers. We could use them as decoration, in the cake, in the icing as long as there's flowers somewhere. I readily admit i am not a flower kind of gal. They really don't stand a chance with me, i have even been known to shorten a little bitty cactus' life expectancy to under a fortnight. I have discovered that i love making them though. The cupcake bouquets are still one of my favorites, and now i might just have to add eaten flowers to the lot too.

I really liked the idea of using roses in some shape or form in my entry. I was slightly worried as all i read about rose flavor was that it was a love or hate thing. So i played it safe. I made pear and cardamom cupcakes (the smell in my kitchen made for a very inpatient wait), i filled them with a Rose infused vanilla bean custard & topped them with a Rose infused white chocolate ganache. I have to admit that i was a tad worried that infusing the ganache might overpower the cupcake, so i also made a small batch of standard white chocolate ganache, but the rose infuse version won out!!. The smells that filled the kitchen this evening definitely helped chase the grumps away. the only thing i would change is adding a wee bit more pear to the cupcakes. I then placed a lone cupcake in a fondant made whimsical teacup (read: wonky lol but it adds character!) and topped the lovely mound of rose infused ganache with a handmade rose bud). It's not a love or hate thing though, when you pick up the cupcake you can smell the roses, but the taste of it is an added bonus it's subtle and light and not at all overpowering but there is no mistaking it. I will definitely make these again (recipe to come)

The winner of May’s Mystery Box Cupcake Challenge will receive prizes from:

Angela's Images; a selection of handmade crafts
Bake It Pretty; a $5 online gift card
Beanilla; a $7 online gift card
cupcakewrappers.com; 2 packs of cupcake wrappers
Miss Kitty Creations; a handmade cupcake charm of your choice
Simply Caked; 600 brown greaseproof cupcake liners
Sweet Cuppin Cakes; a $5 online gift card
Tundra Books; 3 flower-themed children's books

Thank you to all our prize sponsors!

official rules for the challenge can be found here http://www.sweetestkitchen.com/mysterybox/ hopefully it won't take me another 6 months to have a go again :)

Time to dust of the cobwebs

At this point i think only vacuuming said cobwebs will do the trick. I guess on a positive note i have been soo busy (which i great) that i have (almost) forgotten about this wee blog, which make me kind of sad, as it's a great place to jot down how many GREAT things have happened since Cupcake Fairy opened her doors for business in July.

Wow even typing that seems super weird. has it already been almost a year??!!! It's been a simply amazing 10 months so far. I am seriously in awe about how a simple "plan" started out with a dear friend where my "big" 1st goal was to make/bake 1 to 2 paid cakes a month has snowballed into where i am today. Thank you sooooo much T for the big kick in the butt.

So what has been going on in my kitchen since my last post on September 25th...loads and loads of "please pinch me this isn't real" moments. I have to say i have absolutely smashing clients :), who keep me busy and on my toes.

I bravely (trust me i am the gal who loves blending into the corner of rooms at parties with a big "nothing to see here" sticker on my forehead) went onto our local morning tv show, and lasted the whole segment talking about my secret identity and cupcake bouquets. Needless to say i held on to their kitchen counter for dear life, and have not seen the segment because i simply refuse to watch it LOL. But i did it, and i had the bestest of partner's in crime shoving me towards the kitchen (ya until the very last segment i really tried to convince her that it would be WAY more fun if she did the segment for me, she didn't buy it!) at this point i seriously considered where her loyalties lied and all but with time i got over it :P.

Google has been my best friend too :) i have had many great opportunities thanks to her (come on only a sister could help another sister out!). If you had told me 10 months ago that i would get to make cake pops for eTalk for both the Genies & the Junos i would have laugh you right out of my front door. I still don't really believe these two events ever happened, but my loved ones sure do (guess i was maybe a tad of a tyrent in the end to anyone who dared step foot in the Fairy's kitchen during the process).

I've gotten chance to dabble (still a HUGE learning curve to get my vision out on the table) in dessert tables. Ok i might just have a slight addictive personality trait, like baking i have a wee addiction to sweet tables.i could seriously look at them alllllll dayyyyy (and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that!!!)


I have met the most amazing people, been able to bake away for some great events and charities (love these!) and most of all simply can't believe how lucky i am to actually have clients pay me for doing something i adore .


even with all this greatness and again at times don't feel worthy (yet), the highlight of the year HAS to be overhearing the mini fairy (who just turned 5!) saying, "that's my mama and she makes Amazing cakes!"...quickly followed by "because i help her!!! <3. Ok as per usual an all over the place first entry back, but it is a dusting of the cobwebs nonetheless and hopefully i get better at the shorter rambles of my GREAT pinch me now (softly please!) 1st year....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/perditafelicien/5567802139/in/set-72157626251278189

http://yfrog.com/h0pitznj

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.195271950507028.52314.133430670024490#%21/photo.php?fbid=195271987173691&set=a.195271950507028.52314.133430670024490&type=1&theater

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.195271950507028.52314.133430670024490#%21/photo.php?fbid=207022789331944&set=a.195271950507028.52314.133430670024490&type=1&theater

♪♪ it's a kind of magic...♪

♪It's a kind of magic,
A kind of magic♪

oh how i miss ally mcbeal, and how it always made me feel normal with the random songs that pop into my head...Well today we are officially 13 weeks away from Christmas!!!. I had high hopes and dream to have all my gifts doing done and dusted by the end of September,currently I stand at 100% away from that goal lol. This year we are having a homemade Christmas theme. All gifts must be homemade Fairy orders lol, and strangely enough everyone is on board with that idea this year. As time s ticking on though, am realising that unless i grow a further set of arms (have been trying for months now), i don't think i Will make the cut, but i said homemade, it might just not be homemade by me ( how i <3 Etsy).We already have our theme set for next year to :).

In case you haven't noticed i LOVE Christmas time, the whole eat yourself silly ( am all about good home cooked food), spend time with loved one, our movie marathons and just being together.

This year the Fairy has a few tricks up her sleeves and acts of randomness planned, call it making up for last year when baking was non existent ( having 2 1.5 month olds kinda scared me out of the kitchen for a bit :P).

Probably not a huge surprise to those who know me but have a Christmas favorite folder that is overflowng with ideas, which i have been working on for months now. whenever i saw something that made me squeal (yes the Fairy has squealing episodes, usually when she sees something that completely floats her boat, I have tred many therapies to loose the squeal but nothing has worked so far :P) .

Since the mini Fairy loves spending time in the kitchen to, thought what better way to count down to Christmas then with a baking project :). Ok ok it's more for me then her, but she wll love it. So this week we are kicking off the 13 weeks to Christmas countdown!!!!!

So what does one get with a sugar cone, some green candy melts, 4 less then perfect leftover cupcakes, some brown card stock & a dinky dinky cake board?

will be back with the TADA reveal later (see there was method to my madness with
the kind of Magic reference lol)

the F-word

no not THAT F word..The much nicer slightly unbelievable pinch me please one. FULL. i almost don't want to jinx things by even typing those four letters out, but that is exactly what September is turning out to be for the Fairy. So many neat ideas and celebrations happening and i am lucky enough to have been asked to bake away for them .

Feeling very lucky and very blessed and slightly giddy at all the fun things coming up :).

tonight i also got to play with new butterfly cutters i recently purchased (they are being used for an upcoming first birthday party, that i seriously can't wait to tackle), but i couldn't wait until then (surprise surprise lol), so made cookies with them tonight, to get my mind off my eldest having her first full day of JK tomorrow. ya it didn't work, but i love love love these new cutters :)

She's Here!!!!

It seems like forever since i have stopped and taken the time to ramble here. So much GOOD things have been happening i must sit down and jot them down :) . I am an official believer in the power of word of mouth now lol!!!! I am almost fully booked for September & already have a few orders all the way into November!!! I feel blessed beyond words, and for someone who loves to not have any attention pointing in her direction(i like my corners at parties lol), I love that my baking is slowly speaking for itself, and people seem to be enjoy it :)). The fairy is working on taking a couple of steps away from her corner though:).

My website is officially live! The website fairy has been BEYOND patient (which is more then i can say for me). It was more then worth the wait though. He's done a smashing job, at getting it, exactly how i wanted it, and i admit i am sporting a pretty cheesy grin these days. It was extremely hard not to ramble away on it, but i hope it gives potential customers a great first impression of the cupcake fairy :P. I cannot thank my cheerleaders enough, for all of my non stop cupcake talk, for being overloaded with pictures and for acting as both supporters/taste testers/website reviewers :). I seriously wouldn't be doing any of this if it wasn't for your pushes/shoves (ha ha ha) support and continuous encouragement. I hope you ALL know just how much you guys mean to me & thank you will never be enough :)

Ok all that ramble to say here's the newest member of the fairy family :

www.cupcakefairy.ca

MCS-flourless chocolate cupcakes

Lauryn from Bella Baker chose Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes for July. I completely let the ball drop on last month cupcake (eventhough i have made the strawberry cupcakes before i just couldn't get it together to make them in June). so i was determined to get her or them done early :p. As soon as i found out that i could top these babies with ice cream, i HAD to pop then in ice cream cones. ok before you even think of pointing out the obvious i know i kinda cancelled out the whole no flour thing by pooping them in cones, but i can live with that. I halved the recipe and managed to get 6 cones from it. I am still anti trying anything i make, but mint chocolate chip ice cream was calling my name. My taste testers (who got maple crunch ice cream...i know sharing is caring....just not the mint ice cream :p) loved them, especially in the cones. I have to admit, not too fussed. i really think something's wrong with me i really don't "get" the whole dark chocolaty thing. So thumbs up from the testers a meh from me, but i will definitely be making cupcakes in a cone again (actually planning a play date where they will come in handy)