FAQ #4: Do you make ____ free cake?

FAQ #4: Do you make ____ free cake?

Let me explain this question. It’s really multiple questions wrapped into one, just insert any of the following words for the dashes: gluten, dairy, sugar, peanut, carb, fat, oil, butter, etc. You get the idea.

While I wish I could answer yes, unfortunately I haven’t had the time, energy, or resources to devote to creating a diet-friendly menu. As important as it is to meet specific dietary needs, I can’t bring myself to offer products anything less than spectacular, and I’ve found that rather challenging without using gluten or sugar or butter or dairy.

However…

I had the perfect opportunity to experiment last week for a very special birthday that required Keto cupcakes. The Ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carb diet. It excludes gluten, added sugar, and basically everything on my menu aside for, maybe, the fresh strawberries I occasionally use as a garnish.

I searched the depths of Pinterest for Keto Chocolate Cake recipes, and found the best-reviewed recipe for Chocolate Fudge Brownie Cake with Chocolate Ganache. I have to say, it’s not bad. Admittedly, the ganache is a little bitter because of the 100% unsweetened cocoa, but the cake actually tastes like a fudge brownie. The texture is a bit crumbly, and serving it warm relieves some of the density, but overall I’d eat it again, especially since it’s only 5 carbs per serving.

I was meaning to snap a picture of the leftover one I ate for breakfast, but apparently I ate it too fast! The plain cupcake with a spoonful of almond butter, microwaved for 20 seconds, was an incredible way to start the day. I did hear decent reviews from the customer, though she’s been on a Keto diet long enough that anything that even resembles chocolate will be well-received!

While these won’t be on my permanent menu, I’d highly recommend all my health-conscious customers to check out this recipe if you’re craving something sweet.

I think this is the perfect time for me to announce that for the next 30 days I’ll be living off of meat, veggies, and the occasional fruit on the Whole 30 diet. You might’ve heard of this, but it’s very similar to Keto in that it excludes sugar, grains, alcohol, soy, legumes, and dairy in favor of whole foods.

Please send prayers.

Seriously. All of those things I just named, I LOVE.

You might wonder why I’m committing to 30 days of basically celery sticks and water, and actually I’m wondering the same thing, but I’ve always been a health geek, researching nutrition, exercise, and how the body works in my free time (ironic, I know, considering my life purpose revolves around creating things purely out of sugar). Whole 30 is a crazy experiment to see how the body reacts to eliminating processed foods. I’ve thought about it before, but this time my housemate is committing with me, so on day 3 when I’m hangry and threaten to quit, I can’t!

I’m telling you this because in my pre-Whole 30 research, it suggests telling as many people as possible so you have a greater likelihood of holding yourself accountable. So, faithful followers, I’m doing Whole 30 for the month of September!

I’d invite you to join me in this 30-day whole-foods-only journey, but I’d really like you to keep ordering cakes (wink!). So instead, you can follow my 30 days on my Facebook and Instagram Stories. Basically, with my updates, you can do Whole 30 without doing Whole 30. You’re welcome.

We’ll see if the next 30 days influence me to add gluten/dairy/sugar free options to my menu (one day, I really do hope to have these readily available for all of my customers—after all, everyone deserves to celebrate with a piece of cake!), but until I can legally ensure they meet dietary criteria, and until I can make them taste not like you’re eating a raw cocoa bean, I’ll keep experimenting when I get the chance.

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone online for the next 30 days and beyond. If you’ve got any recipes, tips, or tricks, I’m all ears. And in the mean time, for all my customers who’ve placed orders for September—I’m begging you, have a slice for me!

Cheers!

jorie

FAQ #3: What should I order?

FAQ #2: So what should I order, cakes or cupcakes?

It’s wedding season, friends! Especially if you’re almost 23 and a recent college grad living in the South. Weddings all around! And with weddings, come wedding cakes. And now wedding cupcakes.

One of the conversations I have the most with my wedding/event-planning customers centers around deciding on the perfect balance of cakes and cupcakes, and which one better suits their vision.

Often times, the answer is both.

A gorgeous 3-tiered cake and dozens of minis, August 2019. One of my forever favorites!

Here’s what you should consider when deciding on your order:

• Cupcakes offer convenience, flavor options, and, well, fun! They’re a great way to supplement serving sizes and offer flavors for everyone. You don’t need to cut, plate, or serve them, which makes them about the easiest party desserts around.

• Cakes are showstoppers. They start conversations, can be customized to the nth degree, and will likely be remembered long after the event. Bonus points if your guests ask, “that’s a cake?!”.

Graduation cake and minis, May 2020. The perfect combination!

If we were sitting at a tasting right now and you asked my advice for your wedding, birthday, office party, etc., I’d tell you this: order both. Yeah, sounds a little over the top. But you’ll thank me later!

The convenience of cupcakes is unbeatable, but sometimes the presentation can leave a little to be desired. Don’t get me wrong, a cupcake table done right is exquisite. However, it takes lots of cake stands, vases of flowers, and bunched up table clothes to make the display come to life. I mean, have you ever seen any of the displays they make on cupcake wars?! Those things are works of art in themselves, and those carpenters are the real winners in my book.

A cupcake display, May 2020.

Where cupcakes might lack a little luster, that’s where cakes, um, take the cake (pun intended). They’re their own centerpieces. You simply can’t have a cake cutting at your wedding without a cake! It doesn’t need to be an 8-tier waterfall cake with 200 gumpaste roses on a moving platform to be a statement, either. A 6” cake with a rustic buttercream texture and a fresh flower does the trick. Cakes give your eye a resting place on a dessert table. They’re the glue that brings everything else together.

Wedding cake table, June 2015. Quite a big statement!

So here’s why this world needs cakes and cupcakes: customization and convenience. Just think, we’re all driven by these values. We shouldn’t have to settle for one or the other. And, heck, if we want to try 7 different flavors of cupcakes, we should have that option.

My second wedding cake table, October 2014. I’ve learned a lot about tablescapes since then, but for a 17-year-old, I think it’s pretty good!

Thus far in my baking career, I’ve done 12 weddings (the first one when I was 15), and 10 of those have been a mix of a cake and cupcakes. Some couples only wanted cupcakes! Which just shows us the power of convenience paired with our industry’s obsession with the bite-size cakes.

But please, don’t do that!

Get a cake too!

If only for the sake of appeasing your baker (me) and for the cake-in-each-others’-faces picture that will sit in a frame on your desk forever. Order a cake with your cupcakes!

If you’re feeling even more dainty and petite, order mini cupcakes. And order a lot of them. Because—not to point any fingers—most men tend to eat them in one bite, and usually eat a minimum of 3. So plan on ordering about 2 per person.

One last cake & cupcake table, September 2019. Stunning with that mirror in the back!

At the end of the day, if I’m going to have dessert, nothing beats a piece of cake (see my post about my favorite cake for an example). However, I’ll never turn down a cupcake— I’ll just make it into a sandwich before I eat it (you know, like I wrote about here!).

Next time you’re torn between ordering a cake or cupcakes, either order both or call me. I have a lot of opinions on this topic, and I’m happy to share anything that will bring your vision to life.

Talk Soon!

jorie

**Given the covid-19 circumstances, cupcakes may be your best bet. Single-serve, wrapped, and easy to package. However, never underestimate the celebratory power of a slice of cake!

FAQ #2: Do you watch all those baking shows?

In short, yes. Yes I do.

However, to further illustrate this, let me describe my current situation as I write this blog post:

I’m sitting in my chair conveniently facing my TV which is on its third hour of Hulu for the night. After finishing the final episode of Buddy vs. Duff (highly recommend) while fixing dinner, I watched a few minutes of Chopped (because it’s Chopped and it’s addicting), and then turned to my new series, Bakers vs. Fakers. All while updating my spreadsheets, planning my weekend baking schedule, posting on social media, and browsing some of my favorite food blogs.

So yeah, I love baking shows! I mostly love them as background noise that I can leave on while I get some work done. But growing up, I would eat, sleep and breathe Food Network.

You simply can’t recreate the drama of a croquembouche tower toppling or a ganache seizing or a last-minute tray of dropped cupcakes. I live for this kind of stuff! Only on TV, though, because when that happens in real life, it’s very terrible.

One of my favorite shows is Cake Boss, you know, with Buddy and his whole Italian/New Jersey family. He toured when I was in high school and stopped in Columbus, Ohio, and I had the privilege of attending his show (thank you, Aunt Tammy!). That was a pivotal point in my baking career—I left inspired, awe-struck, and determined to be Buddy one day instead of watching from the audience.

2012 outside the Palace Theatre in Columbus & in front of the Cake Boss trailer

I think part of the reason I love Cake Boss is because…that is my family! I love telling the story of our 2016 Guarasci Family Reunion. We had 76 people. Seventy-Six! Enough to fill up an entire wing at Deer Creek State Park, along with their golf course’s entire tee sheet that weekend. Let me tell you, though I may only be 25% Italian, I claim it more than anything, because no one knows how to cook, party, or love like Italians.

July 2016, the Guarasci Family! Since then there’s been countless marriages, births, and probably claiming people who aren’t even related as family.

This photo is a great reminder of the important things in life. Since we’re all so disconnected (and it’s looking like living behind masks might be our normal for awhile), taking a second to remember the warmth of family is a great encouragement to endure, whether you have a family of two or of 76.

I guess baking shows lead me back to family. Seems a little strange, even to me, but it’s true. There’s a simple child-like innocence that provides an escape full of buttercream and rainbow sprinkles.

Because I want you to experience the joy of baking shows, here are my favorites with a little insight on what each one offers. If you pay close enough attention, you can really learn a lot while you watch!

While you may still have ample time for binge-watching during quarantine, I hope you enjoy these shows as much as I do. Just make sure you aren’t too hungry when you watch—or else you’ll find yourself baking whatever you can get your hands on in your kitchen.

Talk soon, and feel free to send any of your favorite shows my way!

jorie

PS—the follow-up question is usually, “so when will we see YOU on one of those baking shows?!” My answer is simple—whenever Food Network calls! I have much to learn about competitive baking, but I must say I’m up for the challenge.

The Right Way to Eat a Cupcake

Are you ready for your life to change for the better?

I present to you: The Cupcake Sandwich.

If you already know about this—or better yet, you do it—congratulations! You might be considered a foodie.

So here’s the thing. This is important to me as a baker and to you as a consumer, because this method exponentially increases everyone’s enjoyment of these bites of cake. It’s no secret that I love cupcakes and think they’re a great party solution, but when it comes to eating them, that can be a different story. I’m not always a fan of a giant mound of cake under a giant mound of frosting.

You could get away with just taking a bite the traditional way, but that only works if you’ve got a really moist cake and a very spreadable frosting. Otherwise, you’re left with a ratio that’s completely uneven and not that pleasant.

Case in point.

I’d choose the right cupcake every time. It’s like a hand-held piece of cake: frosting sandwiched between two layers of cupcake, you get both in every bite, and you don’t even need a fork!

Here’s how you do it (I know, it’s pretty self-explanatory, but I have more pictures of these stunning Red Velvet Cupcakes to show off, so I’ll take you through the process):

Start with your cupcake. Your beautifully wrapped, perfectly swirled cupcake.

Then unwrap it. But save that wrapper!

Gently lift the cupcake out of the liner, and use your hands (yeah, classy) to separate the actual cake in two. At this point, sometimes I’ll throw the bottom half away. We all know I’m all about the buttercream anyway.

Now all you have to do is set the bottom half of the cake on top of the frosting swirl, and you’ve got your cupcake sandwich!

I do have to warn you that if the frosting is soft, it’s liable to squish out the back (side note: squish is not a word I like to associate with cake, but in this instance, there’s no substitute). If this happens while you’re digging into your newly-made, hand-held piece of cake, just use your wrapper as a little plate. Problem solved.

Enjoy, cupcake lovers!

jorie

FAQ #1: What's My Favorite?

Welcome to my new FAQ series! I’ll be answering all your most pressing questions right here. Before we get started, subscribe below so you don’t miss any of the answers!

FAQ #1: The question I’m asked in about 98.3% of my conversations is “What’s your favorite thing to make?”

That’s a tough question. Every order is unique and special and delicate and charismatic etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. How I respond to this question is by answering with my favorite thing to eat.

Now, I don’t know if this is the answer people are looking for, but it’s an absolute no-brainer for me. In fact, it’s so obvious, I’m just going to let you look at this picture before diving into the answer.

Okay but like seriously, as long as this Peanut Butter Cup cake exists, I have literally zero other cares.

I consider this my signature cake. I started making it when I was about 13, and have only improved since (thankfully). It’s the cake I made on our local TV segment when I was 15, and it’s the cake I featured in my big-girl marketing campaign, Stay Celebrating, as a 22-year-old. It’s tried-and-true throughout the years, and I plan on keeping it on my menu forever, or else I think there would be riots in the streets from my loyal peanut butter cup customers!

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This cake is just so good.

It’s so good that I’m delighted whenever a customer orders any variation of a peanut butter & chocolate dessert because (cue the embarrassment) that means I get to eat whatever is left over.

I have systems for everything I do. The clean-up system for this cake is very strategic and not to be messed with. I get the cake or cupcakes all done, making certain everything is accounted for and won’t need any more icing or ganache, and then get all the boring dishes washed and tools put away. Then…then the fun part.

I save the leftover piping bag with a few tablespoons of peanut butter buttercream left in the tip along with the almost scraped-down bowl of chocolate ganache until the very end of my cleaning. Then I proceed to stand at my sink, take the spoon I use for the ganache, and pipe the last ounce of frosting onto that chocolate covered goodness and literally eat it like I’ve never tasted anything good in my entire life.

Oh. My. Gosh. I would be lying if I said that hadn’t served as my dinner a time or two (college student budgets, am I right?). It’s also been nearly every birthday cake for my family because they love it equally—if not more than—I do. Customers order groom’s cakes, wedding cakes, surprise cupcakes, baby shower cakes, and basically every other kind of cake you can imagine in this flavor.

Let’s break it down, shall we?

In its most basic form, this is a chocolate cake, filled and frosted with peanut butter buttercream, dripped with Chocolate ganache, and topped with chopped peanut butter cups.

But that description doesn’t do nearly enough justice to convey HOW FREAKING DELICIOUS this peanut butter/chocolate cake is. So here’s my ultra descriptive-marketing guru-food show host description for you (and I’m kicking myself that I don’t have a picture of the inside of this cake! We must eat it too fast for that to happen):

Four layers of the most decadent and satisfying fudgy chocolate cake you’ve ever had are filled with a simultaneously airy and rich peanut butter-y buttercream that you’ll wish you could substitute for Jif on your sandwiches every day. The liberal layer of peanut butter frosting around the outside of the cake ensures every bite is saturated with the perfect ratio of peanut butter and chocolate. But, wait! Those bites wouldn’t be complete without themselves being covered in a thick, shiny chocolate ganache coating that serves as the base for swirls of more buttercream to hold chunky pieces of chopped peanut butter cups.

This is the kind of cake that leaves you salvaging every last crumb off of your plastic party plate. It will have you standing in the refrigerator light well past midnight, or maybe even for breakfast at 8am, with only a fork in hand as you go for one more bite, trying to be discreet so no one else in the house will notice. This cake is seriously as good as it sounds, guaranteed.

Don’t overlook the cupcake version, either. These babies are just as good as the real thing, especially if you make a cupcake sandwich out of them (more on that later!).

Now that I’ve successfully made you crave this Peanut Butter Cup Cake, and have most likely made you mad at me for sharing these mouthwatering pictures and ultra-visual descriptions with no samples, I think it’s time for me to sign off.

If you would like to place an order for my signature cake, please do! Because that means I get the leftovers. Well, and you get this cake. Which makes this a win/win! Visit the Contact tab up top to submit a form, and you’ll have your cake in no time!

Cheers!

jorie