We love cupcakes!!

This was, probably, one of the posts I enjoyed the most working on. Mainly, because every time I work on a post, I am really focused on perfection.  During a normal photoshoot, I want to get the right angle of the cake, I arrange the nicest setting so it looks "inviting", I want the whites to be spotless... In short, it's kind of a task.

But this time, it was all about the kids, and having fun with sugar!!... oh Lord, did they have fun... They took me on a ride... And I just let go!!








 

Cupcakes up for grabs!!... The kids went bananas when they saw this tray full of cupcakes!!











I gave each one a piping bag with colored buttercream, and they loved making their own decorations, as well as they loved the fact that there were no limits or boundaries; they could do whatever they wanted to do with the cream; they could combine, and sometimes even check the taste of it...












What is a cupcake without sprinkles??... We had different sorts of sprinkles, so they could be creative and have fun decorating.













Tadaaaa!!... So this is the final product!!... Isn't it just beautiful??... The cupcakes ended up so colorful... just by seeing the photo makes me smile. The kids definitely knew what they were doing, I didn't need to give any direction, they just went with the flow, and the result speaks for itself!!













Needless to say, the best part of the whole "cupcake playdate" was actually eating the cupcakes. The kids had so much sugar, that I needed to take them to the park afterwards for them to release some energy, but it was well deserved... They worked really hard to get the "task" done...












The two very special guests that we had this week are Giorgia & Beatrice. They have been friends of my kids since so long, and now their whole family is moving to Italy due to their father's job. I only want to say that I am sure that this new chapter in their life is going to be filled with blessings... I will miss you guys!!

And talking about goodbyes, I would like to announce that I am taking a few weeks off, before I start my very own adventure. At the end of August I will begin a cake designing course at "The French Pastry School" in Chicago... {so excited!!!}

I'll keep you posted!!











Have a sweet week,

Family affair

Today is my favorite day of the week... IT'S POST DAY!!, and as the title of this post implies, it is all about family...


I'll fill you in...


My Mom is more of a cook than a baker {in fact, she is a great cook!}, and even though she doesn't bake that often, she got the best chocolate cake recipe EVER.  When I was a child she used to make this particular cake quite often because my brothers and I loved it. I must say, with no doubt, that this cake can be counted as the begining of my chocolate obsession.

I remember it as the most over-indulgent chocolate cake ever. It was a super moist and spongy, and it literally had a cloud-like texture.. It was chocolate heaven, almost a forbiden pleasure...


So, I managed to get a recipe almost identical to that of my Mom's... And this is the result...





























Now, back to the family part...



My brother finally came to town!!


I have been waiting for this visit for so long... We spent the most wonderful two weeks together. Having him around was the greatest pleasure ever, the kids enjoyed him so much, and we got to have the longest and delicious conversations... I'm so looking forward to his next visit!!

So, I decided to bake this cake to kind of welcome him... and in the second he took the first bite, he recalled vividly all the childhood memories we shared around this special cake. We remembered the countless occasions when my Mom made it... To celebrate birthdays; to treat us on special Sundays; to have picnics at the beach... The list goes on and on... The motive could always change, but the sweet would be invariably the same... Chocolate fudge cake...












The kids were over excited to have my brother as a guest in this photo shoot... They didn't even fight over the fudgiest piece of cake {as usual}, they only wanted to play around with uncle Sami!




























There's nothing like enjoying the most simple things with family... Although, I must admit, there's nothing simple about this cake...













...time for some milk...














My family is the biggest treasure I have.. Brother, please come back soon... We miss you!!


Have a sweet week ya'll!!

More about firsts...

When I made my very first cake to order, I was sooooo nervous! ...I felt such a great responsibility, I mean, the words of my client were: "I want your cake to be the surprise I give my husband first time in the morning of his birthday".... Like, for real???... I felt so honored to know that something made by me, was going to be the gift for this man from his lovely wife... Wow!

{...btw, that first cake was a chocolate one, covered with ganache, simple, but enough to have me worried for days...}

Now, this time around {and the inspiration for this post}, is the first cake I made to order for a wedding.... A REAL ONE!!! In fact, to be more specific, an Italian summer wedding in San Pietro in Cerro; and I felt all over again the same nervousness that I got that first time one year ago. It is certainly overwhelming to think that a cake I made will be part of such a big celebration; an important element in a reunion where two souls will promise love forever... Oh Gosh!... What an honor!

It was a Summer Cake, as I love to call it... the flavor was banoffe, and it was meant to be placed on top of a tower of cupcakes made by the mother of the groom with a family recipe.

Congratulations Marco & Karine!!

Time to celebrate!!

When I met Patricio {my husband}, and discovered that his birthday was actually the same day as mine {yep... we celebrate a dual birthday every July 2nd in this house}, I could not believe it... It was not only a great coincidence, but at that time I thought that it was the ultimate sign from heaven that he was the man of my live, no doubts, no questions at all... HE WAS THE ONE!

Then we got to celebrate our very first dual birthday, and it surprised me that I kind of felt awkward... I mean, all my life this was MY DAY.  The day were my mom would give me my favorite cake; I would eat my favorite meal; my friends would take me wherever place I wanted to go; my brothers couldn't bother me, 'cause I was untouchable... 'cause it was MY DAY... and then, suddenly, I had to share MY DAY... I mean, come on... like it wasn't fun anymore... forget about him being the man of my life... I still wanted MY DAY back!!

So, I kind of got over it, and after two years being together as a couple, we decided to take the next step and started planning our wedding.  There were plenty of details to take care of {if you have ever planned a wedding, you know what I'm talking about...}, the reception; the theme; the food; the  flowers; the guests list... and so on... but there were two things that were pretty clear for us, one was that we had to get married in Venezuela {the other option was Mexico since my husband is Mexican}; and the second and most important, was the date... it absolutely had to be on... {yes, you guessed!} ...July 2nd!!

So yes, as crowded as it may sound, today we are celebrating my birthday, his birthday and our anniversary... and although it is not "my day" anymore, celebrating our birthdays together has a sense of unity to me... it is like we share even this special day, and it makes it more special to celebrate as well our love and our family.

Honey, this one goes to you, to me... to us!... Happy Anni-birthday!

...And here are some pictures of our wedding...

...my brothers and an uncle welcoming Patricio to the family!!

"Grow old along with me... the best is yet to be"

That's a wrap everybody!!... have a sweet week!!