Wild Wedding Weekend, Part I

Sorry it has taken me so long to blog this Loyal Readers, but I have been in a tired coma since Sunday afternoon. Here is the first installment. (Part II Tomorrow, then on Friday begins the YP filming saga!)

Wow, what a weekend. Jam packed, but ultimately wonderful.

Friday started early with making frosting for the 80+ cupcakes. I set Mom to work on the Pina Colada while I did the Chocolate Ganache, Tiramisu and Cherry Cheesecake ones. Then I decorated the two tier wedding cake I had covered with fondant the night before. Bless my Kitchen-aid mixer, it got a workout. After the icing and decorating was done I packed everything for transport to Boulder City. I lined the plastic boxes (the kind you store clothes in under your bed) with gripping liner which worked out pretty well (there were a couple that fell over but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

Will came over with the large SUV he had rented for the weekend to help me get it all to the hotel. Val was supposed to be there but she still wasn't ready so the groom jumped in to help. I think he was a a bit nervous and needed something to do. We were able to get everything into the car (cupcakes, cake, cake stand, flowers, suitcase, dress, favors, toasting glasses, etc.) it was awesome that he helped because now I know my little Corolla wouldn't have held it all. We made it to BC on time but the wedding coordinator was late. By the time we got everything unloaded and put into various coolers and offices and got checked into the hotel we were running about a half hour late (starting a trend that lasted all day.) But at last that gave the accident on the way back into town a chance to clear since we weren't sure we would make it back (the accident stretched for over two and a half miles of backed up traffic.) We raced to pick up Val, their dog Pax and all of the assorted things they needed and rushed back to my house where we left the superhero Will to deal with all of that while Val and I literally jumped from his car to my car to race to our mani/pedi appointments (we were 20 minutes late).

We had a great time getting our manicures and pedicures (at A Wild Hair on Buffalo and Washington) but they took forever (nearly three hours) and so we were again running late. We rushed back to my house to change clothes and put Val's dress and suitcase in my car then run to David's bridal to pick up the silk flowers for our hair then fly to the rehearsal dinner (we were about 20 minutes late.) This consistently late thing really bothered me because I'm an 'always on time' person. But we made it. We had a nice time with all of the blended family and a fairly nice dinner although I was terrible upset and angry with the restaurant, Buca di Beppo. I have eaten there many times and even been to other large parties there but the service this evening was terrible. We were never offered beverages, even though they were included in the price we paid, and we only saw wait staff when they ran in to drop of paltry amounts of food. I have since written to complain but I didn't want to embarrass our guests which is the only reason I didn't raise holy heck right there. I figured out that we could have gotten the same amount of food off the regular menu and paid less than half of what we were charged for out banquet. Appalling. Plus they never asked who the host was and they gave the check to my uncle. Thank goodness it was one of my family members who directed the check to me, I would have been mortified if the check had gone to someone in Val's family.

Will gave Russ (Val's brother and the best man) an engraved pen as his gift (It said Russ "Best Man" White). I really like Russ, he's a totally cool guy and I'm glad to add him to the family. Val gave me a bottle of perfume (Pink Sugar, I love it, it makes me smell like cotton candy) and an engraved business card holder. It's lovely, it says "Glitter City Sweets by Shae" on the top and "For My Sweet Sister" on the bottom. (By the way, that's the name of my new company, and the website should be up soon.) After dinner Val and I stopped by Walgreens (see, all of that crazy running around and I forgot my toothbrush) then headed to Boulder City to spend the night at the hotel.

The suites we had at the hotel were beautiful, really nice, but man was that bed firm. I hate beads that hard and finally gave up trying to sleep on it at about a quarter to five in the morning. I laid down on the couch in the living room of the suite. Val and I went to The Coffee Cup for breakfast (as seen on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" on the Food Network then back to the hotel to shower. Marcy, the girl who did our hair and makeup came at a little before nine and curled my hair and set it. While she started work on Val, I went down to the kitchen to put the gumpaste cherry blossoms on the cupcakes. (Moisture is the enemy of gum paste so I didn't want to put them on too early.) After scurrying to and fro to get the last minute details done I headed back to the room. Will made it to the hotel (he had to go to the weigh out for his company's wellness fair and he had lost seven pounds. Unfortunately his teammates gained weight so his team won't win anything. He changed in my suite while we got ready in Val's. He looked so handsome in his suit and his blue shirt (the much discussed blue which the bride's family thought should have been pink) made his eyes look very blue. He gave me the keys to the SUV so I could drive Val to the museum (he was taking the shuttle with the guests, where he played the video I made. I heard it was a success and I was asked for extra copies.)

When Val's hair and makeup was done it was time to do my makeup and finish my hair. We both looked great but Val looked extraordinary, she was glowing. We had to rush a bit to put our dresses on and the flowers came off our flip flops. Oh well the sequins looked good anyway. I went out the front of the hotel to get the car and snuck Val out the back way so none of the guests could see her. We made it to the museum where Val had to use the restroom so I got to hold up her dress. It was just like the scene in "27 Dresses" We went to the Heritage Street here the wedding was to take place and I hid Val in the house on the end.

The museum is lovely and the Heritage street is just that, a little street with houses on both sides. There is a gazebo at the end of the street where the wedding took place and the museum set out these nice white wood benches for the guests to sit on. The men (Will, Russ and the bride's dad Randy) had gone out the day before and swathed the gazebo in ivory satin and cherry blossoms - they did a great job! The trees that lined the street were mature enough to provide the guests with shade as they waited for the ceremony. A string quartet (students from the performing arts high school where Val teaches) played classical music. It was one o'clock (the time the ceremony was set to start) when we all noticed that the minister hadn't yet arrived. No one had her phone number (it was on Val's phone which was back at the hotel.) I tried calling information but there was no listing and I tried calling the minister who recomended her but there was no answer. My final plan was to grab Russ and head to the museum's center to find a phone book and start calling the nearest chapel to see if we could find an emergency minister to come out and perform the ceremony. Randy's dad is a former minister and Randy was going to ask him to officiate (but he isn't licensed to perform ceremonies in Nevada.) Russ and I were halfway to the center when mu Uncle Stuart called to say he had found the Reverend and would have her to the site in just a few minutes (which earned him the official title of "Reverend Wrangler".

So the ceremony started a bit late, but we were finally in place and I signaled the quartet to begin the ceremony music. I walked down the short aisle, followed by Gabby, Val's niece and flower girl. Gabby ended up in front of me but that's what you get with three year olds. Then Val and Randy came out of the house and down the aisle and the tears started. Not me, but Val, Will, my mom, Val's mom and randy were all crying. The ceremony was short but sweet with Will and Val writing their own vows. Will's were simple and heartfelt and Val's took the form of a poem (which is only fitting for an English teacher.) The minister pronounced them married and I let out a whoop. We took pictures while the guest were invited to tour the museum. We took lots and lots of pictures, none of which I have because I left my camera at the hotel (see why I don't like rushing?) There is even a picture with all of both families (it's good to have a small family sometimes.) We headed back for the shuttle (I took Will's seat so he could drive Val back in the SUV.) We had a great shuttle driver and it was awesome to have the handicap shuttle so The Graminator didn't have to even get out of her chair.

Okay, Part II - The Reception, is tomorrow!

My Latest Masterpiece

Cezanne worked with watercolors. Van Gogh worked with oils. Rodin worked with marble and clay. My preferred medium is... frosting.

These are the cupcakes for The Graminator's birthday (she had a lovely time and thanks to all who wished her well!) I wish I could take credit for the genesis of the idea but actually my brother suggested it. He said, "Wouldn't a 'Take 5' cupcake be good?" And I thought, "Yes, yes it would."

For those who don't know (and how could you not?) a "Take 5" is a candy bar with a pretzel topped with caramel, peanut butter, peanuts and covered with chocolate. So here is my first attempt at the deconstructed "Take 5". It's a chocolate cupcake filled with caramel ganache, topped with peanut butter frosting, chocolate ganache and a pretzel. There is also pretzel in the cupcake and I tried this several ways but no matter how I put it in the cupcake, it got soggy. Also, the caramel ganache (which took me 5 batches of caramel to get right) got lost in flavor to the delicious (but very peanut buttery) peanut butter frosting. So while these rated a 4 out of 5 on the nummy scale, they still could be better. For the next attempt, the chocolate cupcake will contain little caramel bits and be filled with a peanut butter filling, topped with chocolate frosting and crushed pretzels. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is the perfect cupcake. But no one seems to mind my experimentation.

The final flavors for the wedding cupcakes has been decided. They are: chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, tiramisu cupcakes (coffee cupcakes with tiramisu filling and cocoa frosting), cherry cheesecake cupcakes (tart cherry cupcakes with a cinnamon graham bottom with cheesecake frosting), and coconut. All four will get one last test run to make sure they are perfect for the wedding. I will be making two dozen of each flavor so that each wedding guest can have two cupcakes of their choice. Each cupcake will be topped with a cherry blossom of sugar paste. They still haven't chosen the flavor for their wedding cake which will just be a small cake on the top of the display.

And speaking of masterpieces, I'm almost done with the 2 projects I'm working on. I don't want to jinx it but I should be done with them by the end of the month. And tonight is the first read through of the major motion picture I'm starring in. (I just love saying that even though it's probably not as lofty as it sounds.) And of course, for the read through I'm bringing....cupcakes! (See, I could tie this all together.) Have a great day Loyal Readers!

Trying Out Wedding Cakes

No, not for me (don't I wish) but for Will and Val.

They finally set a date. May 2, 2009. They really wanted to get married at the Clark County Heritage Museum, which is this cool place where they took old homes and things to this one site and restored them with period furniture, etc. Yes, most of the things are from the 1940's and 1950's, but in Las Vegas, that's historic. At the end of this street of houses and things is a gazebo and that's where they want to get married. They are restoring an old wedding chapel too but won't be done in time for the wedding. The museum doesn't usually host weddings but Val called and talked to a very nice woman who went to the Board and got them to approve it. The site will only cost them a $200 donation and they have benches for guests to sit on and everything. They are still looking for a reception location but they think they know where they want that too.

So I volunteered a long time ago to make their wedding cakes. I say cakes because instead of one tiered cake they wanted several individual cakes that we would put on a multi-level stand. But now with all the cupcake baking I've been doing lately, Val thinks she might want cupcakes instead. I told them I had even see a cupcake stand that you could put an eight inch round cake on top so they could still have a cake to cut with a topper and then individual cupcakes on the other tiers. So now we need to decide on flavors so that I can perfect them over the next few months so that I can do them in my sleep by wedding time.



The 'theme' of the wedding is cherry blossoms and I am working on making a gazillion cherry blossoms out of gum paste to decorate the cake and cupcakes with. I could buy the flowers but since I have some 'free time" I thought I would try making them. They don't look too hard once you get the knack. I also need to work on a cherry cupcake. My brother suggested a cherry cheesecake cupcake and I want to make them happy but also remain true to myself as a baker. So I'm going to try this weekend and make a cupcake with chopped cherries (real ones, not marachino) in it with a graham cracker bottom and frosted with a marscapone cheesecake frosting. I'll see how it works and how they like it. The main cake for them to cut would (hopefully) look like the top picture.



While surfing the Web for ideas, I came across these cupcake wrappers. Aren't they adorable? I'm thinking if we put the cakes in a pink liner then into these they would look amazing. We will decorate the cupcake stand with ribbons, flowers, etc. What do you think? I want everything to be perfect for them so I've got to get to work!

How Do They Get Away With It?

Okay, so last night my mom saved me part of the paper so that I could read an article about the Retro Bakery, a new establishment trying to give The Cupcakery a run for it's money.

Now I tried The Cupcakery when it opened its location on Lake Mead and Rock Springs. It's close to my house. So I was a little disappointed that it wasn't cuter inside. But I bought six cupcakes to bring home and try. And while they weren't awful, they weren't very good either. And they were $2.50 a piece! (A check of the website now shows them to be $2.75 a piece) The 'Strawberry Shortcake" was so overly artificially sweetened and artificially colored that I couldn't eat the frosting (and I am a HUGE frosting fanatic!) All of their cupcakes were dry and their icings were mostly just piped on. What a racket I thought, selling cupcakes made gosh knows when, frozen, then defrosted when needed with huge heavy icings on top. (Again, I am a fan of the huge heavy icing, if it's good.) At $30 bucks a dozen I figure they are making a ginormous profit.

So I decided to check out the website for Retro Bakery. Their cupcakes retail for $2.50 a piece. Their flavors were more plain that The Cupcakery (if that's possible). The only ones that intrigued me were the "Hop Scotch" (their best seller, a vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream that is then dipped in butterscotch ganache) and the "Chocolate Covered Banana" (chocolate cake with banana buttercream dipped in chocolate ganache and sprinkled with nuts). Again, I found the price outrageous, but not as outrageous as their offer to turn any flavor into a full sized cake for only $45.00. What?!? You already have the batter laying around! At most, even in the overpriced world you are living in, it should be about the same as a dozen cupcakes. Now to be fair, I haven't eaten at Retro Bakery. They may be much better cupcakes (one would hope). They may be the best cupcakes you have ever eaten. And for $2.50 a piece, they should be. They should be such good cupcakes that you orgasm immediately following ingestion. They should send you into rapture. (Instead of just a diabetic coma).

Right after I read the article in the paper I read a bit in the latest issue of Bon Appetit about the cupcake craze in the L.A. area with descriptions of some of it's cupcakeries. The prices in L.A. are the same or a bit higher. Their bakeries were a bit more upscale both in curb appeal and ingredients, using the 'best' chocolate, etc. So I'm not blaming Retro Bakery or The Cupcakery for trying to keep up their high prices, but let me say this...I can make a much better cupcake for a much lower price. And that's as a home baker. I don't even get the benefit of their bulk purchases of ingredients, etc. And I can invent some outrageous flavors too! Tiramisu cupcakes anyone? How about Mojito cupcakes? Tres leche? I could do it for $1.25 a cupcake, with delivery! I swear, I'm going to open my own bakery one day and sell the most delicious cupcakes and brownies ever, and they will be worth the reasonable price I would charge! Okay, let's add that to my list of dreams. In the meantime, I'll be experimenting with flavors - let me know if you have a flavor you think I should try to make. If it works, I'll name it after you!