-Allessandra & Jordan's Wedding-

I work with Allessandra at doTERRA and she is a darling girl.  She asked me if I would make her cupcakes and cake for her wedding.  Of course I couldn't turn down the opportunity to make 300 cupcakes and stack them on this ginormous cupcake tower.  Allessandra rented the cupcake stand and it really got me thinking that I need to have Aaron make me the stand and then I would doll it all up and use it for weddings, parties, reunions, really anything.  This stand almost held all of the 300 cupcakes.  It's HUGE!  

Aaron helped me tremendously on this wedding.  I really couldn't have finished in time without him.  So I need to give credit where credit is due.  Aaron subtly mentioned that he does all of the work and I get the fame...haha.  So here you go Aaron!  This is for you.  He assembled the cupcake boxes and filled them with cupcakes.  He trailed me with sprinkles while I frosted.   He was my sprinkle man.  I asked him if he wanted to learn how to frost a cupcake and he was game.  I showed him slowly how to do a few and let him give it a go...two cupcakes later...We both agreed that it was best if he just followed me with sprinkles :)  Okay ladies and gentleman, are you ready for this?  He totally used this mold to make the cast iron design on this cake.  He would carefully put in the black fondant and make sure the edges were all clean and pop them out.  I would then assemble them on the cake.  He was such a lifesaver that day.  So THANK YOU Aaron :)  Love you babe. 

Thanks again for the help :)

-Zebra Sweet 16 Birthday Cake-

Aaron and I both used to work with our awesome friend Linda at Deseret Book.  We both got really close to her while working there and we remain good friends to this day.  She asked me if I would make her granddaughters Sweet 16 birthday cake.  She said that she just LOVES zebra stripes and pink.  What a perfect opportunity and excuse to go all girly and make a fabulous cake!

Cupcakes for the Cure!

I am a cousin to a outstanding young girl...ALYSSA! She is an angel on earth to so many: her parents, brother, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, neighbors, friends, teachers, doctors, nurses and even their dog Seige. She is a great source of joy to us all. Alyssa enjoys reading books, drawing pictures, taking care of her little friends in the neighborhood, the color green and blue, new clothes, singing, playing the piano, playing the violin, anything to do with Hunger Games, jumping on the trampoline, doing crafts, and creating hand crafted greeting cards with her Mom, her Dad's homemade bread, her brother's guitar playing and beating him at games. We all love her sweet soft eyes, her radiant smile, and her giggles. Her dream is to someday become a mother.

This past year Alyssa was approved for the Make A Wish Foundation. She made quick friends with her Make-a-wish volunteers and her first wish was granted.  Her wish was to have a place all her own. She decided on a little house in their back yard that was under the willow tree. 

Alyssa and her family always strive to give her the ultimate care, treatments, and medication that she needs every day to offer her the best quality of life. They make great sacrifices to ensure the best of care for her. As their extended family, we love them more than words can express!

Great Strides is the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's largest and most successful national fundraising event.  This year, TEAM ALYSSA'S ANGELS is walking in the Great Strides walk on Saturday May 18th at the Energy Solutions Arena, 301 West South Temple, Salt Lake City at 9:00 am. Please help us reach our fundraising goal of $1500.00 Your generous gift will be used efficiently and effectively, as nearly 90 cents of every dollar of revenue raised is available for investment in vital CF programs to support research, care and education.

Her doctor is hopeful they will find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis in her life time. Let's join together in this hope. Your donation will aid in the ongoing research to find a cure.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a devastating genetic disease that affects tens of thousands of children and young adults in the United States. Research and care supported by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is making a huge difference in extending the quality of life for those with CF. However, we continue to lose precious lives to CF every day. That's why your help is needed now more than ever to ensure that a cure is found sooner - rather than later. To learn more about CF and the CF Foundation, visit www.cff.org'>www.cff.org OR .http://youtu.be/FpbTIzYiVP8

Recently, the CF community has experienced tremendous accomplishments most obviously seen in the rising median survival age of CF patients and the expanding therapeutic pipeline. Thank you for donating to TEAM ALYSSA'S ANGELS for Great Strides! Now more than ever, your commitment to help fund research is needed. It is critical that we not allow today's economic challenges to prevent us from delivering tomorrow's life-saving cure. Let us one day be able to say that CF stands for CURE FOUND!

Together, we can make a difference in the lives of those with CF! Thank you for caring so much and supporting the mission of the CF Foundation and Great Strides!

Last year I was able to make tons of cupcakes for the walk and they sold like crazy!  I plan on making just as many this year and I am very excited and honored to be a part of this wonderful process.

Claire Ballooney

I had so much fun making this cake.  Claire is my niece and she just barely turned 1.  She is the sweetest baby a mom could ever ask for.  She has two brothers who like to push her around so she defends herself but she is just the sweetest little girl.  Her parents call her Claire Balloon.  I think that is such a cute nick name.  For this cake I had to drag all of my cake stuff to Henefer, UT to make it at Aaron's parents house.  It is really hard to remember to pack all of the tools you need!  Let's just say that I had a few bags of baking stuff.   Aaron was so cute and wanted to help make the cake with me so that I would finish faster.  I can't take credit for the cute little elephant.  Aaron carved that out by hand. What a sweetheart.Claire's mom made her a cake that she could dig into and boy did she have at it.  She got her legs into the cake and everything.  She really did almost eat a full 8 inch cake.  

                                    

My Little Minion- 2.10.2013

Our little niece Kambree turned four!  I asked her what she wanted for her birthday cake and she said that she liked the movie "Despicable Me."  I came to the party with a little minion.  During the process of making him, he became my little friend and Aaron and I's little baby.  I this that he would be this size in reality.  "Ahh papoy!"  Aaron brought Kambree into the kitchen and said, "Kambree do you know what that is?"  She looks at it and says, "Nope."  She then turned around and walked away.  Well...she got it eventually.

Vintage Cake 1.31.2013

I am in the Wilton gumpaste class at Michael's and I love it.  Here is my final cake.  We could choose anything we wanted to do so I chose a vintage style cake.  I made all of the gumpast flowers, buttons, and the ribbon thing the day before to let them dry and took them to the class.  I spent hours on the flowers because it was so fun to do!  This cake was so rushed and I wish I could have spent more time on it but it is what it is.  We always have cake at home so I had Aaron (my husband) take it to work today.  I hope you enjoy it employees of Deseret Book! 

 

Nicole's Baby Shower 1.29.2013 - Gender Reveal Cake

Nicole is one of my best friends.  When she started working at doTERRA with me we just clicked.  She can make me cry, laugh, dance, you name it.  I am so grateful for her friendship and she will forever be my friend.  And guess what?!  She is having a baby!  She is due at the end of June and I couldn't be happier for her and her husband Spencer.  I wanted to throw a work baby shower for my cute best friend and make a gender reveal cake.  Anytime I have an excuse to make a cake, let's face it, you know I will!  I was talking to Nicole about Petunia Pickle Bottom diaper bags and we were looking at the prices and boy are they expensive.  I took note on which ones she liked the best and decided that if everyone at work went it on the diaper bag that it would be possible.  I bought the cutest diaper bag from Nordstroms with the help of all of the wonderful employees that work at Will Call.  We had the baby shower after work on Tuesday night.  We had all of the foods Nicole was craving at the shower.  We had cheese and crackers, fruit, and veggies...really Nicole?  All of this healthy stuff?  At least we had cake right?  We played the game where everyone brings their baby picture and everyone has to guess which baby is who.  It was a blast and it was actually really hard!  Then...the moment we were all waiting for...the cutting of the cake!  Spencer told her that he really wouldn't know what to do if they had a girl.  He started calling the baby a girl before they even knew the gender.  He psyched himself out so much that it really kind of worked.  If I didn't spill the beans already...they are having a GIRL!

The cute mommy to be with her new fancy diaper bag.

 

All of the doTERRA babies (love the hair) 

 

And here is a picture of all of the lovely girlies who came.

Caulene Jones Burke 1.26.2013 - Cherry Blossom Cake

Caulene's colors were purple and green.  She wanted lavender fondant with a cherry blossom branch.  She absolutely did not want pink on her cake so we did white blossoms with yellow shimmer.  Would you ever guess that the bottom tier is fake?  Sneaky sneaky.  Having a fake tier saves the bride money and saves the mother of the bride the hassle of having tons and tons of cake left over.  This cake was a blast to do.  The gumpaste blossoms took about three hours or so.  Some people would hate that kind of thing but I really enjoy the time consuming detailed projects.  A lot of people ask me if I make my own fondant.  I actually just buy it.  I used Satin Ice Fondant for this cake.  Did you know that if you color your own purple fondant that it could turn blue?  There was no way I was going to risk that one.  So it's safer to buy your fondant already pre-colored.  I have learned a lot of tips and tricks along The Cake Way.  Below are a few tips and tricks to frosting and stacking a cake.

A little bit of the process..

Middle tier, first layer.

Middle tier stacked and frosted with a crumb coat.  Do you see the crumbs?  Yeah, so do I but guess what?  It's not a big deal because fondant goes on top.  The purpose for the crumb coat is to keep the crumbs off of the fondant and on the frosting.  So don't spend too much time on the crumb coat.

The dowels (sticks that you put in a cake) help to support the weight of every layer.  This is an important aspect if you are stacking layers.  The little time that you spend on measuring and getting it right will really affect the whole outcome of the cake.

This is the top tier.  The cake that is already frosted looks much shorter than the unfrosted cake because it is leveled.  You end up taking a lot off the top of the cake so that you can get that nice leveled, even look.  I would recommend buying a cake leveler to ensure that you have a level cake.  The white stuff on the side of the cake is flower.  The best way to make sure that your cake doesn't stick to your pan is to spray it with Pam or cover with vegetable shortening and then give the pan a flower dusting.

Middle tier covered with fondant.

Cake stacked and ready to decorate.

All completed and ready to be transported to the reception.

The cake made it safely thanks to Aaron's help and my slow driving (and someone flipping me off)

This cake was so FUN to do.  I enjoyed every minute of it.

The Cake Way - flour, frost, and all

I would like to start off by introducing myself.  My name is Rachel Beenfield and I love making and decorating cakes!  I had an interest in cakes way back when but my obsession didn't hit me until about two years ago.  I started out small and learned everything on my own until I took my first Wilton cake decorating class at Michael's.  I would really advise anyone who wants to learn how to decorate cakes to go take a class.  You can take a look here.  

I enjoy making cupcakes, birthday cakes, and baby shower cakes but I especially love making wedding cakes.  If any of you brides out there are in need of a wedding cake look no further!  You can also go here to get ideas for your big day and have your dream wedding without breaking the budget.  

Here are a few of my favorite cakes and cupcakes that I've done.