The last market before bump is due

I have done my last market before bump is due.  I'm now officially on maternity leave from cupcakes (that is excluding special orders and of course, baking for the family)

It was lovely to be back at the market, the other stall holders are all really lovely and friendly and of course,  my regular customers are all super too.  Each time I also meet new people and it's great to bring a smile to their faces with my cupcakes and cookies.

I'm really proud to say as well, that as a small business  (set up and operated by someone with no head for business, ie me) that after counting my money tin after my 'last market' (well, for the time being) I had made double what I took at my very first market.  Takings had been steadily increasing with each market, but there is something very pleasing about the symmetry of the figures being doubled, not from a business point of view really, but more of a 'pleasing numbers' type thing (see, no real head for business, just a head for cake).

Though of course its totally cool that people want to buy my cupcakes and gobble them up as well.

Catch me whilst you can...

Want to know how to boost your immunity, it's easy, have a baby.  They will bring home every single cold, bug and germ going.  Surely after a few years of parenthood, most mums and dads are pretty much germ-proof?  

Darling boy, in his effort to help boost mummy's long term health (?) passed on a bug to me which meant  sadly I had to miss the Valentines market.  It knocked me out for the critical days before the market.  The only problem with being a one-woman show means there is just the one of me.

But, this does mean that I will be at the market this weekend instead.  I'm now in possession of such a huge belly (bump is due in 4 weeks) that this market will be the last one for a while.  Im still going to be doing special orders, but just wont be able to knock up the 150-200 cupcakes each weekend, whilst toddler and bambino entertaining...not for the first few months at least!

Loving the love

Valentines day is this weekend, and being a sucker for romance, I thought it would be a good time to return to the market.  The worse of the chilly weather is hopefully over, and I'm also hoping the universal diet that most people seem to be on after christmas, is also hopefully over.

My plans for the Valentines market naturally include red glittery hearts and dark rich chocolate, but also hopefully some old school glamour and trips back to the playground kiss chases of our childhoods.  Watch this space.

New cupcakes for the market

Lsst weekend I had quite a few specials- and here is a selection.  They covered a wide spectrum from the totally unhealthy to the 'almost healthy for a cupcake'- if there is such a thing.

These are marshmallow cupcakes. with melted marshmallows inside and melted marshmallows whipped into the buttercream icing.  Oh the sugar.

These are the healthy ones. well, almost, they are still a cake.  They are apple and cinnamon, with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting.  It's fruit and dairy- which is surely one of your five a day, and a good dose of calcium to boot.

Christmas decorations

Each year for our christmas tree I bake these edible decorations.  They are a spiced cookie to hang on the tree- or string along a window frame or door knob- where ever needs adorning really.

I thought they might be fun to do for the stall, and here they are.  A truly eco tree decoration, as you can eat them all up.  With kids in the house, it's probably best to hang them up high, otherwise they will be all gone by the first day.

Truffles a go-go

In the spirit of feasting and all things excess I have been making dark chocolate truffles and dark chocolate truffles with toffee and hazelnut for the stall.  Much to Handsome husband's disgruntlement I have been denying him the cupcakes, rocky road and the other baked goodies I have been making each week saying they are for the stall.  However, I could hold him off no longer and he became chief taster for the dark chocolate truffles I made.  He insisted on trying more than a few 'just to make sure'.

Dusted with gold or red glitter and nestled in their little bags tied with a corresponding ribbon they looked very pretty and I'm pleased to say they have been selling well too- obviously appealing to the  indulgent side of my customer's natures.  Aside from being totally scrumptious, they also have the added benefit of being gluten free, hooray!

Is that a real cake???

The giant cupcake made it’s debut at the market this weekend.

As the recipe is a mocha cake, I iced it in vanilla butter cream to look like a mocha coffee. Decorated in tiny gold stars, with a flash of three bigger gold stars dashing across the top, with gold sparkles all over, it won much admiration.

It certainly is a substantial cup cake, and would easily feed around 20 people I have estimated. Several people asked me if it was a real cake, and one bright young chap claimed boldly that he could eat it in 5 seconds. Very impressive!

Also making a first appearance where chocolate cupcakes with toffee butter cream icing. These seemed to go down well too. Perhaps it was the cold weather, but Tiverton seemed to be in a chocolatey mood on Saturday as all things with a chocolate twist were very popular.

also appearing for the first time, new decorations on the lemon cupcakes...and baby lemon cupcakes.  Each featuring a handmade yellow butterfly with golden sprinkles. 

'Saturdays wouldn't be the same without you...'

...So one of my regular customers at Tiverton market told me.  Ahhhhhhhhh, what a lovely thing to say- and bearing in mind this was only my 6th market, it made it all that much more the lovelier.

The weather was awful, high winds, buckets of rain and really cold.  Us stall holders were all expecting a slow, quiet day, but actually, it wasn't too bad.  It was quieter than usual, but those who had braved the elements obviously felt in need of a little treat, or reward for being so daring... and cupcakes and cookies obviously hit the spot.

This week, I had made rocky road (a chocolatey bar filled with marshmallows and crushed biscuits, with added golden syrup) as a new treat on offer- they sold really well, in fact they sold out.  Its always a nice feeling to be able to display a little 'sold out' card each week.

Also on offer were the sticky toffee pudding cupcakes- this week decorated with gold stars.  They are a fiddly and time consumer cupcake to make- but oh so worth the effort.

Next on the horizon for me is a wedding fair at Bickleigh Castle and a christening order - its all very exciting!

BOO!

Today was my 5th market and, again, it was lots of fun and I sold out.  Hooray!

Going with the seasonal theme- it being Halloween today and all, I had special cupcakes with spiders that sold out in double quick time.  Special thanks do need to go to Handsome husband who was enlisted to make spiders bodies, as I just knew I had so much work to do after we got back from work, I would never do it all myself.  I can't say he totally enjoyed his craft activity- it's probably not what he was expecting of a relaxing Friday night, but he chipped in and is a total sweetheart for doing so.

As well as the cupcakes, I had the triple chocolate cookies which went down well.  Alongside these cocoa beauties I had sticky date and cranberry slices which appealed to the non-icing people out there.

However, perhaps sharing star billing with the spider cupcakes were the sticky toffee cupcakes which were something I had started planning all those months ago when I made Sister in Law's birthday cake and had thought 'this would be good as a cupcake, but with the sauce on the inside'.

I made up the base, and made the sticky toffee goo- made with extra cream to keep its gooey consistency.  Then using my new squeezy bottle, I injected this ridiculously toffee-ey nectar into the cupcakes and then topped them with a fudgey toffee butter icing. OH MY WORD.  They were really good.  I sold six beforeI had even unpacked them, and another four a few moments after they hit the stall.

As well as getting to see my 'regulars' who I'm getting to know bit by bit- which is really lovely, and one of the things I really enjoy about doing the stall, I also had my first famous sale.  An actual real local celebrity wot has been on telly and everything.  Mrs Harcourt-Cooze, wife of local chocolate guru Willie Harcourt-Cooze came by with her cute kids and bought 3 boxes of cupcakes.  I hope she liked them!
  

market number 3, this time with cookies!

Tomorrow I've got my third market...this time I'm back with my cupcakes and also cookies!

I have baked ginger and honey snaps and triple chocolate cookies.  I've stacked them in fours and tied them like a parcel with deep purple ribbon and think they look great.  I'm hoping they sell well too.  Im off now to ice hundreds of cupcakes, wish me luck!

Market # 2, success # 2

The day of market number 2 arrived.  Today was the test to see if it was do-able by myself. The baking and icing in all took around 12 hours done in 4 sessions.  I packed up all the boxes the night before and Handsome husband loaded them up into the car.  This time we managed not to leave anything behind (apart from the kitchen stool for me to perch on during the day)  I had even remembered a packed lunch and flask of tea.  Yum.

This week I had baked extra chocolate cupcakes and had also made some pink vanilla cupcakes too to see if this might bring out the girliness in my potential punters.

The market seemed slower than the weekend before, perhaps because it was a lovely sunny day everyone was at the beach....But at the end of the day, it had turned out well again.  I had sold all but a dozen of my cupcakes and was just giving them out to my fellow traders (well, I didn't want to take them home and free cake is always appreciated) when my next door trader neighbour offered to buy them from me to sell on the next day at the local clay pigeon shoot she was cooking at.  No-one else was about to buy them from me as the market was closed already, so I decided to take her up on the offer.  Hooray! this meant another day where I had sold out. 

It's such a great feeling to go home with empty tupperare, knowing that the good people of Tiverton have Adventures in Cake cupcakes either in their tummies, or stashed in white cakeboxes, just waiting to meet their destiny with a cup of tea.

A few people had again asked me about weddings and parties...hopefully something will come of this.  It would be such fun to take on a big order, especially a wedding (I love, love, love weddings, the romance of it all)

Flying solo

The last two days have been a blur of baking, icing, sprinkling and washing up.  I'm back at Tiverton Market tomorrow, but this time flying solo as marvellous mum is back at home.

The cupcakes are iced, the boxes packed and I've even remembered a packed lunch to keep me going.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow, and nervous all over again- will anyone come back for a repeat visit?

This little piggy went to market

The big day had arrived. Of course marvellous mum and I got up a bit later than planned, so had to dash around in the morning, stuffing toast and sloshing back tea at break-neck speed. We loaded up the car and were off down the hill and were half way to market when we realised we had forgotten of the boxes- the one that contained the table cloth, sign, bunting, and so many other essentials. A frantic call to Handsome husband saved the day and he zoomed down after us with our forgotten box.

No market manager was to be seen to welcome us and show us where we were supposed to be (turns out he was on holiday), so we made it up, and bagged the free table next to the cafe. The table was laid, cakes were arranged on the platters and stands, the bunting was hung and the sign was up- we were ready for business.

As all the other traders finished setting up, I went round with a tray of baby vanilla cupcakes as a sampler, to say hello and introduce us as the newbies to the market. These were eagerly welcomed, well, everyone likes cake- especially free cake.

I couldn’t quite believe it when we made our first sale, it was such a buzz- people liked my cakes, enough to give me money for them. I know this was the point of the exercise, but it was still a shocker.

The day went on, and more and more people came by, stopped to admire the cakes and, shock, bought some! This carried on till around 12.30pm, when we had all but around 6 vanilla cupcakes left. Marvellous mum and I joked that we would now sit and watch 6 cupcakes till the end of the market, and she was nearly right. Somehow it is much harder to sell cupcakes when there aren’t many left, I guess when they are the last lonely ones left they do not look so appetising. Anyway, we persevered and by around 2pm we had SOLD OUT. What a thrill! I had imagined we would sell, maybe a couple, and would have to take most of them home again, but actually I should have baked more.

I had a few people ask me if I do parties and weddings, ‘well of course’ I said (!!?!?!?!?) another asked me how much I would charge to supply a cafe (I said I had no idea and would need to think about it- and I still have no idea) Another asked me if I would take a stand at the local wedding fayre the following weekend.

At the end of the day, I found the stand in market manager and agreed a stall there next week and can’t wait. Though this time it will be harder as it will be just me, as marvellous mum can’t make it down- but I need to see if I can do it on my own anyway. It certainly won’t be as much fun without my partner in icing sugar, but as long as I’m baking I will be happy.

0 days to go

What a day...

Marvellous mum and I started at 8am, writing lists and planning our plans. Bunting was ironed and pinned, fortifying hot tea was drunk and toast with home-made marrow jam was eaten (marrow jam is, by the way, surprisingly tasty. After all, anything as a conveyor of sugar is alright by me)

To the sounds of Woman's Hour on Radio 4 (brilliant stuff, do listen, though I'm sure you do), we headed off into Tivvy and hit the market for eggs, the local cake shop for icing nozzles and disposable icing bags, and then the marvellous Heathcoates fabric shop for backing material and fabric dye. One day I will tell you all about the treasure trove that is Heathcoates. I would happily write poems about its loveliness, possibly even hinting at its superiority over John Lewis' haberdashery department. This is really saying something, bearing in mind my devotion, and separation anxiety from the deliciousness that is the department store, John Lewis)

Anyway, back to the cakes. We got back to cupcake HQ and, after lunch (well, it's best not to do these things on an empty stomach) We then baked, and baked and baked, and then iced and iced and iced, and then decorated and decorated and decorated, and in amongst all of this, we also sewed like demon seamstresses and laid out pretend tea parties with empty cake cases on cut glass platters and china cake stands to make sure we had enough room for the cupcakes.

The whole operation would have gone smoothly if it weren't for my beloved magimix, which is now on the shelf of shame, for breaking during the first batch. Can you believe it. A mercy dash to mother-in-laws to borrow her mixer meant that show could go on, the people of Tiverton would get their cupcakes.

My brilliant dad arrived 4 hours into the baking and entertained a delighted Darling boy till bath and bed time. We briefly stopped for milk and stories with the Darling boy (from whom we had to hide all the baked booty by stashing it in the store room) A bit more sewing and baking was squeezed in before we stopped again to enjoy a delicious creamy carbonara cooked my Handsome husband. Then it was back to the icing and decorating. I mixed up more and more batches of butter icing, whilst my marvellous parents got busy with the sign, interpreting my sketches of a patchwork beauty into reality.

By 11.30pm, we had run out of icing sugar and were completely delirious with tiredness and excitement. Vanilla, chocolate, lemon and cherry and almond cupcakes were packed up and stored ready for the morning, along with all the other bits and bobs. A mere 15 1/2 hours later, it was time for bed.

1 day to go!

Marvellous mum has come to the rescue and tomorrow is the day of preparations.

There are ingredients to buy, cupcakes to bake and decorate, bunting to sew, tablecloths to iron and cut glass platters to polish. I also need to work out how to rig the bunting, applique a sign, and maybe print some leaflets (and we haven't got a printer)... and I need to decide how much to charge per cupcake. In amongst this I am half-way through dying all my tea-towels a gorgeous peacock turquoise, why not!?

So exciting!

Friends in Tivvy (or Tiverton, to folk not from round these parts) have promised to come along to cheer 'Adventures in Cake' along the way, with 'mates rates' being hopefully suggested. Since these kind folk normally enjoy my cupcakes for free, I don't know if the hard business woman in me can say no (in fact, I don't think there is a hard business women in me, if there is, she is under a whole lotta chocolate butter icing!)

We are on

The prince has been plugged in, after much malarky over what sort of cable was needed. The lovely man at Tiverton Pannier market has confirmed I have a stall this weekend. My cake boxes have arrived, as has the edible glitter (D.I.S.C.O!) and flower stamp. I have decided to stamp each cake box with a cupcake image, which is arriving by Friday, by way of decoration till I get my own logo designed...

I have run out of excuses and now it is time to get ready for Saturday. Marvellous mum has offered to come and help with the baking and I think it is going to be all hands to the deck.

So, I will be at the Tiverton Pannier market this Saturday from 8.30am-3pm, come on down!

I'm very excited and very worried. I hope the Prince lives up to his name, but mostly I hope that the people of Devon come and buy my cakes...

From tax to bunting

With my brain whiring and buzzing with ideas and things to do for the stall, each night before I go to sleep I run through a check list that is part things I have to do and part things I want to do.

A brief dip inside my head, part way during the monolgue sounds something like this...


tax, stawberries, vanilla sugar, public liability insurance, which flavours?, icings, butter, cases, teacups, cake stands, design logo, how many different flavours shall I start with? mood board for company design, find local suppliers, print banner, try out new recipes, gold pen, invent names for cupcakes, place settings, applique signs, patchwork, do I need an accountant? cut-glass dishes, get crazy sewing machine serviced, chocolate, how to decorate stall, seasonal specials, toppings, vintage styling, get hen house, get chickens, need more cake stands, giant tuppaware boxes, white carboard boxes, ribbons, stickers, aprons, do I need a new mixer? wooden spoons, table cloths, roses, edible glitter, website, company name registration, when to branch out into other cakes, gluten free recipes, babysitters? make own bunting...

Market update

So, I have contacted our local market in Tiverton, our nearest town. They have a food market every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday (as well as all sorts of other exciting markets, like antiques and bric-a-brac on other days of the week).

As I work part time already (I work on a Biodiversity project for the Government department for environment. Yup, I'm saving the world, 3 days a week) I have joined the waiting list for a stall on Saturday. The lovely chap I spoke to reckoned it would be 4-6 weeks before a space became available. This is perfect, as it gives me plenty of time to do the 100million things that need doing before I am ready.

Eek!

I'd better get cracking.

Im going to hit the market next Saturday to check out the competition, and also suss out any potential suppliers. I want to use good quality local suppliers wherever possible, and until we get our rescue chickens, I'm going to need a lot of eggs!

This little piggy went to market...

The next day, whilst Darling boy was having his nap, handsome husband was down on the farm and mother in law was dropping sister in law at the station after a weekend in Devon, I was left to my own devices at exactly cupcake o’clock. Sitting down enjoying a brew and a cupcake, I had the notion that I would quite fancy trying out having a stall at the local farmers market selling cakes. It would be nerve wracking, but exciting I’m sure.

The plan is to start with cupcakes (maybe 4 different flavours?) and then build my mighty empire from there... I have contacted Tiverton market to enquire about stalls and am waiting to hear back. Watch this space for developments!