If you do not know this already, I should tell you:  I am a dessert person, so I take my cake buying very seriously.  I love dessert, especially chocolate, and pretty much anything baked with butter and sugar.  That is why I was especially excited to check out the “Sweet and Savory” festival at Jack London Square in Oakland.  At first, I found the festival to be mostly hype, and then I tasted some red velvet cupcakes, and I was hooked…

After our initial meeting, and tasting her supreme red velvet cupcakes, I knew I had to sit down with Lisa, from Couture Cakes By Lisa, and find out more about the woman behind the cakes.  In high school, Lisa worked at Baskin Robbins, honing her cake decorating skills. However, those skills were sidelined as Lisa became a court reporter and started her own business.   Her cake decorating passion was renewed when she was stuck at home with a broken ankle.  Lisa spent a year recovering and, at the same time, refined her baking and decorating skills and took classes at Spun Sugar and Petit Fleur.  Since then, Lisa has headed down a new career path, which would not have been possible without her wonderful family (including her loving husband and daughter) and the help of Amy Fitzsimmons and Pat Peck, the pastry chef and owner of Bibiane Bakery.

Everything Lisa sells is completely homemade and designed.  She pulls her inspiration from renowned cake decorators, but is primarily inspired by her clients.  Lisa enjoys sitting down with new clients to help turn their ideas into tasty pieces of art.  Each cake is designed to everyone’s individual specifications, and Lisa spends her days designing, baking, decorating, and even delivering, every cake she works on.  I was not surprised to learn that Lisa placed third last month in the CCCSAS Annual Cake and Sugar Art Show, her first bake-off entry ever!

I am a chocolate lover, but I wonder…what if I were to marry someone who (gasp!) does not share my same love?  The easy answer is to order a cake with multiple tiers and flavors, but how much would that cost??  When ordered from Couture Cakes By Lisa there is no extra cost for additional flavors.  Couture Cakes pricing starts at $6 a serving for a wedding cake, but the prices vary on the size and specifications.  She also makes cakes for bridal showers, anniversaries, birthdays, and any type of gathering you can think of, so if you are looking for a one-stop bakeshop, this is definitely your place!

As an unmarried woman I have spent surprisingly little time thinking about my wedding, but as a dessert enthusiast, I have spent plenty of time dreaming about my cake.  I asked about the filling, frosting, and any combination of flavors and decorations I could think of, and Lisa’s answer was always the same “no problem.”  That is what makes her so great…she is very positive and enthusiastic, and loves to be challenged with new designs and flavors.  She told me the most rewarding thing about her new line of work is seeing the joy on people’s faces when the cakes are delivered and knowing that her cakes helped make people’s day’s even brighter.

You can find Couture Cakes in Oakland, as well as Pleasanton, and Lisa will deliver throughout the greater Bay Area.  You can find her online at http://www.couturecakesbylisa.com/ and http://www.bibianebakery.com/ or email Lisa at CoutureCakesbyLB@aol.com

Enjoy the cake (I know I sure did)!!

If you’ve spent any time on wedding blogs, you’ve likely come across photos of a candy bar. Candy bars—referring to containers of colorful sweets guests can munch on and/or bag up as wedding favors—are a great way to move beyond the traditional cake-only reception. Guests can self-serve, freeing your staff and family members up for more important things than passing out rounds of cake slices.

But rather than filling apothecary jars with plain-Jane M&Ms and jordan almonds in your wedding colors, explore candies that are out of the ordinary. Find retro candies online at places like Economy Candy and Dylan’s Candy Bar or, even better, head over to Fiona’s Sweet Shoppe near Union Square in San Francisco.

Shop owner Fiona moved to San Francisco in 2005 and immediately missed her favorite sweets from her native United Kingdom.  She set aside her work in medicine for a career in candy, and she now sources sweets from across the pond and brings them to you via her small Sutter Street sweetery.

Fiona’s Sweet Shoppe’s offerings are unique, with creations like mango licorice, boiled sweets, strawberry bootlaces, and more. Below you’ll see chocolate toffee robin’s eggs, mini Rolos, and brown sugar cube licorice.

To really seal the deal, pick up some authentic metal candy scoops (I’ve found them at Kamei), tie colorful ribbons to the handles, and provide glassine bags your guests can scoop and snack from.

Fiona’s Sweet Shoppe

214 Sutter Street, San Francisco CA 94108

415-399-9992

www.fionassweetshoppe.com

Swiss Delices Fine Bakery and Pastry Shop is not your usual wedding cake baker. With a staff of 6 between both their Castro Valley and Hayward locations, they offer authentic European cakes made from all natural ingredients.

Christine Clement, the founder of Swiss Delices states emphatically, “All of our cakes and icings are made from scratch using real butter, eggs and other high-quality fresh ingredients. We use only organic flour and organic or pesticide free fruits. We do not use high fructose corn syrup or shortening.” Her strong belief in high quality ingredients reaches across all her baked goods. The cake fondants are flown in from Europe where they use glucose instead of high fructose corn syrup and all her chocolate cakes contain at least 55% cocoa beans. The chefs even use vanilla bean for flavoring instead of vanilla extract.

She also buys local as much as possible by utilizing farmer markets and recommending clients to use in season fresh fruit.
But, her most popular cakes may come as no surprise – Chocolate Mousse and Lemon White Chocolate Cakes. I tried both and they were delicious!

Working with customers everyday at her bakery, she is very much in tune with what clients requests. She offers cakes that can be customized with a different cake per tier. For example, if you order a 3 tier cake – the top layer could be chocolate mouse, the middle lemon white chocolate, and the bottom tier carrot cake. For the budget conscious customer needing to serve many guests, she makes secondary sheet cakes that feed many people at a much lower cost.

But, wedding cakes are just a small portion of her Swiss bakery business. She is very much a part of the Castro Valley community serving fresh baked morning pastries to clients, soup made from scratch, and hosts weekly Wednesday play dates for children. Even if you are not looking for a wedding cake, her bakery is worth checking out.

To make a cake tasting appointment, call Christine – (510) 393-3121

Swiss Delices Fine Bakery & Pastry
20669 Santa Maria Ave.
Castro Valley, CA 94546
(510) 881-8669

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you know by now I have a sweet tooth.  Imagine my satisfaction when I came across a table brimming with mini pecan pies, sweet potato pies, pecan pralines, red velvet cupcakes and more at sfnoir’s Wine & Food Gala this weekend.  The creator of this sweet spread?  Yvonne Hines, a baker and Bay Area native who is whipping up delightful Southern-style cakes and cookies just the way she likes them.

Take her Pecan Pralines for example—the Southern candy confection made with butter, sugar, milk and pecans is her signature sweet.  My personal favorite is her “Old School” Butter Cookie, a retro style treat based on the cookie recipe used at her school cafeteria growing up.  Yvonne’s authentic flavors and family recipes add a touch of nostalgia to her desserts.

I’d never recommend something I didn’t try for myself, so of course I had to have one of each. And at an event where I was already stuffed to the gills and limiting the portions I ate of each dish, Yvonne’s desserts were the one thing I ate every crumb of.  Her pecan pie has just the right amount of sweet with an incredibly layered flavor.  Her Red Velvet cupcakes are moist little cakes with just a touch of frosting.  If you’re looking for a fun twist on traditional treats for a dessert bar at your wedding, Pralines by Yvonne might be just what you need.

Want a little of everything but can’t imagine not cutting the cake?  In addition to her pies and cookies Yvonne makes buttery pound cakes, carrot cake, German chocolate cake, and even something called “Mama’s 7-Up Cake.”  I’ll be heading to her bakery to try some of these for myself (in the name of research of course!).

I’m continually amazed at all this area has to offer, and I love meeting bakers and chefs who express themselves through something delicious.  Yvonne started her business baking for friends and family, then turned her passion into a profession.  As she says, “It has been a sweet journey.”  With a mouth full of butter cookie crumbs, I had to agree.

Pralines by Yvonne

5128 Third Street, San Francisco, CA  94124

www.pralinesbyyvonne.com

For more information on special orders for weddings contact Yvonne at pralines@mail.com.

The folks at Sibby’s Cupcakery in San Mateo, CA are busy perfecting the art of the cupcake.  Rather than dilute their talents making a wide array of desserts, this is one bakery that knows how to specialize—devoting themselves to creating cupcake perfection in mini, regular and jumbo size. The Cupcakery has been open for business for since 2004, when creator and owner Sibby left the advertising world to start a bakeshop, turning her hobby to a full-time job.

All of Sibby’s Cupcakery’s hand-piped custom creations are baked to order from scratch using fresh ingredients like sweet cream butter from local dairy farms, Scharffen Berger chocolate and Nielsen-Massey pure Madagascar Bourbon vanilla.  The cupcakes have a delicious home-made feel to them and are hugely popular with Bay Area brides who order them by the dozen rather than purchasing a traditional tiered wedding cake.

I stopped by the bakery last week where Gina (Sibby is out on maternity leave) showed me the ropes, and even taught me how to frost a cupcake properly (the secret is to put a big frosting dollop in the middle then use little swipes to push it out to the edges).  At Sibby’s the team starts baking around 6 in the morning, producing dozens upon dozens of piping fresh cupcakes daily.  Sibby’s works with brides to create custom colors and designs to fit any theme, not to mention select the flavors.  Though Buttercup (a traditional vanillla cupcake with vanilla frosting) and Chocolate remain the most popular, Sibby’s has an array of amazing flavors like Lemon Drop, Latte Love and Snickerdoodle.  And don’t let that traditional chocolate fool you—the chocolate requested most is Sibby’s “Grandma’s Chocolate Tea Cake.”  It’s a chocolate cupcake with a cream cheese-chocolate chip center, topped off with a fudgy frosting.  Now, having just moved to SF from New York I’ve had some great cupcakes in my time.  Magnolia, Buttercup Bakery, Crumbs, Billy’s…some true champions.  But I’m confident I’ve never had a tastier cupcake than Sibby’s Grandma’s Chocolate Tea Cake.  It is OUTSTANDING.  That creamy chocolate chip center puts it right at the top of my tastebud Top 10.

Eager to try some for yourself?  Call ahead to sign up for one of Gina’s bridal tastings, or, even better, order up a Sibby’s Sampler—an assortment of tastes as well as their special flavor of the month.  February’s flavor is Dulce de Leche.  Cupcakes come in mini ($24/dozen), regular ($39/doz) and jumbo ($7.50 each).  The jumbo size is a favorite for brides because it is perfect to use in the cake-cutting ceremony. Delivery is available within the Bay Area for weddings, and Sibby’s even rents out items from their terrific collection of cake stands.  To order, call (415) 613-4373 or email sibby@sibbyscupcakery.com.

Sibby’s Cupcakery: 716 South Railroad Avenue, San Mateo, CA 94401.  Call ahead, this is not a storefront, but instead a commercial kitchen so you’ll want to be expected ahead of time.

{Green and White cupcake photos by Silvana Di Franco Photography.}

Choosing your wedding cake is about more than just baked goods—it’s an experience. From the tasting, to the planning and design, to the baker herself, everything should come together to give you the best possible feeling for your big day. And, if you’re really lucky, by the time you are done your cake designer will feel like a good friend.

I met the talented Tracy Auseklis of The Buttercream Studio at the San Francisco Wedding Fair at the Four Seasons last week and just had the pleasure of meeting her one-on-one for a bit of follow-up and cake tasting. You immediately feel like Tracy is your pal, someone who is on your side to help make your wedding day fabulous. This Columbia grad and former city planner turned foodie years ago, baking cakes for family and friends and working in pastry kitchens and restaurants. When she got engaged in 2007 the joy of designing her own wedding cake led to scrapping her plans for a big, fancy wedding of her own in order to buy a bakery instead. After tying the knot at City Hall, followed by cocktails and cake (naturally), Tracy opened The Buttercream Studio in South San Francisco.

The Buttercream Studio uses recipes of both Tracy’s creation and variations on those shared by cake designers at the top of the profession to make rich, velvety cakes with creamy frosting. In addition to traditional chocolate and vanilla, the bakery’s menu includes flavors like Lemon Butter Cake with Lemon Curd, Raspberries and Cream Cheese Frosting, Strawberry Cake with White Chocolate Mousse, and Belgian Chocolate Cake with Oreo Buttercream. Do you have a favorite flavor that’s not on her list? Custom flavors are welcome. The Buttercream Studio’s cakes are made from a butter-based batter, baked to light and fluffy perfection rather than the typical spongy wedding cake you’ll find, and the cake is never frozen. This allows for greater stability and support for tall, tiered cakes and specialty orders, and makes the cakes taste just as good as they look. The frostings, other than the cream cheese version like the one you’ll find on the Old Fashioned Red Velvet Cake, are a delicious Italian merengue buttercream. For sculpted cakes Tracy’s fondant is all made by hand in the studio.

The designs for Buttercream’s cakes are inspired by anything Tracy sees: from a swatch of fabric to a ruffle or a terrific floral arrangement, or any bride’s wildest desire. No challenge is too great—take for example the cake she created for San Francisco’s celebration of Barack Obama’s inauguration which was a replica of the White House, or the specialty cake she made for a Yahoo! celebration, a behemoth of an order made to serve over 3500 guests.

The Buttercream Studio doesn’t stop at traditional wedding cakes. Tracy’s specialty cakes are perfect for bridal showers, rehearsal dinners and grooms cakes. From a Coach purse stuffed with a champagne bottle made of out sugar, to a suitcase cake perfect for a travel-loving couple, her designs are inventive and authentic. And for the DIY bride The Buttercream Studio offers classes for making and decorating with buttercream or fondant, as well as an intensive 2-day crash course in decorating cakes, cupcakes, and cookies. There’s something for every bride here, and Tracy will make you feel nothing but welcome. Happy tasting!

The Buttercream Studio is located at 158 South Spruce Avenue in South San Francisco, 415-730-3313.

Tastings are by appointment only. Suitcase photo courtesy of The Buttercream Studio.