March 30, 2015

 

A Visit with Dream Cakes

If you'll remember from last week when I attended A Classic Affair Wedding Show  I visited with mostly bakery vendors.  I posted a few sneak peeks on Instagram and Dream Cakes  commented on one of those pics that she didn't see me there and we should do coffee and cake. Fabulous! Networking and I get cake, I'm there! 

I met Dream Cakes  at her bakery in SE Portland. By bakery I mean kitchen. Dream Cakes doesn't have a store front at this time but she does have a great space to bake and meet clients.  While Dream Cakes can create fondant covered cakes, fondant work such as flowers and sugar flowers, her passion is for butter cream cakes. 
Dream Cakes white wedding cake

Dream Cakes white wedding cake
Originally from Nevada, Johanna has made Oregon her home and we're glad she did. Her beautiful wedding cakes have starred in many wedding receptions. I know I could have spent all day flipping through her books filled with cakes she has created. I don't know how brides choose just one. 
Dream Cakes wedding cake with fondant flowers

Dream Cakes wedding cake
Before I left Johanna gave me a mini cake she had created for me. I'm going to have to do more networking with bakers. It was all beautiful with it's smooth sides and perfect shape. Until I got home and squished it as I was getting out of the car. Squished cake still tastes good but makes for a sad little picture.  Johanna made me a white cake with lemon curd filling with blueberries and butter cream frosting. 
Dream Cakes mini cake

As I was about to taste it my cat just HAD to see what I was eating. As I knelt down to show him, "it's cake, you don't like cake" he tried to lick it! The arrow shows where I swiped some frosting off with my finger for him. The frosting is Jasper approved. In fact, he wanted more. After I tasted it I could see why. The butter cream frosting melts in your mouth. So smooth and creamy. It compliments the cake well. The lemon curd was delicious and paired beautifully with the blueberries. 
Dream Cakes mini cake with blueberries
I left Dream Cakes not only with a very delicious mini cake but with some amazing opportunities.  I'd love to reveal more but can't at this time.Follow along on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to be sure not to miss continued updates.  

March 25, 2015

 

A Classic Affair Wedding Event

Attended another wedding event this last weekend, A Classic Affair. With all these wedding events I'm attending you'd think I was thinking of becoming a wedding planner. This event was held at Gray Gables Estate  

The grounds were a beautiful location but I have to be honest, the event was on a Friday night and when I arrived at 4:00 pm I could hear the rush hour traffic. Not something you want to hear on your wedding day. If you're thinking of getting married here, stop by and check out the venue during the time of day you're planning your wedding for. 

Gray Gables Wedding Venue, Portland Oregon
Walk over the bridge to meet your groom.
Gray Gables Wedding Venue, Portland Oregon

Gray Gables Wedding Venue, Portland Oregon
Inside the Gray Gables Estate the wedding vendors were showing off their wares.  My first stop was at this wonderful dessert table by Lux Sucre Desserts.  Chanelle was a joy to talk too and I got to sample one of these delicious mini cupcakes with buttercream that just melted in my mouth.  I look forward to working with Chanelle on some upcoming parties. 
Cupcakes by Lux Sucre  Desserts
Beautiful sand effect for your beach wedding. 
Cake by Lux Sucre Desserts
 I love the almost marbleized look of this cake with the fresh flowers. Gerbera's, my favorite. 
Cake by Lux Sucre Desserts
Right next door to Lux Sucre was Happiness by the Jar. Great wedding, bridal shower or party favors. All items people would enjoy receiving and would use. These lip balms and hand lotions smelled so good and fresh. 
Happiness by the Jar hand lotions

Happiness by the Jar, Portland,Oregon
 I got to sample both pumpkin flavored nuts, you know how much I love pumpkin and chipotle flavored nuts, another fav flavor of mine. The chipotle nuts had a nice kick at the end.  I not only got to sample the nuts but her homemade marshmallows too. Oh goodness gracious they were melt in your mouth soft little cushions of air. I of course bought a jar. 
Happiness by the Jar Nuts
Rosy Cakes was a joy to talk too. Mom and daughter were there and they were both wonderful. I sampled the chocolate dipped meringue's that had a wonderful hint of mint.  All the flowers you see are made by Rosy Cakes and they both told me they LOVE making the flowers. I'm going to have to have them make me some. Sugar flowers are so beautiful. 
Rosy Cakes

Rosy Cakes

Rosy Cakes

 Nimbi Design had a fun booth full of so many details they could provide for your wedding. I was able to talk to the owner and she really enjoys creating items for weddings and parties. She also took the time to show me a Snow White party she created for her daughter that turned out fabulous. 
Paper flowers created by Nimbi Design. 
Nimbi Design
 I was SO glad I waited around for Pilar of Vintage Mingle Rentals. You see, Pilar was the social media maven for A Classic Affair wedding show so she was zipping around snapping photo's and getting them on Instagram so she couldn't be at her booth all the time. We had a great conversation about rentals and I found out what's on her website isn't all she has to rent. I've been invited to visit her shop and peruse the aisles of wonderful vintage rentals. Don't worry, I'll be sharing the whole visit with you.   
Vintage Mingle rental
 Look at these gorgeous pieces you can rent. I'm loving the orange glassware. 
Vintage Mingle rental
Be sure to come back for more wedding shows, visits with wedding and party vendors, my baking adventures and of course, my parties! 

March 23, 2015

 

Spring Cupcakes


 I spotted these mixes in the store and you got it, I had to try them. I wasn't going to combine the two but then I saw this post on I Am Baker and I had to try them combined. The Orangesicle mix smelled just like an ornagesicle. The Key Lime mix had a faint lime smell. 
Spring Cupcakes

 Being Spring and Easter just around the corner I used these cute bunny liners I picked up at Joann's. 
Easter Cupcake Liners

 Since I was going to add both batters to the cupcakes I made it easy on myself and put the batter in pipping bags. 
Easy Cupcake batter technique

Spring cupcakes by Fizzy Party

Spring cupcakes by Fizzy Party

Spring cupcakes by Fizzy Party

While I was making cupcakes I decided to make some mini bundt cakes too. I love my mini bundts. Having the batter in the piping bags came in handy in making these mini bundts. I tried to warm up some frosting and drizzle it onto the mini bundts but as you can see, I need to work on that technique. 
Spring mini bundt cakes by Fizzy Party

Why stop at cupcakes and mini bundts, let's make some bunny cakes too. I wasn't sure if the cake mix would work in this silicon mold. When I've used silicon molds before I always end up loosing a piece of the image. I made sure to spray the cavities really well with nonstick cooking spray and... 
Look how adorable they turned out! Every thing's in tack. The bunnies ears and feet made it. 
Bunny mini cakes by Fizzy Party

Bunny mini cakes by Fizzy Party
The two mix's combined taste pretty good together. I would probably add a little orange and lime zest next time to oomph up the flavor a bit. 

Happy spring baking! 

March 16, 2015

 

Watermelon Cupcakes

I've been binge watching Cupcake Wars now that the first season is on Netflix. So when I saw this Betty Crocker Watermelon cupcake mix in the store I knew I had to go all Cupcake Wars on it. Plus you know how I'm a sucker for anything that says Limited Edition. 

I just happened to have watermelon cupcake liners on hand. I can't resist a fun cupcake liner either.  I had thought of adding some watermelon flavoring to the mix but it already smelled very watermelony. No additional flavoring was needed. 
Here's where the experimenting begins.  I made a balsamic reduction that I planned to dip the cupcake tops into. I thought I'd take it a step further and add a little balsamic to the cream cheese frosting I made. I should have known it would turn it an ugly shade of brown. The balsamic gave it a little kick that was tasty but I didn't like the color. 
Instead I dipped the tops of the cupcakes in the balsamic reduction, frosted it with plain cream cheese frosting and added a sprinkling of feta cheese.  What I was going for was the taste of a watermelon salad. The only thing missing is some fresh basil. 
The cupcake mix is very sweet in my opinion. I liked the zing of the balsamic and the tang of the feta cheese but feel like I added too much frosting. The sweetness of the cupcake mix and the cream cheese frosting put it over the top for me. 

***Update*** 
I took these to work and people loved them!!! Success. For the ones I brought to work I lightly dipped them in the balsamic reduction and cut back on the feta. 

You might also like:


Hot Fudge Cupcakes
Rootbeer Cupcakes 
Raspberry Cupcakes 
Circus Animal Cupcakes 




March 9, 2015

 

The Toast Wedding Showcase

This past weekend I was invited to attend The Toast Wedding Showcase  held at Elli Studio's in Portland, Oregon.  I was excited to see what Portland area vendors have to offer couples. I've been married 8, 9 years now and was married at the beach so I used beach vendors. What would Portland vendors have in store for us? 
Keep scrolling to see all the gorgeousness.  
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
Black Sweet Raspberry's styled table, flowers by Selva Floral , rentals by Common Wealth Rentals and catering by The Lambs Table.  
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
I was excited to see A Well Crafted Party 's space because I had met her at some blogger meet-ups before. She did not disappoint. Intimo  Floral captured the eye with their colourful hanging flowers. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
A Well Crafted Party's space just burst with romance. The floral arraignments are gorgeous. So soft yet powerful. 
Rentals from Something Borrowed.  
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
Loving all the accessories A Well Crafted Party used from Something Borrowed. I can't wait to work with them. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
 I was tempted to sneak some of these tasty Hors d' Oeuvres from White Pepper Catering. They wouldn't know if one or two was missing right ;)  
Now I'm not a vintage girl but those cake plates? Come on. Love them. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon

The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
Fresh Party Collective's space was gorgeous! All that natural greenery and wood with POPs of colour. You know I love POPs of colour. I'll give you a minute to just soak it all in before you scroll to some close ups. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon

The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
Flowers by Anna Mara Flowers 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
 Delicious looking sweets from Sweetheart Bakery. I need to pay these guys a visit, what do you think?
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon


The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
 Such colourful healthy food that Portland is so known for from Thrive Pacific NW
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
 I love these little picks. Perfect not only for weddings but parties big and small too. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
How gorgeous is this cake! Yep, Sweetheart Bakery is definitely on my list of places to visit. 
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
 Love the POPS of pink in this floral display by Swoon Floral Design.  Table designed by Vanity Affair Events  
The Toast Wedding Showcase Portland Oregon
Whether you're getting married or just hosting a party, A Toast Wedding Showcase was filled with inspiration.  Makes me want to participate next year. Fizzy Party, wedding planner. What do you think?
Have questions on how you could incorporate some of these ideas into your party, leave your question in the comment section and I'll be happy to help.