almond joy

this post is about almond joy. nope, not the candy. just almond and the joy it brings in baked goods.

almonds and nuts in general are pretty tricky to bake with. you have allergies to avoid and very particular flavors to work with.

in fact, some people highly dislike walnuts, almonds and other nuts in their baked goods. i highly dislike nuts in my ice cream. but, hey, that’s just me.

when it comes to desserts, walnuts and hazelnuts are my favorite. almond not so much. well, i shouldn’t say that. i love almonds in my desserts. just not the fake type.

you know that almond extract stuff they sell everywhere? no, thanks! it tastes like i’m eating plastic almonds… you get the idea.

i decided to challenge that fake almond flavor by experimenting on my own. and boom! it worked. and without the extract :)

almond cake is now one my favorites besides red velvet, of course!

this almond cake is not only moist but so flavorful, hearty and it tastes like an actual almond. it’s almond in a cake ;) this is a perfect flavor for a wedding, first communion or just a party. and now with the holidays upon us, it’s a perfect festive flavor that gives you a break from the typical pumpkin or gingerbread.

since the cake is sweet and salty, i paired it with white chocolate buttercream and salted caramel drizzle.

here are some photos to show you the final product. what about you? are you a baked good nuts type of person? wait, that didn’t come out right. haha. the word nuts is just funny ;)

{p.s. i will make almond joy cupcakes soon, because it just sounds amazing}

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

almond cupcakes by the baking cup

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thankful + cupcakes

happy thanksgiving!

even though it was last week, seems like it’s thanksgiving everyday at my house. why you ask? well, i’ve been eating leftovers since last thursday! i’m actually thanksgiving-out, haha.

seriously, how much food can one eat at a given seating? whew. i always say i won’t over do it but, there i am, laying on the couch, about to die of the calorie intake i just had mistakenly consumed.

it was incredibly nice in fargo. so nice, that after laying on the couch, i decided to go for a 40 min walk around my neighborhood. afterwards, i watched stupid, crazy love with steve carrell and julianne moore. which i highly recommend :)

speaking of nice weather, here are some cupcakes i made not too long ago. flavors include: s’mores, nutella filled coconut, confetti, cookies n cream, chocolate peanut butter and strawberry. they are all amazing flavors. i can’t decide which is my favorite.

what’s your favorite flavor that you enjoy year-round? leave me a comment so next time i can post about it. you’ll never know ;)

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

coconut nutella cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

chocolate peanut butter cupcakes by the baking cup

chocolate peanut butter cupcakes by the baking cup

chocolate peanut butter cupcakes by the baking cup

cookies n cream cupcakes by the baking cup

cookies n cream cupcakes by the baking cup

cookies n cream cupcakes by the baking cup

cookies n cream cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine

it’s been pretty sunny for the past week or so in the fargo-moorhead area. and. i’m. truly. enjoying it !

since it’s still summer, i want to introduce you to mr. {cute} sunshine.

but before i proceed, i’ll give you some background first.

this little boy wanted some cool cupcakes to bring to his daycare. why? so he could be the popular kid of the entire class.

well, it was more like he just wanted to share the little cakes with his little friends and eat them after nap time.

but, i like my version better ;)

not unusual, but a really specific request:

nothing chocolate
light frosting
something on top of frosting

see? specific.

hmm, what do kids like? i know they love bright colors and fun shapes. right?

so i thought and thought about what to make. and voila. i had my aha moment.

confetti cake with a cute sun on top and sanding sugar. boom!

by the way, the boy was the most popular kid at the daycare that day. his mom told me his classmates kept telling him “thanks for bringing the cupcakes – we loved them” over and over again.

my version wasn’t that far from reality ;)

what about you? have you been enjoying the sun lately? if yes, leave me a comment saying how!

confetti cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

i couldn’t resist and ate one.

sunshine cupcakes by the baking cup

clock tower cafe flavors

hope your week is going fabulous!

i’ve been taking care of orders, new flavors and meetings with great people so time is going by pretty fast.

um, yeah. i’ve been going to the gym, too. i went to an hour and a half yoga class & my poor muscles are still shaking as i write this ;)

today {wednesday} is national s’mores day! to celebrate, s’mores cupcakes are available at clock tower cafe in downtown fargo all.week.long. !

{i usually celebrate holidays for a week! haha!}

stop by clock tower cafe and get a s’mores cupcake, strawberry lemon or a nutella cream cupcake. oh, and get one for that favorite coworker or person of yours, too :)

talk to you soon!

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

s'mores cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry lemon cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry lemon cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry lemon cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry lemon cupcakes by the baking cup

strawberry lemon cupcakes by the baking cup

nutella cream cupcakes by the baking cup

nutella cream cupcakes by the baking cup

air force guard

i truly admire what the armed forces do for me and for you {if you are civilian, of course}. i have close friends who have served in the army – and they’ve done an splendid job. thank you! {you know who you are ;)}

a few weeks ago, i was contacted by one of my lovely clients.

she tells me, “carolina, i need cupcakes for my daughter.” i’m thinking okay, great!

“cupcakes need to have something else besides frosting” she goes on.

in my head – awesome! {love when clients are specific!}

“oh, and you need to drop them off at the air force guard offices in fargo” she adds.

“aaaand. this is for the air force guard?!!?!”

honored! the only word that can describe how i feel every time i’m part of the armed forces. even if it’s one. sweet. at. a. time.

make this week, a happy week!

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

vanilla blue & white air force guard cupcakes

oh. almost forgot! clock tower cafe has strawberry lemon cupcakes this week. stop by and get one :)

strawberry lemon cupcake