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| Velvet Princess - Rosanna |
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| The Nugget - Jackie and Pam |
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| Hydrangea Lemon - Julie |
Some workplaces host standard potlucks and gatherings…but not my workplace; we do Cupcake Wars…in true Cupcake Wars fashion! Official rules and all! Employees were encouraged to submit a cupcake entry as an individual or a team. Cupcake contestants were asked to bake 14 cupcakes; 12 for tasting, 1 for presentation; and 1 for final tasting. Cupcakes were judge 50% on taste and 50% on presentation (sound familiar?) by fellow colleagues on an official Cupcake Wars Scorecard. Eight cupcakes entered our workplace Cupcake Wars: Hydrangea Lemon, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Red Velvet, Salted Carmel, Vanilla Bean/White Chocolate Ganache, Bourbon Apple Pie, Meyer Lemon, and Firecracker! Roll out the red carpet! The event was amazing, unlike any other workplace activity…truly original! The room was decorated with incredible detail…cupcake pictures with recipes, cupcake lights, and the real “VIPs”… the cupcakes themselves. Cupcake War judges were greeted with a display table showcasing all the cupcake entrants with identification/description cards. Judges tasted each cupcake, and in the end, we had ourselves an official CUPCAKE CHAMPION…RED VELVET (pictured), submitted by our culinary expert Rosanna! My team cupcake, THE NUGGET, a vanilla bean cupcake with white chocolate ganache frosting topped with a pretzel, peanut butter, toffee crumble, was awarded second place (pictured). Hydrangea Lemon took third (pictured). I took the winning cupcake home with me that night and enjoyed it with a glass of Red Velvet Wine from Cupcake Vineyards (I know, I know, a perfect pairing). Rosanna’s baked goods have always been very special. She bakes with love and passion, and it shows. She always graciously shares her delicious, decadent desserts with colleagues. Rosanna named her cupcake VELVET PRINCESS. The Velvet Princess was “dress-up” in a purple and pink crown with sparkling jewels, coated with purple sugar and white pearl sprinkles, and adorned with a single white chocolate pearl…very elegant! The red velvet cake was a vibrant red color and was wrapped in a purple cupcake holder with yellow stars. The Velvet Princess was frosted with a buttercream icing with bits of pecans, which added a unique, and tasty surprise! Now if only every workplace had a Rosanna...that would be amazing! The Cupcake Wars event was fabulous, unique, and inspiring...a true crowd (and taste bud) pleaser! I encourage others to try it!
