I Like Cupcakes

Today is my last day at Ogilvy and so I thought it would be nice to make some cupcakes for all those people who have made my time here so great...I have had some awesome times in this building and I am going to miss you guys madly!  Thanks for the laughs and learnings - I'm sure I will see you around though this word of advertising is nothing if not small! :)
xx

Interactive Christmas Cupcake...it's for the kids

Yesterday afternoon I found myself in the middle of a conversation about an interactive Christmas card - apparently they are more difficult to design at 4 o'clock on Thurs than you would think.

Rob and Jill - after our little chat...and all that talk of a pastry version of PBH...I couldn't resist....I even drew a little diagram (like the one on Nic's wall) to illustrate how my clever idea works...I give you Niki's Interactive Christmas Cupcake for PBH....ta daaaa.....

 

Rob - it's not quite a pastry Christmas card...but it's pretty close....your turn ;)

Mini Flower Cupcakes

Happy birthday to my friend Emma!  I can't believe that it has already been a year since the last one (See those cupcakes here...baked before work the morning after our office Christmas party...good times!)

Apart from the cupcakes, Em received a special rhyming birthday card from some of us girls in the office - made me laugh when I read it, so thought I would share...

Em Dog,
Happy Birthday you HOT saucy minx, here's to a great day and a few drinks! 
Enjoy your weekend away, it will b e so romantic, from what we have heard, Muz is quite GIGANTIC.
Thanks for being so special, and such a super mate, we'll love you forever - we just think you are GREAT!


Love us
xx


Happy birthday my friend - I hope you have a fantastic day!
xx

Wedding Cupcakes for Mr and Mrs Rock

This last weekend I was in Matuba...just near St Lucia (for those who don't know) for Britta and Tanner's wedding.  Britta, or Cookie as I more fondly know her as, went to school with my sister and so has been "in our family" for many years.  My whole family drove out to Zululand on Friday and spent the weekend in the sunshine icing cupcakes and sharing in the wedding celebrations...can't think of a better way to spend a sunny weekend in December!

Now I know that when it comes to weddings everyone wants to see the dress and the tables etc,so I have a attached a couple of pics of all of that....just to give you an idea of how magical the day really was.  (And let me just say...before you even look...the pics really aren't going to do it justice...was SO beautiful!)  I was lucky enough to be asked to make the cupcakes for the wedding, so there are a couple of pics of those as well.

Congrats Cooks and Tanner!  Wishing you many happy years together...so glad I was able to be there and share your special day :)

 The Chef hard at work before the wedding

The bridal party and some of the decor

More Decor

Bride and Groom

The Cupcakes

Animal Cupcakes....it's a zoo out there!

These cupcakes belong to my friend Gwyn - it is her birthday today, and being an animal lover I thought she would appreciate the little animal characters on top of the cupcakes.  Admittedly, the Lion needs a little bit of work, but I think the Elephant and the Rabbit are pretty rad!

Happy Birthday Gin....I hope you have a fantastic day my friend.  Cheers to you for 25 great years - will  have a drink for you from Durbs tonight - sorry I'm missing you dinner!  

Lots of love to you moley girl :)

xx

Officially a real Chef

I'm sure you have noticed (over the last little while) that there have been a couple of non cupcakes things creeping into my blog.  For those of you who don't know, that is because I have (since July) been doing a Patisserie Chef's course - which ended last night when I did my final prac exam.  The pics below show what was on the menu...it consisted of the following (starting on the left):

Creme Caramel with Spun Sugar

Lemon Tart with Fresh Strawberries

Vanilla Panacotta with Chocolate Runouts, Berry Compote and Fresh Cream

Bread Rolls

It has been a long time since I had to do a prac exam for something, and let me tell you, 4 hours absolutely flies by!  I'm too stoked to be complete with the course and even more stoked that I passed!!!  If you want to check out more of the goodies that I baked during the course - you can click here.

I am now proudly going by the name Chef Niki...the name has quite a nice ring to it doesn't it! :)

I Heart Strawberry Tart

Slowly but surely my skills are spreading to areas outside of cupcakes...this is something that I am very excited about!  These strawberry tarts are the first ones that  I have made using my new  heart shaped tart tins...just love them!

Baking is in the genes!

The five little faces that you can see in the pic above made this cake....how cute!  It was also for my Gran's 80th, and the little faces are all cousins of mine....much younger cousins, but cousins all the same.  I thought their efforts deserved some praise so now this pic is on my blog.

Well done guys...definitely the best chocolate cake I've ever had! :)

Christmas Cake...it's already that time of year!

I cannot believe that is already the time of year when covered fruit cake is appropriate!  I feel like I have blinked and the year has just disappeared!  That said, I was quite excited to make this Christmas Cake - love the little fat angel, she didn't make it onto the cake in the end, but she is too cute!

A note to all of you out there - Christmas is almost here....just a little over a month to go...so those of you who are looking for cakes, make sure you get your orders in early!

Granny's 80th

My Granny turned 80 last week, so the whole family (except my aunt and uncle in England) went to Salt Rock for the weekend to celebrate.  We had a fantastic lunch on Saturday with awesome food and lots of wine...and cupcakes for dessert  

Happy Birthday Granny - 80 years old and still going strong - I'm so glad I have your genes! :)

xx

Chocolate Tart Taste Test....dum dum dum

Being the token chef in the office has its advantages - this morning I arrived at work to find this awesome chocolate tart on my desk.  My friend Newton had baked it, and wanted an opinion...and who am I to stand in the way of a taste test for a chocolate tart!  

Newton -  myself and the girls flattened that tart in about five mins!  Absolutely love the orange chocolate flavour....two big thumbs up from all of us!  Now we want to know when we are getting the next one! :)

Chocolate and Decadent Nougat Cupcakes

I'll be honest, it is not often that I feel the inclination to want to eat the cupcakes that I bake - most time my concern for my hips get ahead of me and I refrain.....not so with these ones!  Sally Williams may just have been my favourite person in the whole world when I made these cupcakes....her nougat is seriously to die for!

Vanilla cupcakes topped with chocolate icing and a piece of luxury nougat...it doesn't get much better than that my friends!

Rowan - happy birthday dude, hope you enjoyed the actual cupcakes as much as I enjoyed the toppings for them! :)

My Fairy Cake Mother Strikes Again!

Oh my gosh!  How spoiled am I!  When I got to work this morning, I found this beautiful cupcake stand waiting for me....just chilling there on my desk waiting to put a smile on my face! :)

It was sent to me by Clare - she is MFC's favourite fan and sent it to me from Oxford in the UK.  After having a good look at it, I found that it is made by a company called Talking Tables - they make all sorts of beautiful table accessories, from name cards to cake stands to cupcake holders...if it's cute and can be put on a table - you will find it on their website.  I had a quick browse through their site just a little bit ago and all their stuff is really awesome!  To have a look at the site, or to order your own cake stand, click here.

Clare - once again, thank you so much for the spoils!  This surprise has absolutely made my day!  I am one very stoked cupcake! xx

Western Province....eat your heart out!

These AWESOME cupcakes are the result of our friend Dyl having taken a rather silly (in my opinion) bet with me that WP were going to beat the Sharks in the Currie Cup final....his naivety was so sweet that I couldn't resist....WP for a win....let’s be serious! J

Anyway, back to the story at hand - rather than enjoy this well earned victory (thanks little Lamb you beauty) on my own, I thought I would share the goodness with the world!  I’m sure he will begrudgingly blog about how he was forced to bake at some stage as well....so for those who don’t know, you can find his blog here...it's actually pretty good so I recommend you take a little look see. 

Dyl – thank you my friend...love that the Sharks are now officially mine!  You have made my week and it's not even 8am on Monday morning!

x

x

Love letters from the USA

Much to my delight this package was waiting for me when I got home today...it was a birthday surprise from my Best....Erin...from all the way in Nevada!  YAY!  Thank you so much for the beautiful gift my friend, I LOVE IT!!  The apron is so cute (as you can see I've already tried it on :) ) and you know how I feel about Hot Tamales!!!

You are a gem my friend and I miss you terribly!  I'm gonna find an excuse to bake with my new apron asap!
Lots love
xx

PS: If there is someone out there in cyberspace from Hot Tamales....how about you hook South Africa up with some of the goodness....or you can just send some cinnamon my way....I'm not phased either way really :)

Blueberry Cupcakes

Because Lexi is one of My Favourite Cupcake's biggest fans, she got cupcakes on her birthday yesterday and again for work today....lucky girl!

At least the second time round she got a more "healthy" option with these blueberry cupcakes .

Birthday love for Lex

I woke up on the 31st of November feeling very hungover after a rather large Halloween party (thank you Bakes) and made these cupcakes for my friend Lexi's birthday lunch.  What a fantastic day!  Good food, good friends - you know the rest! :)

Happy birthday my Lex, thank you for an awesome lunch.  Love you lots.
xxx

Smiles for my friend

There is nothing worse than having to go to work when you are not having a good week!  A friend of mine,  is having one of those such weeks - one where things are just not going the way that they should be.

To be honest there is not alot that she or I, or any of our mates can do to make the situation any better.  As with all kuk situations, nothing can be said or done....time just has to run it's course.

I figured though, that while we wait for time to do its magic - cupcakes are never a bad thing when you are having a bad day, so made this little smiley face for her and left it on her desk for when she got to go to work....hope it made her smile.

Arrggghhh....happy birthday me matey!

For my birthday this year I decided to have a pirate themed dinner at a restaurant called Panama Jack's which is in the harbor in CT...but of a dingy looking place, so completely appropriate for the theme!

Everyone made such an effort with their costumes...the least I could do was make cakes to match!  Loved the party - I have the most fantastic friends and family in the world...thnks guys!
x

Trick or Treat Halloween Cupcakes

These were the first of Halloween cupcakes for this year. They were ordered by MFC's favourite fan Clare in Oxford.  She ordered them for her niece who goes to school at St Cyprians here in Cape Town - what an awesome start to the weekend to have cupcakes delivered to your school!

Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat! :)

Their Love Is Here to Stay

Last Saturday I had the privilege of attending a pre-wedding breakfast at The Vineyard Hotel for my friends Jared and Hannah.  They are getting married in the UK in December, and as most of their South African friends will not be able to be there for the ceremony, they had a pre-wedding breakfast here in Cape Town.

Beautiful venue, beautiful table settings - really lovely words from the special people in their lives - all in all, a fantastic champagne filled morning!  After such an awesome pre-wedding celebration, I can only imagine what the real deal will be like....wishing you guys all the best with that one...you can be sure that I will be wearing my white wrist band and thinking of you on that magic day!

xx

Happy Birthday almost ex-pat

Happy Birthday Jarrie - I hope that SA flags serve as a reminder about where you need to end up eventually...we're gonna miss you when you go friend!

Pink berrry delights

My Mum's birthday was on the 21st of October, and unfortunately Meg and I couldn't be around to celebrate with her on the day, so we had a birthday lunch the weekend before.  Coupled with the birthday lunch, we also celebrated Bryan and Lauren (our cousins) completing the Amashova....fresh strawberry cupcakes were definitely the order of the day! :)

It's a summer kind of cupcake

There is no better place to be on a sunny weekend in Cape Town than somewhere in Camps Bay!  A chilled braai with mates in the sun, with some wine....and a cupcake (of course)!  What a rad weekend!  Thanks Caitlin for the delicious steak...the best ever...bring on summer and braais all the time!

Shaperon...every lady should have one!

It's a little bit cringey that I am putting this pic up of myself...but I can't resist!  I wore the above outfit to a dress-up party at Shu Lounge a little while ago, the theme was "What I want to be when I grow up"...obviously I am a chef....cheesy, but true.  

Anyway, that's not what was exciting about the pic....what is exciting is the awesome apron that I am wearing.  How cute!  It looks like a cute little dress, but actually it is an apron...it even folds up into a cute handbag.  They are officially known as Shaperon... because of the great shape they give you...cute hey!

if you wanna see the other options you can check them out here....for R170 it's a great gift for ladies who spend alot of time in the kitchen!  With Christmas on the cards is an idea worth banking!.

Bright Birthday Cupcakes for Lee's Bday

Happy birthday to Lee-Ann :)

xxx

Meg and James' Engagement Cupcakes

My little sister is engaged!  YAY!  After such fantastic new it is revolting that I am so late in putting this post up....she has been engaged for almost a month now...but better late than never!  

I baked these cakes for the impromptu engagement lunch that we had at home in PMB, my family, Jamo's family - beautiful day, lots of champagne...awesome!

Congratulations Jameson and Meg...wishing you many happy years together and lots of fantastic excuses for me to make you more cupcakes :)

Love you both lots

xxx

30th chocolate mousse cupcakes

I made these chocolate cupcakes for the a 30th birthday the other day.  They are iced with chocolate mousse and the then the thirties on top are made out of plain chocolate...lucky it was a cold day otherwise these babies would have melted and caused a real mess....delicious mess, but a mess none the less!  Sometimes cold rainy Cape Town winters have a good purpose.

Cupcake love from Oxford

You know you are doing something right when you get postcards from overseas!  I was delighted to receive the gorgeous postcard above from Clare in Oxford...after my own Mum...she is definitely My Favourite Cupcake's Biggest Fan!

Thanks Clare for this surprise....it is proudly stuck up on my pin board at work...love it! :)

Nothing says thank you quite like a chocolate cupcake!

How rad would it be if you rocked up at work and you found one of the above cupcakes on your desk....that is what happened to some lucky people at Maersk the other day...lucky bums!  Chocolate ganache goodness....mmmm delish....bosses take note - cupcakes for employees are a must if you want to be in the good books!

Marshmallow cupcakes for the fam

My family are the ultimate fans of marshmallows and white chocolate - so they were really easy to please when I was home over a long weekend a little while ago....vanilla cupcakes with marshmallow and white chocolate drizzle....SOLD!

Rustenburg Read-a-thon Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes

Nothing inspires kids to get reading like the promise of a chocolate cupcake!  I made these cupcakes as the prize for the top two classes in the Rustenburg Read-a-thon....I was pleasantly surprised when my sister's class won the prize...go Miss O and your grade 5's! :)

Ferrero Rocher Cupcakes

Happy birthday KW
x

Marshmallow and chocolate drizzle cupcakes

Chocolate cupcakes with marshmallow topping and a combo of white and dark chocolate drizzle, were the perfect parting gift for Kate on her last day of work.  Nothing better than sharing some delicious cupcakes with your colleagues to show them your appreciation.  

New job on Monday...good luck my friend! :)

Teachers Tea Cupcakes

Chocolate cupcakes, vanilla cupcakes with strawberries and chocolate balls and marshmallows - just a bit of all sorts really.  I made these for Meg to take to her staff tea last week.  Some spoils for the hardworking teachers at RGJS in Cape Town :)

Birthday spoils...thanks everyone!

Yesterday was my birthday, and I got absolutely spoiled rotten by family and friends! Clearly they are all fans of My Favourite Cupcake, because there seemed to be a trend with all of my birthday gifts....from beaters, to aprons, to cake decorations to recipe books - if it was cupcake related, I got it!  I am such a spoiled cupcake - loved it though! :)

Thank you for all the support everyone - I am looking forward to using all my new goodies!

Birthday cupcakes for Miss Cupcake

I have to start off by being honest, and admit that as much as I would like to claim the cupcakes above as my own...sadly, I did not bake them!

My friend Lexi (with the help of Chelsy) made me these delicious treats for my birthday...cupcakes for Miss Cupcake...how rad!

Thanks Lex - you are great, and cupcakes were divine...I think you should come and work for me - your skills are being wasted in advertising! :)
x

The Blue Birthday Tray

This beautiful blue tray was a gift from Meg and James for my birthday...so lovely!  I am so excited to bake some beautiful cakes and deliver them in this awesome tray...these mini cupcakes were what I made for the office on my birthday and were a great excuse to test out my new gift!

Thanks guys... I LOVE IT!!
x

67 cupcakes for Mandela Day

For Mandela day last weekend, I made 67 cupcakes which we (my sister, Gin and Gav) then attempted to take to the Red Cross Children's Hospital.  Unfortunately for us, they had already been inundated with people odropping off thingss, so instead we took the cakes to the Claremont Night Shelter...something sweet for all those people who went there expecting the usual cup of soup...made their day I'm sure!

It was so awesome to see so many people out and about doing their 67 minutes of good deeds - I hope it is something that catches on and keeps growing!  You can check out what other people got up to for Madiba Day here, coz charity can happen any day.

The best friend's birthday lunch

Last weekend, it was my friend Row's birthday, and so a couple of us went to Jonkershuis in Constantia for birthday lunch.  It was such a beautiful day, and we sat outside in the courtyard enjoying the sunshine with some good food, good wine and great company!  After Jonkershuis we wandered on to Paddlers and then ended up an Oblivion....what a fantastic way to spend a Saturday.

Happy birthday Wenz - hope you had a fantastic weekend!
xxx

Berry delicious

It's been a while since I made cupcakes with strawberries and cream, so I thought they would be perfect for my friend Jo's birthday....which was actually last week, but she was in Natal with her family, so she is getting them today when we pop in for a drink at Fat Cactus to celebrate.  

Enjoy my friend - hope you had a fantastic birthday

x

My best friend is getting married!!!

My best friend Row got engaged last week Wednesday, and so I was VERY excited when she and her fiancé Chris came back to Cape Town so that I could hear the story in person and give them their congratulations cupcakes!

You can see in the picture above the book that Chris proposed with - such a cute and romantic story (Wenz you lucky girl!), as well as the engagement notice from the newspaper in PMB, and then the cupcakes that I made for them to celebrate their happy news.

Congratulation Wenz and Chris....very excited for you both!  Wishing you many happy years in your shared future together! :)

xxx

Chocolate and Cream Roses

Chocolate cupcakes with cream roses were the perfect combination for a feminine birthday cupcake request that I got the other day.  I particularly like the silver ribbon around the bottom of the cupcakes...I think it's really girly and pretty

Happy birthday CJ

x