Thursday, May 26, 2011

Backyard Bugs Cookies

Spring is almost over (hard to tell with all the rain we're getting). These lemon-flavoured sugar cookies are not only gifts, but they are in honour of our little friends that are a part of our ecosystem.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Sign Up and Receive a Sweet Offer!

If you live in the Durham Region, Toronto or in the surrounding areas, send me an e-mail and request to be on my client list at carrie@carriescreations.ca!  In return, I will give you timely updates and promotions PLUS you will receive $5 off your first order (minimum $25 purchase). The e-mail addresses are used solely for Carrie's Creations and will never be released to another party. I want to keep you as customers, after all! :)

A Rough Guide for Basic Pricing:
I was on the fence whether to release a pricing list online, especially when each order is custom, it will be different. If you follow this guide, it will let you know what to budget for. I will not turn away orders; we can work around your budget and come to a compromise. :)

COOKIES
Starting at $25 for a batch of sugar cookies decorated with royal icing (yields are approximate depending on shape):
2" cookies yield 20
3" cookies yield 12
4" cookies yield 8


CAKES
Wedding serving sizes (1.5"x2"x4")
6" round or square = 8 or 12 servings
8" round or square = 16 or 24 servings
9" round or square = 22 or 27 servings
10" round or square = 30 or 40 servings
12" round or square = 45 or 60 servings
14" round or square = 60 or 80 servings

Party serving sizes (2"x2"x4")
6" round or square = 6 or 10 servings
8" round or square = 11 or 20 servings
9" round or square = 18 or 26 servings
10" round or square = 22 or 30 servings
12" round or square = 32 or 48 servings

Basic cakes (meringue buttercream icing and limited fondant decorations)... starting at $3/serving

Fondant cakes (fondant covering cake and/or fondant/gumpaste decorations)... starting at $4/serving

All extra toppers and embellishments are additional charges and it will vary depending on the level of details... starting at $10


CUPCAKES AND MORE
Standard Cupcakes (minimum order 12)... starting at $2.50 each

Mini Cupcakes (minimum order 24)... starting at $1.75 each

Truffle Cake Balls or Pops (minimum order 12)... starting at $1.50 each

Order pick-ups... free (by appointment only)

Delivery to Durham Region... free

Delivery to Toronto and GTA... $10 to $20 (depending on the gas prices!)

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Red Velvet Cupcakes, Gnome Cake, and Fun Fair Sugar Cookies

This past week has been quite busy for me.
* * *
I made some red velvet cupcakes for my aunt-in-law's belated birthday for Saturday. This is my standard recipe for orders with a cream cheese icing (not Swiss meringue buttercream) because it just fits. You can't tell in the photo, but the cake is SUPER red with a hint of chocolate flavour. 
Happy Birthday, Auntie Heather!

Red velvet cupcakes with fondant ribbon rose toppers
* * *
Next up, my father-in-law is turning 70 later this month, but since we were in town, we decided to deliver his cake the same day as the red velvet cupcakes (unfortunately, baby Owen was sick, so we only stayed for 5 minutes and then we drove back home).

The request was for a garden gnome cake. I made all the decorations out of marshmallow fondant, Italian meringue buttercream and a few dabs of royal icing. The tree stump cake itself is a 6-inch gluten-free banana chocolate chip 3-layer cake with Italian meringue buttercream filling, covered with chocolate ganache to resemble bark. I loved how this cake came to life when it was assembled. My only hiccups: the tall mushroom fell over because the grass icing was at room temperature for a while; during transit, the snail fell over because the base wasn't sticking to the curve of the mushroom top; and, also during transit, the gnome fell over because I used spaghettini to stick him into the cake (not strong enough - I will be using maybe linguine for supports in the future).
Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

* * *
I decided to donate a gift certificate of a dozen sugar cookies to an upcoming fun fair at the closest elementary school to me. I wanted to create a basket of goodies to show what I can do. Here are a few:

 Fondant apple on sugar cookie

 Royal icing transfer with sprinkles on sugar cookie

Royal icing transfer Brobee from Yo Gabba Gabba on sugar cookie

 Painted butterfly design with icing colour mix sprinkled with disco dust on sugar cookie

 Milk chocolate chip cookies drizzled with dark chocolate

 Royal icing transfer of Cookie Monster on sugar cookie

 Royal icing transfer of Elmo on sugar cookie

White chocolate and dark chocolate transfers of soccer ball on sugar cookies
* * *
I am looking forward to this little break for the rest of this month, only having to work on a few upcoming projects for June. Stay tuned! :)