Hi Everyone - Alex here.

Before I explain what you see on this page, I thought a little intro was in order.

I've made a few of the "Cupcake Cakes" in the past. And since we have tried to use our web site more to show you what we can do at Baked To Perfection, I thought it time we get an example of the cupcake cake process documented.

After the cake is made, the customer, instead of cutting pieces of cake for everyone can just let each person pull a cupcake from the overall cupcake cake.

It is a fairly new process that really came about because of how 'odd shaped' some cakes have to be because of the subject of the cake or the design I want to apply to the cake.

Normally when someone has a theme they want applied to a square or rectangle cake, and if it is not a picture that they specifically want me to add on the cake, I find  a picture of that theme on the Internet. Those pictures are usually pretty square or rectangle too. I download that picture to my laptop and then print it on edible rice paper using a special printer. Then apply the picture to a square or rectangle cake, decorate it more as needed and you have the final result.

In some cases, I may have to take a square or rectangle cake and cut it to a specific shape so the theme better fits my purposes. Sometimes there is some cake that doesn't get used in the final result.

To make a long story short, I had a request to make a cake with a "MonstersInc." theme. Needless to say what I wanted to do for this cake required a very unique pattern and layout.

I could see it in my mind's eye and what I wanted to accomplish, but it required that unique shape. Instead of cutting a square or rectangle cake, I decided I'd try something new - make the shape out of cupcakes.

By arranging the individual cupcakes into the shape I needed, I was able to not have any cutting or wasted cake. Once created into the shape, it was iced and the rest of the process I'll note below and provide some pictures so you can see the process as it progressed.

Step #1 -

The picture at the right shows the picture of Sully and Mike of MonstersInc that I found on the Internet. Notice the unique overall shape of the characters picture and you can see why making the cake out of individual cupcakes makes it easier to get the required shape with no cutting of a rectangular or square cake.

Step #2 -

This picture shows the individual cupcakes laid out on a covered cardboard bottom and in the overall shape I need for Sully and Mike. And the layout is totally iced so I have a flat surface to work with to create my drawing of the cartoon or anything my customer wants.

If you look closely, you can see the cupcakes are visible around the edge of the shape pattern and under all the icing I've applied over the top of them.

Step #3 -

This picture shows the cupcake cake after I have drawn the image of the cartoon onto it. I know what I want to do with the cake in its final form so I make sure all the detail is there before I proceed. Applying all this detail in drawn form allows me to apply the color in the next step needed to make the cake look as real as it can to the picture I have to work with.

You can still see those individual cupcakes around the outside under the icing.

Step #4 -

This picture shows the cupcake cake after I have applied my color to the drawing I made in Step #3.

As I mentioned above, all the detail in my drawing on the icing allows me to apply detail in the colors I need. I apply those colors with an air-brush type of applicator gun using all edible food coloring. Most of the time I need to mix the basic colors I have together to get the right colors to match the picture I am using as a pattern.

Step #5 -

This picture shows the next step in the process where I have applied any writing to the cupcake cake such as 'Happy Birthday etc', 'Congratulations etc' or anything that the customer wants.

Also in this step, I have iced around the edges to give the cupcake cake a more "finished" look hiding some of the cupcakes underneath but still letting them visible so someone can grab one of them without getting too messy grabbing all icing. I also added some colorful candies around the edge too!

I guess that pretty much completes what I wanted to show you in the process of how a cupcake cake is made and how it came about. Below is the final product for the MonstersInc cupcake cake.

As we do with all our special cake requests, whether it be with a birthday cake, specialty cake or wedding cake, we will work with you to provide a cake that will make your day a one-of-a-kind special day.

Thanks for letting me share this with you - as you can see I really enjoy what I am doing.

Alex