Mid-season shut down!

Mid-Season Shut down!

In order to better serve you, our cupcake kitchen will be experiencing a temporary shut down from Saturday, October 15th to Friday, November 18th. We have decided that being between wedding season and the holiday season is the perfect time to undergo some improvements. This will mean that my usual PBS deliveries on Monday Wednesdays, and Fridays will be on hold until Monday, November 21st. I am still available for chatting, emailing, and planning future events during this time so please feel free to contact me! Please don't worry as I'll be back in time to bake for you during the holiday season! In the meantime, enjoy the beautiful fall weather we are having!

Bridget Coffey, Chief Cupcake

Off she goes!

If you have had the opportunity in the past year to visit me in the cupcake kitchen, have seen me at a wedding show, or caught a glimpse of our cupcakes being set up for an event, then you probably would have met our Assistant Baker, Rochelle Wert. If you have had the opportunity to enjoy one of our cupcakes over the last year, then chances are they were mixed, baked, and or frosted by Rochelle. We really should have kept track of the exact number of cupcakes she may have actually frosted, it must be in the thousands!

Rochelle joined me in the kitchen last fall as a Wexford Missaukee Intermediate School District Career Tech Center student "intern". As a Senior in High School she spent half of her school day in the Culinary and Marketing program. I really just thought I needed someone to work beside me washing dishes, but she quickly moved from an "intern" role to my Assistant Baker and my right hand gal. By the end of this summer she was able to take a lead in the kitchen so I could spend more time doing some of the behind the scene operations and preparations for our larger events. In the back of my mind I thought if I got another call from Cupcake Wars and actually made it on the show, I could do it now! But only if Rochelle was by my side!

When I first met Rochelle, her dream after graduation was to be accepted and attend Culinary School where she could specialize in pastry. Next week her dream is coming true! Rochelle will be heading to Rhode Island where she will be attending Culinary School at Johnson and Whales University, which boasts some famous alumni such as the likes of Emeril Laggasse.

I am going to miss having her in the kitchen, but I can't wait to be able to hear about her adventures in the world of culinary! Please join me in wishing Rochelle the best of luck, safe travels, and Congratulations on her new adventure!

Celebrating Summer in Michigan with Megan's Cupcakes

Happy Summer! We are in full swing catering many events from weddings to birthdays to back yard barbecues. In addition to baking cupcakes, we have been busy updating our website and would love for you to check out our new and improved site! If you are interested in following us on a daily basis, watching for new flavors, and seeing photos of our latest work, please check us out on facebook. We are very excited to be near the 500 fan mark!

For July and August we will be celebrating summer in Michigan! Please join us on Saturday, July 30th from 11am-2pm in downtown Cadillac for Sidewalk Sales. Megan's Cupcakes will be setting up shop between Platinum Noir Salon and Atomic Closet. We will have Michigan Black Sweet Cherry Butter Cream Frosting Shots free to sample, and our new cupcake flavor, Cherrilicious! This is a Black Sweet Cherry Cupcake topped with Cherry Butter cream garnished with a cherry on top! We'll have cupcakes for sale by the individual or in 6 packs. While you are sampling your Cherry Buttercream, Megan's cousin, Emma, will be face painting. Have a cupcake painted on your cheek for $1.00. The proceeds from face painting will go to benefit Project Christmas!

Our August flavor of the month is another Michigan favorite, Blueberrilicious! This is our Blueberry Cupcake topped with Blueberry Butter Cream. We use Michigan blueberries that are locally grown, puree them to put inside the cupcake batter and in the butter cream. When it's all baked and frosted, we garnish the cupcake with a little blueberry on top! Not only are they a beautiful shade of blue, but they taste great too! You will love them!

On a side note, my cupcake kitchen will be closed from Monday, August 8th to Thursday, August 11th so I can enjoy some of the beauty Michigan has to offer with my family! We will be turning the ovens back on Friday, August 12th!

Happy Summer to you and yours!

The Team, The Team, The Team

Former University of Michigan Football Coach and Athletic Director Bo Schembechler has a famous recording that was taken prior to the 1984 Washington vs Michigan football game where he talks about the importance of "The Team." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOmQJhHfGf8&feature=related

This weekend was crazy busy for Megan's Cupcakes. While I am not a crazy University of Michigan fan like our friends the Meyers, without my team, I never could have pulled it off today. Thank you to everyone who was part the Megan's Cupcakes team!

Megan's Cupcakes and Google Analytics

We launch our redesigned website a few weeks ago. Last Friday, my husband the internet marketing guru, installed Google Analytics to track the visitors on Meganscupcakes.com. Google Analytics is a free website measurement application offered by Google.

We are seeing some pretty interesting results. We have had visitors from 6 different countries including Canada, UK and Brazil. We have seen visitors from 19 different states -- and that is just in the first week. Just think what we will see in the future. It truly is a World Wide Web

Summer with Megan's Cupcakes

t's here! It's here! Summer is finally here in Northern Michigan! Please join Megan's Cupcakes this summer for some great fun!

Saturday, June 18th- Father's Day Cupcakes. We have a trio of cupcake flavors just for Dad. Vanilla Cupcake with Sweet Cherry Butter Cream, Key Lime Cupcake with Lime Butter Cream, and a Chocolate Cupcake with Peanut Buttercup Frosting. Boxed by the dozen and delivered locally for $15.00 or stop by PBS on Saturday after 10am to pick-up a boxed six pack (two of each flavor) for $9.00 while supplies last.

Saturday, July 2nd- S'mores Cupcakes are back by popular demand just in time for the Independence Day celebrations! This is our graham cracker cupcake filled with marshmallow cream, topped with fudge frosting and a toasted mini marshmallow on top! Pre-order a dozen boxed cupcakes for Saturday delivery for $15.00 or for your convenience I'll have six packs for sale at PBS after 10am for $9.00.

Friday, July 15th and Saturday, July 17th- Cadillac's Annual Festival of the Arts and the Taste of Cadillac food Fair. We are excited to be in the dessert tent for our 4th year in a row featuring our S'mores Cupcake and the Lemon Cupcake. This year we will be placing our very own homemade mini marshmallows on top and as always toasting them with our mini torch. Cupcakes will be sold individually on Friday night from 5-8pm and Saturday from 11am-4pm. Come early on Friday night and we are going to try hard not to sell out early!

We would also like to thank all of our faithful customers who keep buying cupcakes at our retail location! We deliver fresh to PBS/Marathon on S. Granite and Mitchell on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. The cupcakes are located in the doughnut counter and are sold individually for $1.50. Since many have asked, our cupcakes are on summer hiatus at Thirsty's Elmrest as we are stepping aside for their homemade ice cream sales.

If you are interested in learning more about Megan's Cupcakes, check out our web-site and follow us on facebook as we post our flavor of the day and pictures from our weddings and catering events.

Interested in winning a dozen free cupcakes? I am looking for the perfect photo of one of my brides and groom in front of their cupcake tree. If you happen to attend a Northern Michigan wedding featuring Megan's Cupcakes, I'd love to have a photo! Simply get the bride and grooms permission (as well as the photographers if this applies) and email me the photo for me to use in my marketing efforts. Please also email me your contact information and I'll be sure to reward you with a free dozen cupcakes!

Happy Summer!

Happy Birthday Megan's Cupcakes

It is hard to believe that it has been three years since we started Megan's Cupcakes with the press release that read

"Megan's Cupcakes Opens for Business in Cadillac, Michigan. Baked From Scratch Daily and Delivered Right to Your Doorstep, Megan's Cupcakes Makes Any Occasion Special, Delicious and Cost Effective.

Cadillac, Michigan -- May 5, 2008 -- Megan's Cupcakes (Megan's Cupcakes LLC) announces a delightful treat for any occasion has come to Northern Michigan! Megan's Cupcakes www.meganscupcakes.com of Cadillac, Michigan is a small family business that bakes cupcakes from scratch in small batches daily for any special event like graduation parties, weddings, birthday parties, showers, church events or any time you need a special treat."

Thank you so much to everyone for your support! On a side note, to those of you who said this was a silly idea: life is short -- indulge yourself and have a cupcake -- they are available at Thirsty's Elm Rest and PBS today with birthday sprinkles!

Out with the old and in with the new

Well, we have been putting it off and putting it off but the time has come to go out with the old and in with the new. Over the next few weeks, we are working on the redesign of www.meganscupcakes.com. Our current site has served us well over the past three years now. However, it needs to go much like the snow here in Cadillac, MI.

We will have a whole host of new content and functions on the new site that will allow for more two way communication, online ordering and hosting of videos and photos. We will post an update when the new site is launched and look forward to your feedback.

On a side note, no school snow day on April 20, 2011, really?

Good Luck Cupcakes in More Ways Than One

March always seems to be one of those dull months of the year. The cold and snow have lost their appeal and become tiresome and yet spring seems as if it will never come. I am trying to appreciate the fact that the frozen tundra in front of my house provide me with a wide open space to snow shoe until my heart is content. But don't despair, while we are anxiously awaiting spring, March actually has some great excuses to celebrate with cupcakes!

Tuesday, March 8th is Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras! Megan's Cupcakes brings the New Orleans tradition of their King Cake to Cadillac with our King Cupcakes. Our King Cupcake is a Cinnamon Swirl Cream Cupcake topped with Butter Cream Frosting and garnished with purple, gold, and green sugar, and a surprise for good fortune. The start of the Mardi Gras season is actually January 6th, the twelfth day after Christmas, the day the 3 Kings visited the baby Jesus. The season continues until the day before Ash Wednesday. Since Ash Wednesday commences the Lenten season, or the 40 days prior to Easter, when fasting and restricting sweet and fatty foods usually occurs, then of course the last day of the Mardi Gras season has also been known as "fat Tuesday." Many families honor "fat Tuesday" with pancakes for dinner. Folks from Detroit eat Paczki (custard or jelly filled donuts), and our friends from New Orleans celebrate with a King Cake. The King Cake is more like a coffee cake drizzled with frosting and colored sugar. The sugar colors are purple representing justice, green representing faith, and gold representing power. A small plastic baby is placed in each King Cake to symbolize the baby Jesus. Custom holds that the person who is served the piece of cake with the baby will be rewarded with good luck that year, and also has to bring the King Cake to the next celebration. So just like the King Cake, in each dozen cupcakes we serve, one will have a "baby Jesus" tucked underneath the butter cream waiting to be discovered and grant you with good luck.

Thursday, March 17th is St. Patrick's Day!! Speaking of good luck, may the luck of the Irish be blessed upon you this St. Patrick's Day. Celebrate the day with our famous Chocolate Guinness Beer Cupcakes topped with Bailey's Irish Butter Cream, or our Chocolate Cupcake with Mint Butter Cream. Each will be garnished with a green fondant clover signifying more good luck!

If this note finds you craving a cupcake right now, then please by all means stop reading and drive to PBS Marathon on S. Mitchell and Granite or Thirsty's Elmrest of M-55 and S. Lake Mitchell Dr. where cupcakes are sold individually. Otherwise, I would love to deliver cupcakes to your home, school, or office.

Where did my summer go?

Hello Sunshine! You have me thinking about summer. Way back in June my kids and I picked Michigan strawberries in a patch just south of Traverse City. I cleaned and froze the berries especially for days like today. The pureed strawberries are added to the cupcake batter and the butter cream and yield a flavor and smell that is reminiscent of summer. I have not baked these all winter long, so today felt like a real treat. I hope you get a chance to enjoy one. Have a great weekend!

Summertime is wedding time. One of the things I enjoy most about this business is talking to brides. Each has their own vision of there own perfect day. Some want a simple arrangement while others get really creative in matching all aspects of the wedding reception to the theme of their wedding. Megan's Cupcakes wedding calendar for summer 2011 is filling up quickly. So much to do between now and summertime.

Cupcake Craze. Is the fad about of fizzel?

Cupcake Craze. Is the fad about to fizzle?

By, Bridget Coffey

Last Sunday, I had the pleasure of partaking in the 3rd Annual Elite Bridal Expo at the Grand Traverse Resort just outside of Traverse City, Michigan. Not only did I have a booth with my wedding cupcakes on display, but I also was able to be a guest speaker in my area of expertise, cupcakes!

My name is Bridget Coffey and I am the Chief Cupcake of Megan’s Cupcakes, a cupcake only catering company based in Cadillac, MI. People always ask if I am Megan. My response is, “no I am Megan’s Mom.” Megan is my six-year old daughter and I named the business after her.

My talk starts out with the history of the cupcake, how the craze got started, and then leads us to our topic of whether the fad is going to fizzle and how Megan’s Cupcakes fits into the picture.

Cupcakes were first documented in the 19th century when two revolutionary advancements in baking were made. The first was the switch from weighing ingredients to measuring ingredients. Since cake baking in a hearth oven was difficult, women went to their cupboards and used their pottery teacups to bake individual size cakes. Hence, the term “cupcake” was formed.

Over 90 years ago, a man by the name of Mr. Rice brought the Hostess Cupcake to our grocers shelf. When sales were down he re-designed the cupcake in the 1940’s with the cream filling and the squiggle design on top, the way we know and love it today. Mr. Rice also gave us the Twinky, the Ho Ho, the Ding Dong, and the Snowball.

Americans have been baking with Betty Crocker cake mixes since 1949 and girls have been baking miniature cakes with the heat of a light bulb in their Easy Bake Ovens since 1963. My daughter has the new, Girl Gourmet Cupcake Maker that bakes a cupcake in 30 seconds in the microwave!

Cupcakes became a pop culture obsession right around the time when characters Carrie and Miranda from HBO’s series Sex and the City were featured in front of Magnolia Bakery in New York City eating a cupcake. Soon after Magnolia’s became a tourist attraction. I recently visited their Rockefeller Center location and I must say I too waited in line to pay over $3 for one of their Red Velvet cupcakes!

Next came the first cupcake only bakery in California, Sprinkles, opened by pastry Chef Candice Nelson. She now has a chain of bakeries and sells her mixes out of William Sonoma. You may know her as she is one of the celebrity judges on Food Network’s Cupcake Wars. If you are a fan of the show and think I should be on it, well, I already missed out on my 15 minutes of fame. Last summer I received a call from the producers asking me to audition for season 2. I did not make the final cut. It was flattering to at least get the call and I had fun filming my audition video that can be viewed on Youtube.

This takes us to the question of the day. Is the fad ready to fizzle out? No chance, according to a February 3, 2011 article in The Wall Street Journal. Cupcakes are now just moving from sweet to savory. Trader Joe’s in New York sells a frozen turkey meat loaf cupcake topped with spinach and mashed potatoes. Heirloom, an LA catering company sold 10,000 lasagna cupcakes in the month of December! One celebrity bride in LA even served them at her wedding!

So why do people love to eat cupcakes? Here are 5 reasons why. Cupcakes are portable. Cupcakes don’t require a knife and a fork. It is fun to peel the paper off of a cupcake. Cupcakes provide us with nostalgia. And cupcakes are guilt reduced because of their size.

While the cupcake craze is mainstream on the east and west coast, Megan’s Cupcakes is the only cupcake only catering company in Northern Michigan. People love to have Megan’s Cupcakes at their special events and weddings. Megan’s Cupcakes has cupcake trees that have from 2 to 7 tiers and can hold from 24 to 300 plus cupcakes. We collaborate with our brides and their florist to customize a dramatic display for their “cake” table, but it’s cupcakes.

Megan’s Cupcakes are baked from scratch in small batches the morning of the event. You only order the number of cupcakes needed so there is no waste and you can customize the flavor selections so each of your guests will have the flavor they love. Better yet, no one has to cut the cake. After the ceremonial cupcake exchange between the bride and groom, guests are free to gather around the cupcake tree, peruse their flavor selections (we type them up in a pretty frame), and then indulge in a cupcake.

As long as there are kids who are born with a sweet tooth and Moms who bake cupcakes for school snacks there will be new generations of cupcake lovers. Cupcakes may not be as traditional as cake, but they are nostalgic. Cupcakes make people of all ages smile. Cupcakes are here to stay!

Winter Cupcake plans

Happy New Year Cupcake lover! With the Christmas season, behind us, January is the perfect time re-group, re-organize, and plan for the new year. Whether you are looking for an individual afternoon treat, celebrating a birthday, or a larger event, Megan's Cupcakes has some tasty new ideas for you in 2011!

January's new flavor: Key Lime Cupcake with Lime Butter Cream Frosting. The light dusting of graham cracker crumbs reminds me of Key Lime Pie. You will love it!

February's flavor: Chocolate Cupcake with Sweet Cherry Butter Cream. This is a brand new chocolate cake recipe that is extra moist and has a richer chocolate flavor. It pairs nicely with the Cherry Butter Cream Frosting. Don't forget to order your sweetheart cupcakes on Monday, February 14th / Valentine's Day!!

If you are need of just a single cupcake, please don't forget that I deliver fresh cupcakes to PBS Marathon on South Mitchell and Granite in Cadillac and Thirsty's Elmrest on M-55 in Cadillac West every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Check out my facebook page on those mornings to learn the flavor of the day.

If you, a friend, or family member are planning a wedding, then I have two great Bridal Shows to attend. I'll have my cupcakes on display for you to see and taste!

Sunday, February 6th I will be at the Grand Traverse Resort Bridal Expo from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. There are door prizes and a wedding package give away worth $10,000! For more information, or to pre-register go to https://www.michiganweddingplanner.com/index.php?option=com_civicrm&view=Events&layout=register&Itemid=763

Sunday, February 20th I will be at the Fox Hill Bridal Show from 12:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M. in Cadillac, MI. Door prizes and a great chance to meet local vendors. For more information about Fox Hill Event Center go to, http://www.foxhilleventcenter.com/

I saved the biggest news for the last. Megan's Cupcakes now offers three different cupcake sizes. Mini Cupcakes (a nice bite size sample), Classic Cupcake (the same size your Mom always made and the perfect portion), and now THE BIG BETTY CUPCAKE! This is a Gigantic Jethro size cupcake about the size of a soccer ball and will serve 12-16 people depending on how large you slice it or not. Choose any flavor on my cupcake menu for your BIG BETTY CUPCAKE! Prices are $20.00 for THE BIG BETTY, $1.25 each or $15.00 per dozen for the Classic Cupcake, or $7.50/dozen for the minis.