rockin' cup-quakes

Coffee Meringue

2011-08-11T18:12:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
5 egg whites @ room temp
1/4 + 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 cup sugar ( you can add another 2 tbsp if you prefer to make it sweeter)
1 1/2 tsp coffee extract

Line cookie sheet with wax or parchment paper. You may have to use several cookies, depending on how many and the size of your piped meringues

Preheat oven at 200 degrees F

Make sure your mixing bowl is clean & grease free. At medium speed, beat egg whites in a large bowl until foamy. Add cream of tartar. Increase speed to high and continue beating until soft peaks form. Start adding sugar gradually beating for about 6 minutes until stiff. Immediately add coffee extract and beat for another minute until well mixed.

Using a spatula, scoop meringue into a pastry bag. Pipe to desired size onto the cookie sheet using a star tip. Give enough space in between each meringue. Bake for about 1 1/2 - 2 hours until it's dry to the touch. You can bake it for up to 3 hours if you prefer it to be more crispy. I personally like it a little soft inside which is why I only go up to an hour and a half. Either way, it melts in your mouth!!

Allow meringues to cool on cookie sheets then store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy!

COFFEE JELLY

2011-04-17T14:04:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

Ingredients:   15 grams gelatin powder
                      3 tablespoons instant coffee
                      1/3 to 2/3 cups of Splenda Baking Blend sugar (or you   can also use their brown sugar or whatever sweetener you want, depending on your taste)
                      2 cups water

1. Put water in a saucepan. Add in powdered gelatin, coffee, and sugar. allow jelly mixture to stand at room temperature for 5 - 10 minutes.

2. Over low heat, stir mixture continuously until gelatin, sugar, and coffee are completely dissolved. Pour mixture into a square pan. Chill in the fridge for 8 hours or until set.

3. Once set, remove jelly out of fridge. Run a knife along the inner sides of the pan and across to cut jelly into cubes. Scoop jelly cubes out of the pan and put over and around a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream or any other flavor you might prefer. (mocha, jamocha, chocolate, coffee - totally up to your taste buds!!!)

4. Last but not the least, ENJOY AND SAVOR EVERY SPOONFUL!!!:)

Lemon Souflle Pancakes w/ Blueberry Compote

2011-03-17T20:50:00.000-07:00

Ingredients for Pancake Batter:

3 large eggs, separated, 1/4 cup all purpose flour - sifted, 1/4 cup melted butter, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 3/4 cup cottage cheese, 1/4 tsp almond extract, 1 tbsp lemon zest

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients except the egg whites, salt and sugar. Set aside. In a separate bowl, whip egg whites, salt and sugar until it forms soft peaks. Take a 1/4 cup of the beaten egg whites and mix it with the egg yolk batter to temper. Fold in the rest of the egg whites. Cook over 325 degrees grill pan or cook over skillet in medium heat.

Ingredients for Compote:

1 cup orange juice, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 cups blueberries, 1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in water (for thickening)

In a pot over medium heat, combine orange juice, sugar & cornstarch with water to thicken. Stir to mix. Then add blueberries & let it cook for about 15 minutes.

Ta-dah!!!

CUPCAKE FONDUE

2011-01-12T12:23:00.000-08:00

This one is courtesy of Amanda Krueger of www.bakeitpretty.com. It's a fun activity you can do with your kids, friends, practically anyone who enjoys the sweetest blessings life can offer.

Cupcake Fondue
You will need:
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup liquid (orange juice, fruit juice, milk, or water)
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
Miniature-size cupcakes in the flavor of your choice, cooled and unfrosted
Assorted sprinkles, chopped nuts, and other toppings

1. Make a batch of your favorite mini cupcakes – homemade or from a mix. Make them nice and small so you don’t feel guilty about enjoying 2 or 3 of them. If you use paper liners for baking, remove them after the cupcakes have cooled. Pound cake or any other firm cake works well for skewering, but any cake will do. I used a simple yellow box-mix cake. Allow to cool completely before dipping.

2. Make the fondue: Whisk together powdered sugar, orange juice, and corn syrup. Adjust the consistency with a drop of liquid or a dash more powdered sugar until you get have a smooth, thick glaze. I used orange juice for the liquid portion to give it a citrus flavor and cheese-like yellow fondue color. You could also use grape juice for a pastel purple, or milk/water and add your own coloring.

3. Pour frosting into the fondue pot. There’s really no need to heat the mixture, but you can keep a small tea light or very low flame underneath just for looks! Display sprinkles and toppings in small ramekins or portion cups and arrange around the fondue pot. Skewer cupcakes in the side and dip the top half into the fondue, then flip the cupcake over and the frosting will drip nicely down the sides. Sprinkle liberally with your favorite toppings.

Young children can even dip the tops of the cupcakes in with their fingers since the fondue is not hot. You may need to give the fondue a quick stir every now and then to keep it smooth if you aren’t actively dipping. This is a sweet, silly, messy project and my son Max (8) and I had a wonderful time making our fondue cupcakes. This would be a great addition to a party desert table, or for a special treat on a rainy day. Enjoy!

LOVE in 2011

2011-01-05T10:18:00.000-08:00

Why cram for the special day when you can start planning it now for that special person in your life? Whether it be your significant other or your family, you'll definitely score big in their hearts with BluRuby's charming Valentine Edible print designs for your sweet treats. Check them out at www.bluruby.com. Here's a teaser :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2010-12-31T19:14:00.000-08:00

Here it comes, 2011!!! Congratulations everyone for surviving 2010! Stay strong, stay focused, stay faithful! Peace to all of you!

BluRuby Recipe Choice of the Season: Carrot Cake/Cupcake

2010-12-14T10:49:00.000-08:00

Carrot Cake

6 ounces flour ( about 1 1/3 cups )
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves
8 1/2 ounces sugar
5 ounces vegetable oil ( a little over 1/2 cup )
4 eggs
10 ounces grated carrots ( a little over 1 cup )
optional - 3 ounces ( a little less than 1/2 cup ) of chopped pecans

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 inch cake pan and line with parchment or wax paper round. If using muffin pan, it only takes about 15 - 17 minutes to bake.

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.

Mix sugar, oil, eggs, carrots, and pecans for 2 minutes on low speed of mixer.

Fold in dry ingredients.

Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 block ( 8 oz ) cream cheese, softened
1 stick ( 4 oz ) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 lbs. confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Cream together cream cheese and butter in bowl until well blended. In 3 parts, add the powdered sugar and mix well after every addition. Add vanilla and beat until well blended and smooth.

Happy Holidays!!!!

BluRuby Merchandise at Zazzle

2010-12-09T15:55:00.000-08:00

BluRuby has arrived at Zazzle! Check out our merchandise:

http://www.zazzle.com/bluruby

Post Cupcake Camp LA

2010-11-21T19:33:00.000-08:00

There was rain, a little bit of slow traffic, a few puddles here and there, but no one could have stopped it from happening - it rained CUPCAKES on Saturday, November 20, 2010! Congratulations to everyone involved in planning this charitable event, Cupcake Camp LA 2010, and all the participating bakers, including yours truly, in showing up and delivering fun and a ton of sugar - I meant that literally and figuratively! I hope everyone who attended and tasted all the cuppy delights went home satisfied and not in any state of sugar shock :D Water....drink lots of water! :)

For pictures of the event, please go to the BluRuby fanpage:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/BluRuby/159733164041116?v=photos&ref=sgm#!/album.php?aid=48452&id=159733164041116

BluRuby @ Cupcake Camp LA this Saturday Nov. 20

2010-11-17T21:07:00.000-08:00

All you cupcake crazy people! Want to sample as many cupcakes as you want? Want to learn to decorate those divine baked goodies coming out of your oven? Want to be immersed in cupcakelandia at least for a few hours?

Then stop by the Music Box Theater in Hollywood this coming Saturday for Cupcake Camp LA! http://cupcakecampla.bakespace.com/ It should be one fun, sugar filled afternoon and most importantly, it's for charity! See you there!

BluRuby Yummy Recipe Choice for the Month

2010-11-04T11:08:00.000-07:00

Thought you might want to try this recipe for REALLY AWESOME buttercream frosting! This will work so well with your printed frosting sheet art so plan your next cupcake, cookie or cake creation with this great combo - Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and BluRuby Edible Art (bluruby.com)

BLURUBY YUMMY RECIPE CHOICE FOR THE MONTH:
(perfect frosting for your choice edible art)

Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:
5 tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup milk (you can use low fat if you prefer)
1 cup sugar (better if you use baker's sugar)
8 oz unsalted butter, softened (equiv. to 2 sticks of butter)
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Using a whisk, dissolve the flour with milk in a sauce pan over low to medium heat. Stir until a thick roux forms (like paste). Remove from heat, cover with plastic wrap (this is so no film forms on the surface of the roux) set aside and allow to cool. (You will have to give this a few minutes of cooling time before proceeding to the next step. Tip: Make your roux while waiting for your butter to soften so you save time)

2. In a separate bowl, beat the softened butter, sugar, and vanilla extract until well blended. Add the cooled flour paste and whip for about 8 - 10 minutes until sugar is dissolved. Halfway through whipping, stop and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. Then continue to whip until you have this wonderfully light, whipped frosting.

3. If you need to color your frosting, you can add your choice of food coloring after you are done whipping. At slow speed of your mixer, add your color and mix until you arrive at your desired color.

OR just leave your frosting white and decorate with BLURUBY EDIBLE ART for an even more fabulous finish!

This recipe is enough to cover 24 regular size cupcakes, 48 mini cupcakes, 8" round double layer cake, or a single layer quarter sheet cake

Have fun!

BLURUBY.COM

2010-10-25T12:21:00.000-07:00

Sorry to be gone for a while but bluruby has been going through a make over!
Finally, BluRuby has decided to re-launch it's website but this time, making all it's original designs available to all of you bakers, pro or amateur, cake decorators, home makers, you name it - it's open to all! Check out bluruby.com and peruse the fun, edgy designs we have to offer! Here's a little video to see how everything works! Enjoy and stop by our online shop!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Vo-JOrP9ac

BluRuby's Flash Drive Entry

2010-07-08T10:31:00.000-07:00

Infectious.com is having this contest for flash drive designs. Thought I would join just because. I realize I'm not much of a character design artist but I thought I could give it a whirl. I went through several designs, most of which really did not represent me best. Finally, I came up with this:

People can vote on this but the final decision will be up to their judges. If you're feeling up to casting your vote my way :), please click on the link below and give me some sugar!!!

http://www.infectious.com/voting/bluruby/creampuff/7598

Whether or not they pick my design (because there are so many brilliant entries so I really would hate to hold my breath), I had fun doing it. And that's what matters, right? Good eats!

One Woman Show featuring Alex Kube

2010-03-29T07:49:00.000-07:00

There's nothing more inspiring to me than to see people shooting for their dream and succeeding in it. That's the story of my friend Alex Kube (www.alexkube.com) who is having her one woman show this coming Friday at Gallery 839.

Gallery 839's next show opens Friday, April 2, with a reception from 6 pm to 9 pm. Gallery 839 is located at the Animation Guild, 1105 N. Hollywood Way in Burbank. Snacks and refreshments will be served.

I'm very proud of her accomplishment and I invite people to come and see her paintings. What a talent!

Oh, and btw, my cupcakes will be there too, so enjoy ;)

The Millinery Guild of Downtown LA

2010-03-20T15:37:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, March 18, BluRuby was one of the sponsors for the Millinery Guild Fashion Week show at the Spring Arts Building in Downtown LA.
http://themillineryguild.blogspot.com/
The theme for the show was "Alice in Wonderland". I thought I would go the classic route on this ;) Very nostalgic for yours truly.

A Belated Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

Thanks Zita L. for the support!

The Biggest Cupcake I've Made - So Far

2010-03-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

Hanging out at William-Sonoma is harmful to my pocket! Could not resist the giant cupcake pan they have!

SUPER MIGGY

2010-02-21T14:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my godson Miggy's 7th birthday. In my culture, one's seventh birthday is a milestone and is celebrated in a big way. So, as a present, I made him his birthday cake and cupcakes inspired by his favorite game, Super Mario Bros. He even dressed as the character - CUTIE!!! He seemed very pleased with the way his cake and cupcakes turned out, I think :) And I majorly pigged out at the party! BIG SPREAD!

When it rains.................

2009-12-15T12:56:00.000-08:00

it pours.......and pours.........and pours! Well that's what happened this past wet, LA weekend during the Holiday Bazaar where yours truly was showing off her little cuppies! It was not disheartening though, it was still fun and I met some new friends and great contacts - which was one of the primary reasons I participated in the event. Many thanks to those who braved the wet weather and came to show support. Special thanks to the models who posed with my cupcakes! Happy Holidays everyone! Here's how everything looked:

Holiday Bazaar this coming Saturday, December 12'09

2009-12-10T21:05:00.000-08:00

Yours truly has decided to join this year's Holiday Bazaar in Downtown LA. I figured it would be a great way to meet new people outside of my comfort zone in animation. It might also open new doors for me and BluRuby come 2010.

So, if any of you have time to check it out, there's lots to see at this event and admission is only $5 - good deal, eh? And there's lots of parking - at least that's what I'm told! :)

Lily turns 1!!!

2009-10-27T20:43:00.000-07:00

One of the most gorgeous little girls I have ever had the pleasure of making cupcakes for - LILY! Just look!

And here's how her "lily pad" cake and cupcake tower turned out.

Cute baby - courtesy of Josh Hamilton and Angie Mueller.
Cake and cupcakes - by BluRuby.

Congratulations Bob & Tom

2009-08-12T22:34:00.001-07:00

I mentioned early this year that I was commissioned by my friend and former director at Warner Bros., Bob Doucette, to make the cupcakes and cake for his wedding to his partner of 22 years, Tom Slotten. It was a very intimate ceremony, shared with their respective families and friends. I was very honored to have been asked to be part of their very special day and here's how their cupcakes and cake turned out.

The Cake Table

The Cake

The Mini Cupcakes

And here are a few pictures of the grooms!

Bob and me

Dashing Tom

Cake cutting

the happy couple

We'll Miss You, Chowder

2009-07-07T14:48:00.000-07:00

The artwork on this cake was drawn by Carl Greenblatt, creator of Chowder.

What else can I say? All lot of inspiration that were translated into cupcakes and cake. I had the best time working on this show. I haven't worked on something so different and aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, not to mention, funny! Thanks, Dan Krall, for teaching me how to use the croquille. Now I can't seem to put it down. I love that darn tool :/

And the happy hours - thanks to my partners in crime, Mr. Bill Flores and Mr. Blake Lemons! And here we are........

Okay, not my most flattering picture but it WAS happy hour! What do you expect? This picture was actually taken during our last happy hour on Chowder. And here's more....

Why would CNS not want to make more Chowder? Beats me.

February Birthdays

2009-02-26T20:11:00.000-08:00

No cupcakes this month, just cakes. And it's okay, I like baking cakes. Really I do. No, really, believe me, I swear, really, really, really! Okay, fine....you got me. I like baking cupcakes more! But it's okay - REALLY!!!

It was a Happy Birthday - Poker Night celebration for my sister-in-law's nephew, RJ, last February 8. The birthday boy turned 30 and by Filipino standards, he's finally legal! Just kidding :) He's been let loose for some time now.

And for the Ben10 birthday people, hope you all enjoyed the red velvet cake. See you next month!

Happy 2009

2009-01-27T12:11:00.000-08:00

What a year 2008 was! It had it's high points and EXTREMELY low points for me. But, like we always say, we just try and pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and move forward once more. I'm going to try my best to focus on all things positive and not let the minor (or major) inconveniences throw me off course. Easier said than done but I'll damned if I don't try!

So, I'm off to a good start with my good friend (and former boss :D), Bob Doucette and longtime partner, Tom, commissioning BluRuby, for their upcoming wedding in August this year! Yay! Another cupcake tower looming in the horizon. I'm honored to be a part of this wonderful union.

Just last week, I started back on the 3rd Season of Chowder at Cartoon Network. Yay! I'm employed, at least for now. Hopefully, CNS will be generous enough to keep giving the show it's support and keep us out of trouble :)

And most recently, I had just launched my cupcake merchandise on Etsy.com. Check out my little cuppies (nothing edible this time) on http://bluruby.etsy.com. Tell me what you think and while you're at it, shop if you see anything you like.

I pray that 2009 will be a good year for all of us. But like I said, no matter what the year ahead may bring, let's all stay optimistic, it's still a better choice than the alternative. At least, that's how I'm choosing to be.

BUSY BAKING MONTH!!!

2008-10-30T16:59:00.000-07:00

Well, well, well.......finally a peep from yours truly. Been a while, I know but what can I say, life has been extremely challenging for me and my family these past months. But all is good, life is as it should be, and the baking was resurrected this month.

As a present for two cute nephews, an Elmo cupcake tower was requested. Like the push-over aunt that I am, of course I had to oblige!
SATISFIED CUSTOMERS!!!

The following weekend, Oct. 18, was my friend Angie's baby shower. It was a fun afternoon with the gals. The highlight for me though was mistaking Angie's lantern for the baby shower pinata and smashing it to pieces - oops! I still owe them a paper lantern :( By the way, she gave birth to her daughter the following Sunday, Oct. 26, 4 weeks early!!!

On the same day was my friend Bev Chapman's website launching party. Of course I couldn't go because I was at the baby shower, but my cupcakes did!

The next day, I little boy named Elliott celebrated his 3rd birthday. His mom wanted a dinosaur themed cupcake tower for his party and so here's how it turned out.

Hmmmmm............T-rex.........How precious does that face look???

Finally, this past weekend was the 18th birthday of the daughter of a family friend. This time, the mom wanted a cake instead of a cupcake tower for the special occasion. Check this out:

October's over tomorrow - and I'm done baking for now. Happy Halloween eveyone!!!

Few and far between

2008-06-03T21:30:00.000-07:00

I'm back and I know, it's been quite some time since the last posting, which also means, the last time I baked. The day job, I'm afraid has been taking up more of my time, not to mention, some occasional freelance. It's really difficult to balance animation and baking as both are labor intensive. However, I did make some exceptions along the way for special customers like Helen and Richard Smitheman's daughter, Holly, who celebrated her 12th birthday back in March. Holly is into elephants and bees (cute combo I thought) so here's how her cupcakes turned out.

And, of course, I'm always available for my studio's cupcake needs and so here are the cupcakes for the Ben 10 Wrap Party at the House of Blues in April.

Finally, as a special request from a friend's daughter, who wanted her favorite band on her birthday cupcakes, here's what we came up with. An homage to My Chemical Romance! Rock on, Jade!

HELLO 2008

2008-01-02T17:01:00.000-08:00

A blessed and very Happy New Year to all! It's quite some time since my last posting and I apologize but I have been busy with my day job. (and that's good ;D) Nonetheless, I did some baking from time to time to honor the commitments I made to friends earlier last year so here are some of special ones .

Happy 8th Birthday, Trina! She had her ice skating party at Pickwick in Burbank.

Congratulations Serapio and Jill on getting hitched!

And Thuy, I hope your nephew's first birthday was a blast!!!

A fairy tale of a holiday party for the Tinkerbell Crew of Toon Disney, hosted by Jim and Mary Shellhorn.

Toying with Merchandising

2007-09-30T17:34:00.001-07:00

So I think in the near future, BluRuby will go into a few practical accoutrements to sell. Here's a product sample with my personal motto "I said, I'M SWEET!!! NOT SAVORY!!!" mug design, courtesy of the very talented Millet Henson - BluRuby's official artist in charge of merchandising.

The history behind this quote started back in April when I volunteered at the UCLA/LA Times Book Festival. The coordinator of the cooking stage was questioning my ability to saute and kept cautioning me about overcooking my mushrooms. Resenting the fact that the "aforementioned individual" was being a bit condescending to someone who was there volunteering her weekend, and having already been informed that I am a PASTRY CHEF and don't do much "savory cheffing", the only thing I can think of in response was - what's now on my BluRuby mug.

My friend, Ben, thought it would be a good idea to put it on a t-shirt. So with that suggestion, I thought I'd try it on a mug for starters. I think it turned out preeeetty cool!

Just Dreaming

2007-08-13T22:04:00.000-07:00

If BluRuby ever goes a step further (some time in the future) I hope my delivery trucks look like these! Not bad for a packaging idea as well, right? (heavy sigh).........Well I can dream, can't I?

NINJA CUPCAKES!!!

2007-08-11T21:29:00.000-07:00

The Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, CA is having an art show opening tonight called "Ninja Show 2, Revenge of the Ninja". A few people I know from work have their pieces in the show and I'm really glad to be part of the event - no, I don't have a piece in the show, I have 60 - cupcakes, of course!!! I was commissioned to provide the ninja themed cupcakes for the evening and so here's how they turned out. Hope they enjoy my edible art! WUH-PAH!!! (lame sound effect, I know, sorry!)

My Night at "Table 8"

2007-08-09T20:42:00.001-07:00

Last night I was watching one of my favorite shows on Bravo called Top Chef and to my delight, the guest celebrity judge was somebody I've met a few months ago, Govind Armstrong.

Back in April, I volunteered at the UCLA / LA Times Book Festival at their cooking stage (check my previous posting). It was nice to meet these top ranking chefs (a few having their own shows on the Food Network) and assist them during their demos. I learned a lot and I will never forget the experience. To remember that weekend, I had pictures taken of me with a few of them, but missed out on Chef Armstrong because he had left to do his book signing. So, I did the next best thing - I checked out his restaurant, Table 8, on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood, and had dinner there. Sure enough, there he was and it was really sweet of him to remember me. And this time, I got my snapshots!

If anyone out there is ever in the mood for exceptional, innovative California cuisine with the right kind of ambiance at a reasonable price, go to Table 8, it's totally worth it!

More cupcakes

2007-06-02T19:14:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of the goodies I made for the baby shower hosted by my friend Socorro for her daughter-in-law. Awww.......what a sweet & thoughtful grandma!

The Wedding Tower

2007-05-29T21:18:00.000-07:00

May 12 was a busy day. Two weddings on the same day, both needing cupcakes that I ended up baking almost 300 cupcakes overnight. So what else is new - story of my life! Thrived on one hour sleep that day. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.........................

Here's how one of them turned out.

THE CUPCAKE SOCIAL

2007-05-28T22:14:00.001-07:00

I was going through my video archives just recently and found this short footage I took of my cupcake party back in November 2005. I baked over 400 cupcakes overnight (YUP! INSANE I TELL YA!) to officially introduce my cupcake line to everyone I knew. It went really well, all seven flavors appealed to different taste palettes and most, if not all, gave me good reviews and very encouraging support. It was a nice afternoon of seeing a lot of friends I've known and worked with in animation to date, plus other friends I've met outside of the entertainment industry, since I've moved to the US over a decade ago.

Someday, when I find the time and energy again, I'll probably be crazy enough to have another cupcake get-together. However, that's a really big maybe.........;D

BluRuby at LA Times Book Festival

2007-04-29T22:05:00.000-07:00

I spent the weekend volunteering for kitchen duty at the bookfest in UCLA. There were several well known chefs promoting their cook books, some of whom are TV personalties like Ted Allen (from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy on Bravo), Dave Leiberman and Iron chef, Cat Cora (from the Food Network), and the ever popular Martin Yan. Barbara Fairchild (who generously gave each of us a signed copy of her Bon Appetit Cook Book to show her appreciation for our assistance - how fabulous is she?!?) was there as well as Lidia Bastianich (luvd her pasta dish!!!), the really suave Govind Armstrong and Nancy Silverton. I have to say it was quite a weekend, a lot of hard work and self doubt, but all good learning experience. But the highlight of it all for me wasn't so much meeting all these celebrity chefs, it was spending the weekend with my new friends, the girls from the Homegirls Cafe .

Nancy, Liz a.k.a. Sunshine, and Mariana are these young, hard working gals representing the Homegirls Cafe. They were invited to the festival, along with me, by their mentor, Maria Rodriguez (who also is a friend of mine) to experience what it's like to work in a professional kitchen environment. It was a bit of a rough start for all of us in the beginning but we all sucked it up and did our jobs the best we can. And I think we faired pretty darn well and I would not have lasted the weekend without these ladies. They're such good role models for their peers and all young women and I have nothing but well wishes for them in the future and I plan on visiting their cafe real soon. I just need to finish 2 weddings next month then my schedule will be FREE AND CLEAR! FINALLY!!!

So, here are some of the pictures we took at the festival.

Happy New Year!!!

2007-03-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's a bit too late for that but it HAS been a while since I posted anything. Blame it all on doing too many things at the same time - day job, freelance, and baking! That's right, I thought my powers could handle everything but alas, reality hit and the energizer bunny finally ran out of juice! So after a much deserved R & R in Hawaii, I came back and hung my spatula for the holidays! That's right, I didn't bake one single cupcake all throughout Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's.

However, as soon as I started back at Cartoon Network, the Ben 10 production was wrapping up their recording and ordered a cake for that occasion. Could't turn them down because they were pretty persuasive so even though I've focused on cupcakes for the past months, I agreed to bake them their cake.
I'm pretty happy with the results!

Since I mentioned I started back at CNS early this year, I forgot to mention I'm on this new show called "Chowder". It's about this boy who's a novice chef and his adventures. How lucky am I to have landed that gig! A show about cooking!!! Thanks a lot, Carl Greenblatt, creator of Chowder, for having given me this great opportunity to be part of a really good and funny show, not to mention, beautiful! Totally cool style! Check out the promo:

http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/promos/upfront/

Anyway. to show my gratitude, I made cupcakes this week for the crew. Check these out:

Feel the love?

It's all CUPCAKES from here!

2006-11-13T17:45:00.000-08:00

An old high school classmate of mine called me last month to ask if it was possible to order cupcakes for her daughter who was turning six. Mind you, they live all the way in Anaheim and I don't deliver that far, most especially for 3 dozen cupcakes! But I made an exception this time as this is an old friend and the delivery was to be made at Downtown Disney at the Build-a-Bear shop! Why not, I might as well enjoy the place while I'm there.

However, this was the weekend when the clock changed an hour back and no - I didn't make the mistake of not doing so - my friend did! They made it on time for the Build-a-Bear party but they didn't anticipate it finishing earlier. I was told to deliver at 2:45 but the party was over by 2 PM! She looked at her watch (bearing the wrong time which was 3 PM) and called to ask me why I wasn't there yet when the party was already over! What the.....? Oh well....wasn't my fault but I still delivered on schedule. Unfortunately, we weren't able to put the cupcakes on the decorated tower I made for the occasion :( So here's what the cupcakes looked like, along with the jumbo cupcake that we were going to put candles on so Lauren can do the whole "blowing the candle and make a wish" deal. At least the kid still enjoyed her chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with some of her friends! Oh, kids are just so easy to please - I think....

HALLOWEEN TIME!!! Cartoon Network hosted a fun afternoon of interesting looking characters and yours truly provided the festive treats!

The following week was Grey Delisle's baby shower. She's the voice of Mandy on the Cartoon Network series, Billy and Mandy. She's well known in the animation industry and I was very honored to have been commissioned to make cupcakes for the event. She wanted red velvet cupcakes with a vintage Texan/turquoise theme. So I'm thrilled to present........drum roll, please...........ta-da............a 105 cupcake tower for Grey!

The day after was my friend, Jennifer Baker-Gase's turn to have her baby shower. Again, she's a very well respected background painter in the animation industry and I was fortunate enough to have been asked to provide the party with my red velvets. This time the theme was pink - does that tell everyone what she and her husband are expecting? That was a fabulous day for a baby shower, good turn out of guests bringing all their love for Jenny and her little +1!

I'm back!

2006-11-08T18:34:00.000-08:00

Haven't posted much in a while but it's not because I haven't had much to bake. On the contrary, I've been so busy baking lately that I haven't had time to devote to my blog. My website is still under construction, no thanks to my crazy schedule. But now that I have some time to take it easy, I can finally do my updates.

First off, my friend Alex Almaguer just celebrated his 30th birthday on Oct. 8. A milestone indeed! His wife, Holly, ordered a cake for that celebation and this is what I came up with. Many thanks to the artwork courtesy of the very talented Mark Bachand.
It's chocolate with whipped cream and strawberry filling and I'm glad everyone enjoyed it at Dave & Busters where they had his birthday bash.

Next, I did another birthday cake for the Class of 3000 crew. This one was classic white with whipped chocolate ganache for filling.
Thought this might be the last of the sheet cakes I'll be making because I have decided to simplify my menu for a while. I have decided to concentrate on cupcakes now, for all occasions - be it birthdays, baby showers, weddings, you name it. While I'm still a one woman baking factory, I think this might be easier to manage for now while I'm still splitting my time between animation and BluRuby. Which is also why we're going to re-work my website so that it will be all about cupcakes from now on.

However, I had one last request for a sheet cake. This came from my friend, Jeremy, who happens to be my web guy as well so, how can I refuse??? It's for his 5 year old nephew who was finally allowed to see Star Wars. As a present, this is what we gave him for his big day. It's a 1/8 sheet, classic white cake with whipped cream and strawberry filling. The whole family enjoyed it :)

So there, so long to sheet cakes for now. It's all about cupcakes from now on, folks! Bear with me, please! I'll get back to baking cakes again someday, I promise :)

Shower, anyone?

2006-10-02T22:54:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't like showers? Especially ones where there's lots and lots of yummy grub! It just makes my day, (Well, the other kind of shower is fabulous too ;P) But most of all, I like showers that have my cuppy-cakes present to complete the party. Here are some of the shower cupcake towers I've done in the recent months.

Who's the fairest of them all?

2006-09-27T20:06:00.000-07:00

So three of the guys I work with on Billy and Mandy decided to do caricatures of me after having had only 20 hours of sleep from one Friday to the next. I must say these works of art were not too far from reality. Though I have to say, one of them was too cute too represent zzzz-deprived moi! Thanks Mark B. for being kind! But don't get me wrong, I luv all of them!!!

My Big Break

2006-09-26T10:08:00.000-07:00

When I got hired at Cartoon Network Studios this year, I was fortunate enough to have been asked to provide cupcakes for one of their art shows back in April. I have my art director, Marc Perry, to thank for that hook up. Little did I know, my mini cupcakes will be well received by many. The best part about the whole experience was CNS opened an account with BluRuby! So now, I'm officially supplying cupcakes for their recordings, art shows and company lunches. Shortly after that, I was asked to make some for a couple of events at Warner Bros. Many thanks to my hook up over at WB, Bobbie. There were cake orders as well so here are a few of them.

Aliki & Baron's Wedding Cupcake Tower

2006-09-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

On July 23, 2006, my friend Aliki and her dashing man, Baron, tied the knot! I was fortunate enough to be part of their special day and especially honored to have been asked to do their wedding cake! Here's what I came up with, a whole lotta red velvet, baby! In my book, this was worth missing this year's Comicon!

I'm finally here!

2006-09-24T18:08:00.000-07:00

I've finally caved in! I have now joined the wonderful world of bloggermania! Figured it's about time to do so, in the name of CUPCAKES!!! What better way to keep everyone updated (and hopefully involved) on the latest on my BluRuby yummies. Don't get me wrong, my website bluruby.com still exists. But this way, I can easily show everyone photos of my recent creations and get you guys to give me yo feedback (let me feel the luv, puleeze :p)

I have to say though, business is getting better every day but busier as well, it 's frightening! Hopefully, I'll be able to handle everything, including my day job, of course (heck, who needs to sleep!) To kick off this cupcake funstravaganza, here's an illustration made by the oh so talented artiste, Millet, as a homage to my madness!