Be there AND be square

Monday marked the beginning of Fairtrade Fortnight in the UK. This is an annual campaign organised by the Fairtrade industry to promote and encourage the sale of Fairtrade brands and products to help farmers in the developing world. It sounds silly but it's easy to forget that the ingredients in our food actually come from somewhere and that they don't just magically appear on the supermarket shelves! Times are tough for everyone right now in this double-dip recession (or is it triple now? I can't keep count), so it's easy for us to want to save a buck or two when we shop. When I'm at the supermarket, I don't often think of the cocoa, coffee, sugar and banana farmers that work incredibly hard to provide us with top quality foods. I just want to pick up my groceries at a great price and get the heck out of there. Imagine the devastation if there's a bad crop or unseasonable weather in farming towns or regions though. The first thing we'd do then is complain that there's a price increase or low stock in shops across town. It's also a sad reality that we consume these foods quicker than they're produced and that the farmers often aren't rewarded with substantial salaries for their hard labour from the large supermarket chains that buy from them. This is where Fairtrade comes in: every time you purchase a Fairtrade product (look for the blue and green symbol people!) farmers will receive a fair price for their crop, giving them the financial security they need to provide for their families while sustaining their farming businesses. Unlike ten years ago, many common brands now offer Fairtrade products such as Tate & Lyle, Divine, Cadbury, Ndali, Ben and Jerry's (mmmm!) and the list goes on and on.

By no coincidence at all, Monday was also the day that London's first Fairtrade hotspot officially opened its doors to the public! Fairly Square (51 Red Lion Street in Holborn for all your Londoners out there), is a really unique, laid-back and environmentally friendly place that's open from early til late seven days a week. I love the concept behind this place. The flooring and the bar are made from twice reclaimed wood, the furniture is repurposed or second hand with a vintage feel and mainly sourced from two charities,  the paint is eco friendly, the serving plates are made from recycled glass and the light bulbs are the energy saving kind. It's a warm and cozy place where you can go to hang out with friends and sip on some Fairtrade coffee while eating a…CUPPIDY CAKE! That's right, I've just started supplying cupcakes to this fabulous establishment and can proudly say that the cakes are made with fairly traded, organic and locally sourced ingredients- where possible. Last time I checked, coconuts don't grow in London...

Lovely owner, Onome Okotie

The shop front

Recycled and repurposed furniture.



Chili chocolate, red velvet and rose cupcakes c/o Cuppidy Cakes :) 



The launch party was packed with the most friendliest people around town. The music was spot on, a mix of folk, jazz and opera (which sounds completely random but trust me it was great). The drinks were flowing all night long, the veggie nibbles were delish and the brownies and cupcakes were devoured by all. The vibe was great. Onome Okotie, owner of Fairly Square, gave a touching speech on how she made her dream into a reality by opening up her very own Fairtrade place. I wish her all the success in the world and am proud to be one of her suppliers.

Friendly faces piling in



The band played on

The launch party was steaming hot. Literally.

Now what are you waiting for?! Get down there and have a cupcake!

The beginning

Welcome to the very first Cuppidy Cakes post! This is all very new to me so I'm not quite sure where to begin…Let's start from scratch, shall we?

I moved to London in 2006 from Canada after getting married to the love of my life. We've traveled the world together and as a result have seen, smelled and tasted some pretty amazing cakes and desserts along the way. We both share a real passion for food because it's always been a huge part of our lives. Both of our Mums are incredible hostesses and superstars in the kitchen that can cook or bake anything in a short space of time for a household full of people and make it look like a breeze. Talk about setting the bar high!

The early cupcake days. Oh how far they've come since then!

I started Cuppidy Cakes almost three years ago after I made some cupcakes for a New Year's Eve party and again for my Husband's birthday a few months later. All of our friends were super complimentary over the sweet treats I had made and said I could probably sell them. I started thinking about it more and more until my Husband turned to me and said "You can do this, what are you waiting for? Just go for it!".  The rest of the family was of course very supportive which was motivating and got me thinking even more. Then... IT happened. I got out of work on a sunny afternoon, walking along a crowded sidewalk in Central London trying to get to the tube station and was handed a copy of The Stylist (a free fashion and lifestyle magazine). The cover  read "Turn Your Hobby Into a Business" and had a photo of impeccably decorated cupcakes on the front and on the inside gave the story of several women who turned their hobbies into full fledged successful businesses (one of them being Lola's Cupcakes). After being cursed and huffed at by some lovely Londoners for stopping in the middle of the pavement to marvel at what had seemed like a true sign from above (I mean seriously, what are the odds?!), I walked to Holborn station thinking I really can do this. Reading the stories of all these women and doing further research on other young entrepreneurs I couldn't help but notice one common thread: a successful business starts with just one brilliant product and the ambition to succeed. With this fire in my belly I almost immediately took over the kitchen and started baking like a mad woman with a spatula. With wide eyes and a huge smile on my face, I pulled out all my old Canadian recipes and Martha Stewart baking books that I was given as wedding gifts and got to sifting, separating, mixing and pouring. FIRST BAKING FAIL: most of the North American cake and cupcake recipes didn't seem to work that well. "What's the deal?!" I thought. Thanks to a fellow Canadian living in London who's also an expert baker, I learned that apparently Canadian flour is much finer, the butter is more dense and my UK oven was probably different to my Canadian one in terms of heat distribution. Well, after a few measurement adjustments, buying slightly different ingredients and more trials, out came perfect little cakes from the oven- yay! What helped me even more was when my Husband came home from work one day with "The Hummingbird Bakery" book. This book (more like a step-by-step fool-proof manual) is what transformed my baking style and skills. The Hummingbird Bakery (locations all over London and one in Dubai I believe) is owned by two American bakers. Their cakes have that perfectly moist and fluffy texture which is typical of American baking with all the recipes being tailored to European ingredients and ovens- woo hoo! The perfect combo at last. Me=happy.

I've learned SO much in these past few years from watching TV shows like Cake Boss, Ace of Cakes, Barefoot Contessa and some amazing YouTube  tutorials from around the world. It wasn't until two months ago that I took my first cake course with Maisie Fantaisie (if you don't know her, you need to know her, she's simply AH-mazing), which was all about decorating and stacking wedding cakes- a responsibility that I'd rather not leave to trial and error if you know what I'm sayin'.

I still feel like I'm on a learning curve so this blog is going to take you on a journey through all my cupcake making adventures. I'd also like to share with you some baking related DIY projects such as how to make pretty cake stands for less than you'd pay for in a shop or how to create a light tent to perfectly photograph your baking creations.

Hope you're ready for this journey. I know I am :)