If you didn't make it to the Grilled Cheese Championship this past weekend, I encourage you to get out and attend next year!  The event is great for people of all ages and gets bigger and better every year.

Besides being a free event, with a great competition, food trucks, beverages, and vendors; the event is great for me.  Not only does it give me a chance to sell cupcakes, it gets my name out there to people who may not have heard of me, I get to meet and connect with people and businesses, and watch people get excited about my cupcakes.

This year I was lucky enough to have a large space to work with so I had plenty of room to display my cupcakes, display shirts, bags, and my menus, as well has having space for all my to-go packs. I brought some of my most popular flavors to the event: vanilla raspberry, chocolate peanut butter, cookies and cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, and s'more. I didn't take any cheesecake flavors like I did last year just because I didn't want to have to worry about refrigeration...if only I would have known the concrete floor was still going to be frozen!  It would have been the perfect built in ice pack!

My husband helped me set up and since there's not much for him to do with the way I set up as vendor, he left because I didn't think I would need help...wrong!

Before the event even started I got the chance to talk to some other vendors, local business people and sell cupcakes to vendors and competitors.  Once the doors opened to the public, the craziness set in.  It wasn't like the open day craziness since most of the people coming through weren't getting packs to go; they were just getting the cupcakes to eat right then and there. So it was more of a constant but quick line.
 
Thankfully, my mom stopped in and stuck around which helped me big time!  If we got a break in the long line of people, she would hold my containers for me to restock.  Without her there I would have been balancing them or running back and forth from one end of the table to other.  

I loved, loved, loved meeting so many new people, people who had never heard of me before, as well as seeing the loyal customers.  I got a lot of stories from people telling me they'd had my cupcakes at a wedding or other event, or how they had been trying to stop at an open day but I was always sold out by time they made it.  So I'm glad they were able to get cupcakes at the Grilled Cheese Championship!

I was able to sell 555 cupcakes in less than 5 hours!  Amazing!!!  Didn't get any?  Don't worry; next Friday (May 6th) is my monthly open day!  Don't forget that cupcakes make the perfect Mother's Day gift!  Thanks for everyone who attended the Grilled Cheese Championship and thanks for another week of orders!

​I take pride in responding quickly to my customers.  Whether it's a Facebook message, email, phone call, or text message; I try to get back to people as soon as I possibly can.  Even though I take pride in my fast response rate status on Facebook...it can be exhausting!

These days technology has made people (myself included) use to the idea of constant contact.  Sure it's great to be able to contact Steph's Sweet Treats, or other businesses, whenever you want...but as time goes on as a business owner I find myself not wanting to be available 24/7.  For example, when my phone is ringing on Sunday night, going off in the middle of making supper, or I"m getting questions in the middle of a 12 hour baking day....I sometimes just want to wait to respond.  

But I struggle with it so much!  I've had people really like how quickly I get back to them...so it's hard for me to just say "it can wait."  This is definitely my problem, not the customers for contacting me; so PLEASE do not think that.  I'm sure all of you can relate in some way, shape or form...especially if you are a business owner!

I too am guilty of this.  I'm the person that sends an email and taps my fingers waiting for a response.  I've been known not to have much patience so it's probably why I feel this strong need to get back to people.  I'm slowly growing out of this habit as I am learning that people do not need instant responses.  So I guess this blog post is to warn everyone that I will backing off the constant contact I have put out there for the last two and half years.

Steph's Sweet Treats has grown tremendously.  Which is oh so amazing...but also means A LOT more inquires, questions, calls, etc.  Lately I feel like my head is spinning with all the incoming things and my feeling that I need to respond immediately. With a baby on the way I know my need to not be so readily available will increase...and I know that once the baby is here I will not be able to respond as quickly.  

If I can get back to you immediately I will.  But please be understanding if it takes me longer than you are use to.   I have slowed down on responding to people after 4:30 pm, on weekends, and when I am busy baking.  I turn the sound notification off on my Facebook after a certain time now (because being woken up in the middle of the night made for a cranky baker come morning), and overall I try to tell myself that it can wait.  So just know that I am not ignoring you, I'm simply busy at the moment, baking, sleeping, or taking my evening or weekend to myself.  Once I get organized and have a moment to sit down and respond to everything, I will.  

So keep those orders coming because the growth has been amazing!  Just know that I will respond to you as soon as I can :)  Thanks for another week of orders and for a sold out open day last Friday!

I skipped my blog post last week because I had this one coming and it's all I really wanted to post about but I couldn't yet.  My husband and I found out what we were having last Tuesday!  Why couldn't I post about it??  Because I made gender reveal cupcakes for my immediate family and then a gender reveal cake for my dad's side of the family to cut at Easter on Saturday; so of course I couldn't post here before then...plus I had the excuse to make both gender reveal cupcakes AND a cake this way!

It's funny how people base their gender guesses.  I had people dead set that it was a boy and even more that it was a girl...my husband being one on the girl side.  People kept saying that when they were pregnant they "just knew" what it was....well I must have missed that pregnancy tidbit because I did not have a feeling.  When asked, I would say boy because my husband was so sure it was a girl and because I live with three boys already (husband, cat, and dog).  

After 35-45 minutes of poking around with the ultrasound machine....yes we have a very stubborn baby already!  It was time to see if we could take a peek at the gender.  Why did it take so long? Well the little one is very low, head pointing down (looking so uncomfortable) so the ultrasound tech couldn't get a measurement of the back of the head like they needed.  So after lots of turning left, turning right, tilting back, really pressing and digging into the belly.... the head finally turned!  Phew!

Once we had the gender I went back to the bakery (I had made the cupcakes earlier that day and had them all ready to fill with the gender) finished them and started delivering them to immediate family.  And....it's a.......BOY!  My husband was in complete disbelief that he was wrong; he even said he never even considered the fact that it could be a boy because he was so convinced it was a girl!  He's pretty excited to have a future 4-wheeling buddy!

With the immediate family "in the know" I then made a cake for my dad's side for Easter.  I love making gender reveal cakes so it was pretty exciting to make my own.  Cake and video camera in tow....we let my Grandma Carley do the honors of revealing the blue cake inside!  If the day wasn't special enough already, my Grandma Carley sweetened it even more by giving me an apron she got when she was only four years old!  I will cherish it forever! 

​So now you know...it's a boy!  Thanks for another week of orders and I hope you had a great Easter!

You may be thinking...what does grilled cheese have to do with cupcakes?  And before you start thinking I made a grilled cheese cupcake..I didn't.  I do however love me some grilled cheese!  My go to at Culver's is a grilled cheese kids meal...and yes, I am aware that I am a full grown adult!

Anyways, back to the Wisconsin Grilled Cheese Championship.  I participated as a vendor last year and am honored to be a part of it again this year.  If you don't know what it is, here's some information:

• Takes place Saturday April 23 at Harris Park (doors open to public at 11:00 am and 10:00 am for competitors)
• This is the 5th annual championship...which means it just keeps getting bigger and better every year!
• All day competitors compete in different grilled cheese categories.  There are judges to taste the sandwiches, and if you get VIP tickets you too can taste a few.
• Along with the competition there are food trucks set up, beer, wine, and a lot of different vendors selling items, mostly cheese, and me!...selling cupcakes of course!  What could be better?? Grilled cheese, beer and wine, cheese, AND cupcakes all in one place?!

Last year I had no idea what to expect.  I had been told it was a very popular event and that people come from all over the area for it...but I had NO idea it would be so packed!  It was amazing to see familiar faces as well as meet new people who had never heard of Steph's Sweet Treats.  I stuck with some fan favorites for flavors- vanilla raspberry, chocolate peanut butter, chocolate chip cookie dough, and chocolate chip cheesecake (you know...for some "cheese").  Even though I made over 400 cupcakes, I had to pack up and go home an hour before the event was over because I had nothing left.  Just like with open days, I know people don't necessarily like when I run out...but in my book that means a big success!  I'd much rather run out than have extras.  

I've been told that this year will be even bigger than last year.  Now I just have to decide how many cupcakes to take....500?  600??  Decisions, decisions.  If you've never attended the Wisconsin Grilled Cheese Championship I recommend that you do!  It's a great spring event for people of all ages....and did I mention it's free to attend?!  General admission tickets are free, but VIP tickets are available.  With those you get: 

• To taste 4 of the grilled cheese competition sandwiches​
• A cup of Bob's Bitchin BBQ's tomato and grilled cheese soup (my absolute favorite!! The VIP ticket is worth this alone!)
• One free beverage
• Event grab bag.

To get your general admission of VIP tickets, click here.

I hope to see you all there!  Thanks for another week of orders and for making another successful open day last Friday!
​

Don't get me wrong, I love all my orders and get excited to fill everyone's orders...but there are times when I get extra excited to fill an order.  This usually means I get to do something new, over-the-top, or something I've had my eye on.  In this case...the cake was all of the above!

The cake that was floating around Pinterest, Facebook, social media, etc. was a wood slab cake with a plaid inside and an ax coming out of the top.  Naturally, I wanted to make it!  Unfortunately, there are some technical things that needed to be done and known...and the only way to get them...pay a subscription to the site...

Then, a bride emailed me wanting the cake for her cutting cake!  (Minus the ax).  I was immediately excited and gave her a few options.  To do my own version of the cake, which would be close but could have some differences to the pattern inside and maybe the outside since I didn't have the exact methods that were used; or to add the website fee to the cake so I can get the inside scoop and apply it to the cake.  She opted for the website fee and getting the inside scoop...and here's what the end result was!

Sorry to plaster you with what may look like the same photo over and over...but I felt like I couldn't take enough pictures of the cake and just kept taking them (for your sake, I didn't put them all up!).  I did veer a little from the information I obtained from the site for the top of the cake, which was supposed to be done with an airbrush.

I just hand painted it instead....because while I have an airbrush...I've only used it once.  Not because I don't want to use it...but because I somehow managed to make it not work properly after only one use!  Oops!  And I have yet to figure out how to get it going again.  In the end, I was happy that my airbrush was broken because I LOVED the outcome of the hand-painting.  I liked it more than the airbrushed version.

To make this cake even more exciting...it was plaid on the inside!  It's a little hard to see, but the couple was kind enough to have pictures sent my way so I could see the inside.  I couldn't exactly cut the cake, take a picture and put it back together now could I?!  

As you can probably tell my my over enthusiastic photo taking, and blabbing, I love this cake!  It's always stressful when something you've never done comes your way, but at the same time...sooo exciting!  So I hope you enjoy this cake as much as I do!

Thanks for another week of orders, and I hope to see you at Friday's open day!

 Even though there really isn't a time of the year where there aren't any orders (knock on wood), there is definitely a busy season in baking....and it's about to hit!  I know it's hard to plan ahead, but if you have big events and parties from April-October PLEASE contact me as soon as you can to schedule things.  For example, I can only book so many graduation parties per weekend, so if you have a graduation party to plan, contact me now before it's too late.

Easter is only a little over three weeks away.  Since I have a wedding that weekend, I will have to limit the number of other orders I take.  If you would like to order for Easter, here are some ideas:
- Cake decorated for Easter
-Cupcake cakes (bunny, cross, spring flowers, etc)
-Cutout cookies (or decorated cutout cookies)
-Carrot cake cheesecake...yes this exists!!
​-Cupcakes (decorated or not)

Graduation season may seem like it is a long ways away...but it's not!  It's almost here!  If you are planning a party or know someone planning a party, please contact me as soon as you can or let the person know to contact me soon.  Even if you don't have exact numbers yet, holding your spot is key since I can only take so many a weekend....especially when parties overlap with weddings.

When most people think of graduation parties, they think cake, but you don't have to do cake!  You can do cake, cupcakes, cookies, or any combination of the above.   I can incorporate school colors (college or high school), career choice, hobbies, interests, and/or sports. Depending on the size of the party, I'd say people usually go with all cupcakes or a cake plus cupcakes.  If the party is smaller or just for family it's common to just do a small cake. Here are a few cakes to give you some ideas.

Weddings are all year round, but definitely pick up from June-October.  Even if it's not exactly wedding season right this minute, I have been doing a lot of wedding tastings and do have at least a couple weddings a month starting this month.  When I have weddings, it makes it even more important for people to give me notice for their orders.  I hate turning people away, but the likelihood of that happening goes up drastically if you contact me with less than a weeks notice during wedding season....especially this year since I will be farther along in my pregnancy and taking less orders.  

If you still have a 2016 wedding that you haven't booked yet, I have very limited availability, so contact me as soon as you can.  If you aren't getting married until 2017, it's not too soon to book!  The sooner the better...dates go quickly.  Don't forget to refer someone to Steph's Sweet Treats. If you know someone getting married, you refer them, and they book...you get a gift certificate!

So if you have parties and events already planned out for the next months, please contact me as soon as you can!  Thank you for another week of orders and I hope to see you at next Friday's open day!

​I don't want to bombard the blog with baby stuff, but since I am pregnant, I figure an occasional update is called for/appropriate.  At 16 weeks (and 3 days) I'm moving on through my second trimester, and can now reflect back on what it was like for me to bake during the first trimester.

​Baking in the first trimester really wasn't all that different for me than my normal baking.  I lucked out in terms of morning sickness and only had mild nausea and then had to deal with hot flashes.  One thing I did/do have....tiredness!  I've never been much of a napper...I have a really hard time falling asleep in the middle of the day unless I'm sick or something.  Probably because I'm too worried about what other things I could be getting done...darn you Type A personality!

Well that quickly went away because I literally felt like I couldn't keep my eyes open.  This is a real struggle when you get up in the wee hours to bake.  If I got the luxury to get home early or if it was the weekend I would easily fall asleep on the couch or chair if it was between noon and 3 pm.  And then by 8 pm I was ready to go back to sleep!  

I go to bed early as it is since 3 am rolls around in a hurry...and even though I'm no longer in my first trimester I still find myself wanting more sleep.  Not so much in the middle of the day anymore, but in the evening I just want to go to bed. I will not feel bad about going to bed early!  No sleep and late nights are on the way so I will soak up the sleep while I can!

The only other real change I made was to make a conscious effort to take breaks.  I barely ever stop what I'm doing or take a real break when I have a day full of orders.....so the first trimester left me doing "the potty dance" a whole lot! I now make sure I have my snacks and meals at times I normally would....and I sit down to eat!  Crazy I know!!  I use my stool to actually take breaks, and I use it when I'm done baking and move on to decorating.  Using a stool isn't super convenient....I have to get up a lot so there's not really much sitting, but the resting/leaning still helps.  

The above pictures are pretty blurry and I didn't take a whole lot of time editing them....but I've been trying to document week by week by just snapping a quick picture on my phone and putting some tidbits with the pictures.  So here are the pictures from weeks 8, 12, and 16!  The next update will be at the end of March....when we find out the gender!  I have no preference, just health, but man oh man I can't wait to find out!  I was fine...until the ultrasound got scheduled...now I just want to know right this second!

Before I end this post I thought I'd throw in the post I put up on my Facebook page..in case you missed it:

As I pay my yearly business taxes I must say thank you to all of my customers. You may think this is an odd thing, since businesses have to fork over large amounts of money to the government, but it reminds me that I am fighting a fair and moral business fight.
Steph's Sweet Treats got started because people beyond my friends and family started wanting my baked goods. Which is good, this is how most businesses start..word of mouth. However, as soon as I saw this happening, I made the transition to no longer baking from my home; I went through the process of opening a legally licensed kitchen. (I even rented a licensed kitchen for an order that was non family related before my bakery was ready and I paid taxes on the order).
What does this mean? I follow copyright laws, I follow the codes of the health department, I pay licensing fees and inspections, and I send a very large portion of each and every order to the government. Combine all of these things, and it makes if very hard to watch illegal bakers in the area who are not licensed, do not follow copyright, code, OR pay such a large sum to the government, grow and get away with it.
Worst of all, their customers don't realize they are only encouraging them to continue business illegally. You don't need a legal business to put up a facebook page or website, so many many people get away with it and customers are none the wiser to the persons operations.
This is why I am saying thank you for those of you who choose Steph's Sweet Treats. I urge you to continue support small LEGAL businesses. Thank you everyone who supports me; I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate it!
Sorry had to get that off my chest and out of my brain.

As always, thanks for another week of orders!

It's been awhile since I did a "story behind the order" post, so I thought I'd do the first one of 2016, third one overall.  If you've never read one of the behind the order blog posts before,  I just give you a peek behind the scenes/background on a few orders. How do I pick which orders to talk about?  They usually have special meaning to me, were particularly fun (even though all orders are fun!), were something new I got to try, or were a big hit on Facebook.

First up, let's talk about Barbie.  I'm sure most of you have seen a 3D Barbie cake at some point since they are pretty popular... despite their popularity, I had yet to have someone order one!  So I was pretty excited to make this cake.  If you haven't noticed, Barbie is tall!  Which means a Barbie dress cake is VERY large!  This cake was 4+ layers of cake....I say + because there was some carving and sculpting at the top to get the dress shape and cover enough of Barbie's torso.  Barbie's top included, the cake measured around a foot tall.  

This isn't the first big cake I've had the pleasure of making for this customer.  I got to make the super fun monster cake pictured below when they welcomed a new baby into the family.  They sure know how to order fun cakes!

Next up, a super fun first birthday cake....and again, something I've been wanting to make.  I love seeing cakes with little elephants holding balloons, so when I was asked to make one, I was excited!  There was also a lot of different fondant details in this cake which is always a fun treat for me.  The elephant and flower got made a few days in advance so they could harden up enough to go on the cake.  The other details (chevron and polka dots) were made right before decorating so they were pliable enough to go on.  The cake also went with the polka dot smash cake pictured.  It was a first birthday and golden birthday celebration that I was thrilled to be a part of.

The next order was given to my husband's aunt by my mother-in-law.  Every year she gets her flowers for her birthday...so this year she wanted to combine her love of chocolate cupcakes with flowers!  She told me to do whatever I wanted, so I took inspiration from a popular cupcake bouquet that went around Pinterest and was sent to me by several people.  I think this mini bouquet turned about pretty darn cute.

Lastly, is a cake near and dear to my heart.  I was so excited to tell my Grandpa and Grandma Carley that I was expecting and keeping it a secret for so long made me want to make it a special reveal for them.  So what better way than to use a cake and my grandma's birthday?!  They have been the best grandparents I could ever ask for....supportive, loving, and always there for me.  I can't wait for them to be just as meaningful to our little one!

Thanks for another week of orders and for making the Valentine's Day open days so amazing!

I'm sure you can tell by now, that I like to write very honestly on this blog.  In the spirit of being honest...I thought I'd write about something nobody tells you about running a business.  What am I talking about?  Dissatisfied customers! Something every business owner fears! No matter what kind of business you run, if you deal with people, you are bound to have somebody be dissatisfied at some point.  Before I go on, let me say this has not happened to me a lot, but I'm not immune; it's happened!  Most people like to keep these incidences hush, hush, but since I'm pretty darn real....so I'm talking about it!

Now if the above message (the sign on the front counter in my shop) could always be true, I would always be fine...but I'm not.  I know every business has it's critics and complaints.  Look up any company and you are bound to find lovers and haters...but of course, when I opened I was naive enough to think I could avoid it.  Wrong!  Again,  this doesn't happen regularly, but I've been open for over two years now and have had a few "dissatisfaction issues" come up.  As a business owner, I think you have to get use to the idea that they will always be there.  Why will they always be there if you have a good product?

Because people will try to get away with A LOT...if you let them.  I said "dissatisfaction issues"  in quotes for a reason.  I've had a few issues with being suckered for a gift certificate or people looking for money back when it was not warranted.  But out of fear of an upset customer, I gave it to them. I had to learn the hard way...I cannot just give people money or a gift certificate merely because they say they have a problem.  I can't throw money back at people for just anything...because that word will spread around in a hurry and I will become a doormat for people to stomp on and get money from.  So I have told myself not to...and it's hard!  Of course, if it was warranted or my fault I would of course compensate a customer. 

Like I said, I learned the hard way....I put up a sign that said any damage to an order once it leaves my facility is your responsibility, not mine ( I check to make sure everything is A-OK before it leaves; I cannot control how everyone transports and chooses to store items).  I also cannot refund based on people's personal preferences.  

This is why I did a clarification on my Facebook page recently on the difference between my vanilla cake and my white almond cake.  There's a big difference...your order should reflect on your preference/taste.  I had a very confrontational customer-well not exactly the customer, but their relative-telling me off about the order, insisting they get money, and even threatening to turn people away from me (even though I did specifically ask if they wanted vanilla or white).  But guess what?  I made several other vanilla cakes at the very same time, very same batch as this persons.  

​So of course I had to make sure it wasn't something I did wrong (in which case I would have compensated the person), so I contacted others customers from that weekend and asked them to tell me honestly what they thought.....the guests loved the cakes, complimented them, and had no leftovers.  So what am I to do???  All I can do is apologize because it is my worst nightmare to have someone upset, but I can't give them money back.  That's like going to the movie and asking for your money back because you hated the movie, but everyone else loved it. You can't do it.  

Now you may think I'm crazy, and "the customer is always right," but if I did that I would be opening my business up for a whole lot of scamming and people just looking for freebies left and right.  I've also had a few people lie about things being wrong (I know because I did my background work and checked to see if things were okay with others, or again, other matching orders for that weekend).  You can tell when someone is lying too...because if I tell them I've checked things out, they will come up with a new complaint or a problem that isn't even possible to have with their order.  

I'm by no means trying to bash anyone or say anyone who complains to a business is lying...but it happens a whole lot more than one would think.  I could never imagine doing that to a business, but maybe that's because I'm a business owner myself and I know the damage it could do to a reputation.  I want every customer satisfied always...but it's a business, and I've had to learn you just can't make everyone happy. 

For this reason, I've created a binder full of thank yous, positive emails, reviews, etc.  For the days something brings me down, brings me to tears, makes me doubt whether or not I'm good enough, or all of the above.  My husband is there to pick me back up; make me stop crying; remind me that I am great at what I do; tell me every business has to deal with this kind of thing; and I go through the binder to remind myself the positive FAR outweighs any negative I have ever gotten.  

Which brings me to the next thing you may not think of when running a business..the internet!  Everyone has instant power to make or break your business with a click of a button and a few taps on the keyboard.  You never know if the person behind the review or post is being honest or not.  I can look at some of my favorite places on Facebook or other websites and find mean reviews or experiences that are completely different from my own with the company or restaurant.  

When I first started my Facebook page the mobile version was different than it currently is.  You'd go to my page (or any page) and the first thing you'd see was stars for reviewing.  This setup meant a lot of people were trying to scroll down or "drag" the page and would unintentionally click a star rating....low ratings!  Since these were left before I even opened or at the very beginning of my business, I knew most of these people had never heard of me or had anything I had ever made before...so I contacted them.  Most people wouldn't go that far, but lets face it... internet ratings make a big impact on a business.  Every one of those people had no idea they left the ratings, it was a mistake, and they deleted them.  

That is all except for one.  If you go to my reviews on Facebook, you'll notice a one star review.  Now why am I calling this reviewer out??  Well one, they'll never see this...and two, it's bogus.  I have figured out who the person is, but they have never met me, never had my baked goods, and just want to hurt my business.  Why?  For very childish reasons.  The person is the ex mother-in-law to my cousin.  Crazy right?!  Apparently the relationship didn't end well and she wanted to take it out on my cousin and their family...even if we've never met, never had an issue...and even if I know nothing about the situation...it was still taken out of me.  I've tried several times to have them take it down and tried several different ways.  First I messaged them and they proclaimed "oops" and they'd remove it...nope.  Nothing has worked, so I've given up.  It's just another example of how people can take down a business whether what they say or do is the truth or not.

If you operate a business you can probably relate...if you can't, then you have been beyond lucky and I bow down to you.  I hope you've enjoyed this bit of honesty; it's been kind of therapeutic I must say!  Dealing with any negative makes all the positive I get regularly receive that much more cherished.  Thank you all so much for all the love and compliments you send me; and thanks for another week of orders. 

Sorry for the long-winded post!  Hope to see you Friday and Saturday for your Valentine's Day cupcakes!!

 If you've seen the Steph's Sweet Treats cupcake menu, you know I have created a lot of flavors.  When I first opened Steph's Sweet Treats,  I printed the menus on legal sized paper and even that took a few sheets to fit them all.  I felt like I was endlessly printing and didn't like the "unprofessional" aspect of it....so I had actual menus printed....1000 of them!

My theory when ordering such a large quantity was: if I order 1000, I'd have to resist creating flavors until I ran out and had to reorder...wrong!  I think it only made it worse!  I still have menus to get rid of before I print updated ones; and at this point I may just have to take a loss on them because I've created a whole lotta new flavors!

Before I give you the run down on all the new flavors; I also made changes to some of the cupcake names.  Since I am so strict on licensing laws, (I promise I won't go on a rampage on all the bakers breaking these laws-if you want to read about that click here), I wanted to stay away from any brand names in the cupcake names themselves, like: twinkie, snickers, oreo, etc. So the cupcakes (or fillings) are the same, but their names may be slightly different when I reprint.  Examples:  twinkie filling is called marshmallow filling, almond joy cupcakes are called almond cheer, etc.  I still use the brands in the descriptions, so people know what I'm talking about, but not the actual cupcake names.

New Flavors: These flavors are not in the current printed menus that are in my shop.  They are on the updated version I send people via email and Facebook message and can be ordered.  You may have already tasted some of them since a few have been featured at recent open days.  I promise to print new menus soon!  (and this time it will be alphabetized- don't ask how that one slipped my mind the first time around!)

• Batter up- chocolate cupcake, brownie batter and cookie dough filling, swirl of cookie dough and brownie batter frosting. (Refrigeration required)
•  Better than anything: chocolate cupcake soaked in condensed milk and caramel, topped with whipped frosting, a caramel drizzle, and toffee bits. (Refrigeration required)
•  Caffeine sweetie– coffee cupcake with caramel filling, topped with mocha buttercream, toffee bits, and a chocolate covered espresso bean. (Refrigeration required)
• Candy cane- candy cane bit cupcake with red and white swirl peppermint frosting and peppermint candy bits.
• Candy craving-chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting, topped with m&ms, rolos, butterfinger, peanut butter cups, snickers, and milky way pieces.
• Cappuccino- vanilla cupcake infused with cappuccino powder, topped with cappuccino whipped frosting.
• Caramel cookie crunch: vanilla cupcake with shortbread cookie crust, caramel filling, chocolate frosting and a Twix candy piece on top. (refrigeration required)
• Caramel latte: espresso infused vanilla cupcake with caramel whipped frosting and caramel drizzle.
• Champagne: champagne cupcake with champagne infused buttercream.  Only available for orders over 50 cupcakes.  This one is not "new", but was never printed on the menu before due to needing to large minimum order
• Chocolate caramel heaven: chocolate cupcake with caramel filling, topped with chocolate and caramel swirled frosting and mini chocolate chips. (Refrigeration required)  Also not "new", but it somehow missed my menu the first time around!
• Chocolate covered peanut: vanilla cupcake with peanut butter filling, chocolate frosting and chocolate covered peanuts.
• Choco-mallow: chocolate cupcake with caramel marshmallow filling, marshmallow frosting and caramel drizzle. (Refrigeration required)
• Chocolate strawberry cheesecake– chocolate cupcake with, oreo crust, strawberry filling, cream cheese frosting and strawberry drizzle. (Refrigeration required) 
• Circus animal: vanilla cupcake with circus animal cookie frosting and a circus animal cookie on top.
• Cookies ‘n’ cream cheesecake: vanilla cupcake with oreo crust and filling, topped with cream cheese frosting and oreo crumbles. (Refrigeration required)
• Cotton candy: vanilla cupcake infused with cotton candy flavor, soaked with cotton  candy glaze and topped with cotton candy buttercream.
• Dark chocolate pistachio- dark chocolate cupcake with pistachio buttercream.
• Dirt cupcake: chocolate cupcake with Bavarian cream filling, topped with vanilla buttercream, oreo crumbs. (Refrigeration required)
• French toast: almond flavored cupcake with cinnamon sugar swirl, topped with maple cream cheese frosting. (Refrigeration required)
• Golden cookies n’ cream: vanilla cupcake with golden cookies n cream filling, topped with vanilla buttercream and cookie crumbles.
• Nut roll- yellow cake with marshmallow filling, topped with vanilla buttercream rolled in salted peanuts.
• Nutty caramel goodness- (like a snickers) chocolate cake with caramel peanut filing, topped with caramel frosting and a piece of candy nougat. (Refrigeration required) 
• Oatmeal cream- brown sugar spice cake, marshmallow filling, topped with marshmallow buttercream and cinnamon brown sugar sprinkle.
• Oatmeal raisin cookie- brown sugar oatmeal cupcake with raisins, topped with oatmeal cookie frosting and raisins.
• PB&J– peanut butter cupcake with strawberry filling, topped with peanut butter frosting and strawberry drizzle.
• Puppy chow– chocolate cupcake, peanut butter filling, vanilla buttercream dipped in powdered sugar and topped with puppy chow.
• Rocky road: chocolate cupcake with marshmallow filling, chocolate almond frosting, topped with almonds, mini marshmallows, and chocolate drizzle.
• Strawberry toaster pastry- vanilla cupcake, filled with strawberry, topped with strawberry toaster pastry frosting.
• Turtle cheesecake: chocolate cupcake with oreo crust, filled with caramel pecan mixture, topped with cream cheese frosting and topped with a chocolate and caramel drizzle and pecans. (Refrigeration required)
• Tutti frutti- vanilla based cupcake with fruity pebbles mixed in, topped with frutti pebble buttercream.    

​Is that enough yet??? Nope!  Here's flavors may be coming soon that just haven't been tested yet:
          Autumn spice        
Banana caramel
Cannoli
Cookie butter
Creamsicle
Crumb cake
Good morning
Hummingbird
Lime in the coconut
Root beer float
Snickerdoodle
Strawberry blonde
Strawberry lemonade
Strawberry margarita 
Tiramisu
Whatever else I come up with between now and printing :)

I apologize if you feel like I have too many cupcake options, but creating flavors is something I LOVE to do. It is also part of what makes Steph's Sweet Treats so unique. I get that it can make choosing flavors to order harder for you, but I like to think that having so many fun options is also a good thing.  Plus, it allows me to fill open days with a different variety of cupcakes every month!

Don't forget Valentine's Day pre-orders are due this Friday, February 5th.

Also, before I go, I want to clarify something on last week's blog.  I've had some people be confused by the way I worded things. My pregnancy was planned.  When I said that I'm type A and like to plan everything but things didn't go as planned, I didn't mean the pregnancy was a surprise.  I actually meant we had some bumps along the way, I just didn't go into those details; so instead of being due during "slow" season, I'm due during wedding season.  Anyways, thank you all sooooo much for all the congratulations and such; it means a lot to me! (and Aaron)

Thanks for another week of orders and I hope to see you at the Valentine's Day open days!!