Our Signature flavor ‘Sweet Carolina’ is a Pink Velvet Cake.  So what exactly is Pink Velvet Cake?

This is now the most common FAQ of our little Cupcake bakery!  Each day people stroll into our Hilton Head Island bakery, press their noses against the bakery case and gaze longingly at the ‘Sweet Carolina’ a bright Pink Velvet Cake, staring back at them.  The ensuing conversation usually goes something like this:

“What’s that one…?” They ask in total amazement.

“the ‘Sweet Carolina’ ,” comes the reply.

“What kind of cake is it…?“

“Pink Velvet Cake with a …“

Quickly interrupting our description is invariably the next question: “WHAT IS Pink Velvet Cake?  Is it like Red Velvet…?“

Now, we’re usually pretty tight-lipped around here.  But, we’re just going to let this sweet little cat out of the bag.  Because, well, we love you guys.

the ‘Sweet Carolina Cupcake.’
A Pink Velvet Cake

The ‘Sweet Carolina’ Cupcake, our signature flavor, is a Pink Velvet Cake.  It is not be confused with Red Velvet Cake which is a different beast all together… This little Pink beauty was born one afternoon in our bakery kitchen while testing recipes.  While digging through our recipe archives I happened upon one dubbed “White Velvet”.  It is, in fact, a white butter cake – a very delicate and fine-crumbed cake which owes it’s lightness and airy-soft texture to the use of egg white and real butter (no shortcuts here, folks).  It is totally unlike it’s closely named cousin, Red Velvet (which gets it’s texture and subtle flavor from buttermilk and cocoa)  Fresh from the oven, there is simply no better cake for lovers of true white-cake goodness.  In fact, it is so persnickety that it really doesn’t like to be eaten on day two.  The prima donna of cupcakes, it demands to be baked and consumed in the same day.  Really, this hasn’t been a problem for us.  We rarely have left-overs.

In case you can’t tell, we love this cake.  We love the intricacies of the recipe.  We even love that it can be temperamental to prepare to the point that it can induce very tense moments for our bakers from time to time.  This is SCRATCH baking, people!  This is how my Grandmother did it…and we will do her the justice of following suit.  Don’t make me get out pictures of my beloved Grandmother and cry all over the kitchen!

So, we were playing with the White Velvet butter cake recipe when someone in the kitchen said “this would be phenomenal with our cream cheese frosting!”  We slapped some on, tasted, and HOLY MOLY, what a combination!  The soft, yielding cake paired with the tangy smooth frosting.  We were on to something!

As we stood around, patting ourselves on the back trying to figure out how this new discovery would fit into our repertoire, my Dad (yes, good old Dad!) said, “You should make these pink and sparkly somehow. Bet they’d sell!”

Have you seen our facebook avatar?

Pink cake, white frosting, pink outline?  Dad, you’re a genius!

The next day, the ‘Sweet Carolina’ made it’s bakery debut.  It is now on our daily menu, right beside the Classics and Red Velvet.  It is, quite frankly, a Superstar (as my 6 year old daughter would say).

And that, dear Cupcake lovers, is how the ‘Sweet Carolina’ was born.

If you saw our post last week about our new store in Savannah, you know how excited we are.  As a result of that post we have had tons of emails and phone calls about the Savannah store.  How great our fans are. We love you too.

Like I said last week, ” This is a large undertaking. We can’t do it alone…”  Since we can’t do it alone, we have launched a kickstarter project so that everyone can invest in a little bit of Sweet Carolina Cupcakes’ Savannah shop and get some great deals on Cupcakes too.

So, what is Kickstarter?

Kickstarter is a “crowdfunding project” that helps small businesses raise project capital from the people who know and love the business most. Regular people investing in local businesses that they know and trust. These folks get paid back in product and other special rewards not usually available to the general population.  Think of it as pre-sales of product at a discount and helping small businesses, like our, to grow and succeed.  It’s easy to sign up and even easier to donate.  You can even log in using your facebook account.

Sweet Carolina Cupcakes comes to Savannah.
(Click the image to see our video.)

If you love us, love us now

We’re so glad everyone is as jazzed as we are, but we’re not there yet. We need your help get it all done. If you’ve ever run a small business you know how hard it can be to get financing and how expensive it can be to expand. We are no exception to this.  We are asking for your support.

Please check out our Kickstarter project and consider investing in us, your favorite Cupcakery. You’ll be glad you did.  Click the image above to view our video or go directly to our Kickstarter page to see how you can help.

Would you buy 6 of our Cupcakes for $10?! Of course you would. That’s a great deal.  The first doantion/reward level is just that. $10 for 6 Cupcakes! If you want a limited edition T-shirt too, then donate $25. It’s that easy.  If each of our facebook fans contributes only $10 we will make our goal.

We would appreciate your help in the form of kickstarter donations and sharing your experience with us to your friends by way of encouraging them to donate as well.  If you have any questions please contact us and we will be happy to talk you through it.

Thanks Y’all!

~Holly

We are opening a second store in Savannah’s Downtown Historic District right across the street from Paula Deen’s Lady and Sons restaurant!   You heard it here first. We have tried to keep it under raps for a while, but there’s no hiding it now. Woo-hoo!

Our New Home!

This is something we have dreamed of since we sold our first Cupcake.  We’ve been searching for over a year to find the right spot. The time is right and a couple of months ago the perfect location came up.  We pounced on it.  It’s a great building, in a great location right in the center of the Downtown Historic District.  We are surrounded by landmark business establishments, and right on the corner of Whitaker and Congress.  We knew immediately we had found Sweet Carolina’s second home.

Our new Home

After some deliberations and lease wrangling we signed a 5 year lease on a great new space and began converting it into a Cupcake Bakery. We are currently doing a little construction—actually a lot of construction.  The location had formerly been an office space for local Realtors  (and my awesome landlords!) Mopper-Stapen Realtors.  So we have to convert it from an office into a bakery  This is no small task.  Plumbing, electrical, HVAC system, service entrance, framing walls and doors.  The list seems almost endless.  We’re doing a full retrofit to make this place into a bakery.  Last week the demolition was complete and now construction has begun in earnest.

With the new shop we will also be expanding our scope beyond just baking and selling great Cupcakes.

• Parties. First, we are building an awesome Party Room where you can throw one heck of a bridal shower, shin-dig, hoe-down, fiesta or any other type of gathering.  You name it. We’ll cater it.
• Classes. Next, we will be teaching classes. Cake Decorating. Cupcakes 101. How to make the perfect frosting. Even some kids classes! We’re gonna show you it all. Sign up, show up and learn.
• Coffee. At present we are working with our friend Phillip Brown, at PERC Coffee, to design and install Savannah’s first drip-to-order brew bar. Pick a variety of bean, a grind and we will make you the best Cup of Joe you’ve ever had. One cup at a time.
• Vending Bike. This is a big one: We will be operating a Cupcake Bike. Think Ice Cream Man of the olden days, but we sell Cupcakes. We are going to circle the central city selling cupcakes from a large vending bike, jingling our bells and smiling all the way!
• Social Hub. Music, Art, Spoken Word. Do you have an Uncle who can play the Accordion? Great! All this and more will be featured. We will stay open late and have live performances on the weekends. Come in. Hang out. Enjoy!

We’re so excited about all this that it has been really hard to keep it a secret. ( I’m practically giggling while I type…)Actually several people have gotten a sneak preview since we’ve needed help with a few things here and there.  So, now the cat is out of the bag, you will be hearing more and more about this. We are going to be publishing regular construction updates and more info as we go.

Everyone can become an investor in our project

This is a large undertaking. We can’t do it alone.  As a result we will be launching a crowdfunding project through Kickstarter so that everyone can become an investor in our project. Yes, you too can invest in a little bit of Sweet Carolina Cupcakes. We’ll follow up with a post on how you can be involved shortly. If you haven’t heard of Kickstarter, check it out. It’s pretty neat.

That’s it for now, back to baking the Cupcakes that you all love…

Stay tuned for more updates.

Blue Vanilla Cupcakes

Blue Vanilla Cupcakes in the house today only. Our Classic Vanilla Buttercream on Vanilla Cake. Aww, yeah!

Come and get’m while they last.

Anyway, enjoy the pics and if you’re getting married in or around Hilton Head Island or Savannah give us a shout. We would love to help you make your special day just a little more special.

We would love to accomodate all the Gluten-Sensitive folks out there who want to experience our Cupcakes. How can an (above) avergage Cupcakery safely make Gluten Free Cupcakes?

At first this seems a no brainer, simply bake a dozen or so Gluten-Free Cupcakes each day and viola, problem solved.  Right?   As we looked deeper into it we were surprised to find out just how complex the whole issue can be.  Gluten sensitivity can range from the mildy intolerant to dangerously allergic Coeliac disease sufferers.  Once you start looking at it Gluten-Free can be quite a problem.

Gluten Free Vegan Goodness. Chocolate Jalapeño Mini Cupcakes.

Last month we received an email from a customer who wanted to know if we could make Gluten Free Cupcakes for his wife when they visited Hilton Head in June.  We again had the discussion internally.   On one hand we want to make Gluten Free Cupcakes for our customers, on the other hand if we offer Gluten-Free do we need to have them made in a 100% Gluten-Free facility?  How many people are really looking for Gluten Free?  Is it that hard to find?

After asking ourselves these questions we posed them to some folks who might know.

First we asked Drew Baldwin, the customer who sent the email starting this line of thought.

Below is the substance of our email conversation:

1- Do most GF folks require food be made in a completely Gluten Free facility? Does you wife require it?

It depends on their intolerance level. Some celiacs have such an intolerance that if a spouse were to eat regular flour based food they would then have to wash their face and brush their teeth before they can kiss. My wife just can’t have it in her stomach. Properly trained workers at most bakeries and restaurants will keep cross contamination at bay, but even using the same spatula or unclean hands would cross contaminate the food so proper training is a must.

2- What amount of success/difficulty do you/your wife have locating Gluten Free bakery items while traveling?

We utilize free apps on the iphone and downloaded lists on our tom-tom.  Unfortunately if a local business/restaurant is not listed as gluten free on some registry or they don’t have a reputation for it online or a menu online then we usually avoid it. Most places that support gluten free lifestyles will push it as a calling card to let cleiacs know it is safe. We always manage to do some research before we travel and find local business to supplement the boring repetition of the chain businesses  and since we are on vacation whop wants to cook for themselves anyway?

3- Do you have Gluten Free options available in your hometown? If so, where do you buy it and what do you like/dislike?

There are not as many options for us here except for some fast food, believe it or not, and one or two restaurants that have some gluten free options. No one here has any type of baked goods, which is where the market is wide open right now, because there is generally more of a risk when handling large quantities of wheat products in a facility and then trying to clean up the contamination for one day of gluten free foods.  Jacki, my wife, is dying for someone (probably from the south) to make a real gluten free red velvet cake with cream cheese icing. That is one cake she misses. She enjoys almost anything she can get her hands on, but is a little tired of the fruity treats. We have a close friend who makes cakes as a supplemental business, and she has made Jacki a few gluten free cakes. They have been very fresh and moist unlike some store bought cakes. Gluten free takes lower temp, longer time, and more liquid to get a good consistency and she has taken her time to learn the trick to it.

Good input. Drew brings up some interesting points that we had never considered.  Like how hard it is to find Gluten Free product when you’re travelling.  Favorite Cakes. Freshness. The list is almost endless.

Next we spoke to Nancy Faulkner of Gluten Free Goodies, a Gluten Free bakery in Owensboro, KY.   Nancy, a coeliac sufferer herself, told us that although she started her bakery to serve fellow Coeliacs more than 75% of her customers are simply gluten sensitive with only a small percentage being Coeliacs.  These folks don’t require a 100% Gluten Free environment and can be exposed to an area that has processed wheat, even though her facility does not.  Another aspect we had not considered is that fact that many people who are Gluten Sensitive are also Lactose Intolerant.  Nancy says that many of her customers are young Autism sufferers too, who benefit from the removal of both Dairy and Gluten from their diet.

Wow! There’s so much to consider when looking into Gluten Free Baking that we had never thought of.  We want to offer Gluten Free Cupcakes for our wonderful customers who for whatever reason can’t or don’t want to eat Gluten.  We just really need to make sure we address the myriad of issues surrounding the subject.

For now we are practicing.  Learning the techniques. Researching ingredients.  Trading recipes with folks like Nancy.  Talking to customers, friends, Twitter followers, anyone who will listening so we can glean the best information to help us provide the best final product possible.  Again, there’s a lot to consider.

We would love to hear from anyone out there who has something to contribute to the discussion.  Leave a comment below or on our facebook or twitter streams to keep the conversation going.

UPDATE:

We have such a tremendous number of emails from all of you regarding our post about Gluten Free Cupcakes that we are convinced that there is indeed a need.  As a result we will begin offering both Gluten Free and Vegan Cupcakes in our regular Summer menu rotation starting May 30.  Until that time we will continue to do Gluten-Free and Vegan Cupcakes on a special order basis, 1 Dozen minimum. Cost $42.00.

Please leave comments below or email us with any more questions. We love to hear from you!

That’s what we thought of when we heard Cheerwine was back! Did it ever really go away?  No, not really…but it had somewhat faded from Supermarket shelves and the collective memories of many folks…and in 2009 Cheerwine began a new re-branding campaign designed to attract younger folks who had never heard of it.

Cheerwine is now at Sweet Carolina Cupcakes

Here at Sweet Carolina Cupcakes we love Cheerwine for so many reasons. The bubbly-cherry flavor, the nostalgic summer days of yore, and also because the ‘retro’ glass bottled variant is still sweetened with pure natural cane sugar.  If you’ve read this blog before you know that we place a high premium on homestyle, quality products made with attention to detail.  Cheerwine is just that.

With that being said, we are proud to announce that Cheerwine is now being served in our little Cupcake Bakery right here in Hilton Head Island.  We have had Cheerwine on the shelf for the past week and it has been a tremendous hit!  We are only serving the ‘retro’ glass bottled version, which also comes in Diet for your nostalgic cherry flavored beverage pleasure.

Stay tuned this summer as we are planning some Cheerwine themed events at our Hilton Head Island bakery.  Until then, stop by and join us for a bottle of “cherry pop”, as we used to call it as kids.

What the heck does that mean….? Good question.

That’s what we said when we were first approached by Hilton Head Cash Mob about doing a Cash Mob at our little Cupcake Bakery. After talking with them we found out Cash Mobs are pretty cool. They want to host Hilton Head’s FIRST EVER Cash Mob right here in our little shop. Even NPR recently did a story about the National Cash Mob trend

Our response, “Sounds great! We’re in. What do we need to do..?”

Cash Mob Rule!

Here’s what we found out:

A Cash Mob is like a Flash Mob with Cash. Easy enough right? The general idea is to encourage people to go into small, local businesses and spend their money, en masse, to give the business owner a little bit of Economic stimulus. Help businesses grow, make people happy, have a great time, and maybe get a drink to celebrate afterward.

There are some “Mob Rules” that must be followed:

1) The mob date must be announced at least a week in advance via Twitter.

2) The location at which to meet will be announced.

3) The amount to spend will not be more than $20, although people can spend more if they wish.

4) The business must have products for both men and women.

5) The business must be locally owned and independently operated.

6) The business owner must give back to the community in some way.

7) The business owner must approve the CashMob before the mob is announced.

8) The business must be within one block of a locally-owned watering hole.

9) Cash Mobbers must join us for celebratory drinks after the successful mob.

10) The cash mob will occur during the evening on a weekday or on a weekend.

11) Pictures will be posted to the blog after the CashMob.

12) Parking or public transportation must be available.

At the mob, there are three rules:

1. Spend $20;
2. Meet three people you didn’t know before;
3. HAVE FUN!!!

WOW! We’re really excited. For more information you can follow Hilton Head Cash Mob on Twitter.

As a way to give back whatever windfall comes our way we are going to donate 10% of the proceeds from the Cash Mob to “Relay for Life.”

Come down Friday at 4 PM, join the Mob and help us give back to the community.

See you there!

Sweet Carolina Cupcakes Coconut Fudge Cupcake.Made with our Chocolate Coconut Cake, topped with our Vanilla Buttercream frosting rolled in sweetened coconut and a Chocolate Ganache drizzle.  

Sweet Carolina Cupcakes is now serving PERC Coffee.

Now, if you’re like my Dad ( hi Dad!) you think coffee simply is hot, black and comes in a can that says “Mountain Grown”…and that’s all you need, right?  Or if you’re like soooo many other folks coffee means a 64oz Green and White cup with silly names like Iced Raspberry Mocha Frappa-Venti-Cinno.  Whoa! Not so fast, there’s more to coffee than International franchises and factory produced products.  In fact,  the last 10 years have seen a quiet revolution.  Small craft roasters, like PERC, are popping up all over the place.  Locally roasted in small batches, this is artfully prepared coffee.  The raw beans are typically purchased directly from small farmers or cooperatives in Africa, Asia and South America.  This coffee is like wine, only better because you can drink it with breakfast!

After a recent chat with Jake Hodesh at Creative Coast we were put on the trail of PERC.  Last week we took a break from baking and made the journey over to Savannah to meet Phillip and find out a bit more about how he roasts his brew.  Little did we know that we were slated for quite the coffee education.

Phillip took us on a journey around the Coffee-sphere, telling us about proper brewing techniques, grinding, off-gassing (what?) and a variety of other interesting java-related tid-bits.  What struck us most about our conversation was not the coffee education, but rather the entire time we talked ( well over an hour, mind you..) he never once tried to “sell” his coffee.  He just shared his passion, which is in fact, Coffee.  Nice.

Like us, Phillip at PERC is passionate about his craft and that’s exactly what we have been looking for.  A great product, made by a local artisan who cares as much about the quality and experience as the profit.  As a result we were sold.

So, starting today Sweet Carolina Cupcakes is proudly serving PERC coffee to our wonderful customers.  We will have rotating varieties of coffee thoughout the year, changing every week or so…Our first batch is Ethiopian Sidama Guji. Grown at a high elevation ( it’s ‘Mountain Grown’, Dad…), this is a smooth, sweet coffee with a hint of blueberry and a mild nutty finish.  I’m having a cold-brewed iced one as I type.  We are serving it Hot or Iced and like Phillip said “What goes better with a Cupcake than coffee…?”

You should come in and find out for yourself.