Sweet Cheeks Baking Company

DREAM Bridal Affair is an amazing event. Hosted by Alchemy Fine Events, Isari Flower Studio, and Luna Photo, DREAM gives couples in San Diego who are getting married the opportunity to explore unique and distinctive options when it comes to wedding design, tastes, and details.  In its second year, the DREAM event drew over 200 people to The W Hotel in downtown San Diego, and the guests included couples and wedding vendors alike.

We here at Sweet Cheeks Baking Company were honored to be a part of this exclusive event, which took place last month.   The special thing about the DREAM event is that, unlike other wedding events, DREAM organizers* only ask one (1) vendor, yes one, per specialty, to showcase their work in their niche….that’s one bakery, one makeup artist studio, one videographer; you get the point!

Not only was it an honor to be selected as the bakery of choice for this event, the night was truly spectacular!  The live music, the decadent small snacks, the lovely jewels, decor, and wedding attire, it all came together perfectly to make a night to remember!

*Again, special thanks to the amazing creators of DREAM, who without them, couples in San Diego would not have the level of inspiration and quality that these San Diego wedding vendors have to offer:  Vanessa of Alchemy Fine Events, Tam of Isari Flower Studio, and Paula of Luna Photo.

 For a complete list of all the San Diego wedding vendors who participated in this event, please visit here!  All are talented, experienced, and of the highest level in their particular field!

 

 

 

 

We love helping our clients plan for their wedding, so when they’re wedding is especially unique and incorporates their culture, we get even more excited to cater to their wishes.  This was exactly the case for a recent Indian wedding of ours.  For this special couple, we made a cake with a traditional Mendhi (Indian) design in red icing on fondant.  The flavor: a delicious citrus cake with passion fruit curd and lemon butter cream!

Besides being delicious, the cake fit perfectly with the couple’s Indian-themed wedding day.  The day also gave us the opportunity for a fun photo shoot, complete with elephants and elegance!  To see more of these images, check out the following magazines, which will feature the wedding in upcoming issues:

:: Modele Weddings Magazine
:: South Asian Bride
:: Maharani Weddings

    

 

Other great San Diego Wedding Vendors:  

Design – Wedding Elegance by Nahid 

Photos – Braja Mandala & Gene Higa

Rentals – Classic Party Rentals

Chairs/Linens - Concepts Event Design

Indian outfits – Fontier Heritage

Venue – The Grand Del Mar 

Elephant – Have Trunk Will Travel

Henna – Henna San Diego 

Flowers – Isari Flower Studio

Makeup – Jellis Faces

Bridal Gown – M Bride

Stationary – J Grace

Cake - Sweet Cheeks Baking

Tux – A Better Deal Tuxedo

We here at Sweet Cheeks Baking make cakes and treats for many occasions: weddings, corporate, parties, etc.  Baby showers are just one kind of party we cater to!  Recently, a lovely couple, Dirk & Linda, approached us as and asked us to create a surprise for their son and daughter-in-law, who were preparing for the first child (and first grandchild), “Victoria.”

We were told the baby shower theme would be “Jungle Jill,” which included adorable figurines of wildlife animals like elephants, monkeys, giraffes and more!   Victoria’s future bedroom design will include the same design elements, which made the entire theme that much more adorable!   We knew the family would be going all out decorating the space according to this theme, so we, too, wanted to make sure the cake fit the scene.

We went with a two-tiered, two-flavored cake.  One layer was one of our light and refreshing flavors, Sunshine Raspberry, which is a citrus-flavored cake with raspberry preserve swirls, which is then filled with raspberry and lemon butter cream.  The next layer was our oh-so-delicious Red Velvet cake, filled with slow-cooked chocolate fudge and strawberry preserves.  Italian Butter cream frosting glazed the cake, and then the four, adorable jungle figurines were made by modeling chocolate and fondant!  We created a monkey, which topped the cake, an elephant, a giraffe, and a hippo for this darling creation.  And, to truly outdo ourselves, we created palm tree, grass and leaves to complete the look!

The shower was held at Dirk & Linda’s Mission Valley clubhouse, and even the location was decorated perfectly.  The entry to the space included giant Birds of Paradise, as well as handmade painted signs that said, “Beware: Wild Animals Ahead!”  The day of the baby shower happened to be a cooler day in San Diego, so the presence of the clubhouse’s stone-fronted, roaring fireplace was a welcome feature for guests and family.  We also think that this adorable cake looked pretty great when added to the setting.  It all fit so perfectly, and we were so honored to be part of this family’s celebration!  We hope we can help them in the coming years with other celebrations and birthday parties!

 

 

Happy Birthday, Sweet Cheeks Baking Company!  This past March marked the 6th birthday of our special woman-owned business.  It seems like just yesterday that we opened our doors and began offering savory desserts and treats to the people and brides and grooms of San Diego!

So, like any 6 year old, we had a party, and this birthday brought out some great industry colleagues, family, and local & long distance friends for a wonderful evening!  Approximately 300 people attended our modest festivities, and some brought with them some special favors and snacks.  For example,  Joes on the Nose, fellow Weddings of Distinction vendor and dear friend, brought caffeine (coffee + espresso), so needless to say, he was a hit.

Then, San Diego wedding coordinator,  Carmin Cermak, of Carmin Design, also a Weddings of Distinction vendor, helped us style the food and decorate our space.  We went with a 1950s – 1960s Americana theme, with many hints of Norman Rockwell art inspiration.  So in fashion with the theme, our wonderful Sweet Cheeks staff, with the help of San Diego caterers and Weddings of Distinction vendor, Continental Catering, created snacks and treats, such as:

 

Root Beer Cupcakes | Hamburger Cupcakes | Parmesan Savory Shortbread Cookie “Fries” | Chocolate-Caramel Apples on a Stick | Mini Pop Tarts | Flourless Chocolate Cake | Gluten-Free Red Velvet | and Vanilla Sour Cream and Slow-Cooked Fudge Birthday Cake

 

Besides being Sweet Cheeks birthday, it happened to also be Carmin’s, so the celebrations were shared.   Yet, these birthday parties did not just include food.  We had music provided by Tim Altbaum Production, a photo-booth provided by Starlight Photo Booth, (yet another  also a Weddings of Distinction vendor!), and event photography by McGuire Photography.  It was a great evening all around.  We talked; we ate; we celebrated. If only every evening could be like that!

Photography by Maryanne McGuire (mcguirephotography.com)

Healthy breakfast options are hard to find in a delicious package.  So often early risers are forced into 7-11 for a donut or creepy, plastic-wrapped pastry that was made weeks ago… or a quick drive-by coffee shop that doesn’t focus on the food, only the brew.  Finding time to make a tasty, quick meal at home has gotten more difficult.  Sweet Cheeks Baking Co. tries to encourage a filling and healthful start to the day with our breakfast breads, tea cakes, Vegan chocolate bread, and even delicious options for breads baked WITHOUT Gluten (the term “Gluten Free” to be used only in a kitchen solely dedicated to Gluten-free baking).

Many San Diego coffee houses and hotels carry our product, but if you want your neighborhood spot to carry our goodies, give them a little nudge and send them to us! www.sweetcheeksbaking.com

Here are a few of our wonderful clients who carry a variety of our breads for a Grab ‘n Go fix:
:: Whole Foods Market – Hillcrest, Encinitas
:: Hilton Hotel – Mission Bay “A-roma Cafe”
:: Cuppa Cuppa – Mission Gorge
:: Village 631 Coffee house – East Village San Diego
:: Cosmos Coffee – La Mesa
:: Sheraton Hotel – Carlsbad
:: La Jolla Shores Hotel
:: Java Joltz – Ocean Beach
:: Cafe d’Alba – 4th & B, Downtown San Diego
:: Lazy Hummingbird – Ocean Beach
:: Chuao Chocolatier – La Jolla
:: Cowles Mt. Coffee – Mission Gorge
:: Lisko Artisan Deli – El Cajon Blvd, College Area

Finding great outdoor events spaces in San Diego seems simple, but it can be challenging. What a treat to find a great spot like Riverwalk Golf Course, which showcases not only the lush, pastoral calm from the rolling greens but also offers its central location for easy access, nearby hotel rooms for guests, lots of parking, protection from hot sun & rain, and of course great vendors!

Riverwalk hosted their season’s Special Events gathering for wedding & corporate clients and invited Sweet Cheeks Baking Co. to become their current cake & dessert provider…we feel flattered and thrilled to be chosen as their neighborhood bakery!

All photos shot by Unveiled Wedding Photography

As lovers of the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival, each year we participate in multiple ways. This year we certainly enjoyed our annual madness at the enormously popular Grand Tasting on Saturday, Nov. 17 and wowed the elegant, high-profile clientele at Friday night’s Reserve Tasting at the newly renovated Mariott Marquis. But starting the festival by enchanting students with a seminar of our own is always the best. We were excited to meet Morning Show personalities Nolan & Kim of Walrus 105.7 FM Radio before the event for a quick interview, but we were REALLY FLATTERED that they stayed for the whole class!
Here are some highlights and the line up of Dessert paired with fortified wines* that we selected:

Our “Port-Paired Decadence” Dessert Class, held at the San Diego Wine & Culinary Center, was a blast! Donna taught the steps to creating 4 delicious desserts, and Elaine explained their pairings with a beautiful array of donated Ports & Madeira by the Premium Port Company. See below for the line up of Sweet Cheeks Baking Co’s desserts with the Port & Madeira that Paul Mugnier of Premium Port provided for our class:
:: Flourless Chocolate Cake drizzled with Grand Marnier – Graham’s “Six Grapes” Reserve Port
:: Marzipan-Italian Cherry Pop Tarts – Cockburn’s “Special Reserve” Port
:: Presidential Pecan Diamonds – Graham’s 10 Year Tawny Port
:: Champagne Tosca Cake with Fresh Raspberries & Macadamia Nut Cream – Blandy’s 5-Year “Alvada” Madeira

*Fortified Wines are basically made when brandy or distilled grape spirit is added to fermenting wine in order to kill the yeast and stop its eating of the grape sugars. This results in a sweet, high alcohol wine. Examples include many, such as: Port, Madeira, Sherry, Muscat de Beaumes-des-Venise, etc.

**Homemade Pop Tarts, a neat new use of extra chilled pie dough and super fun for kids!
Cut equal size squares out of the chilled pie dough (aerate if you own a dough aerater).
Egg wash the bottom piece of poptart, place a popscicle stick in middle of dough.
Choose your favorite jam or mini chocolate chips and place in middle of rectangle ( keep the edges clean)
place the top piece of poptart on top and pinch the egdes together, make sure of no gaps.
Egg wash the top of the poptart, chill in frig for 20 minutes.
Then bake at 375* for 10 minutes or until poptarts are golden.
If the jam seeps out remove carefully from pastry with butter knife, Don’t touch jam gets very hot!
Once poptarts cool dust with powdered sugar, cinnamon or cocoa depending on the filling.
For classic Pop Tart design, drizzle with Royal Icing and press into rainbow nonpareils. FUN!!!

Gingerbread, Pumpkin, Apples, and fall spices conjure up memories of blazing fireplaces & warm mugs of cocoa & tea back East.  In honor of our friends & families in NJ and NY who are suffering without power and heat – and many fearing the worst for the damage done to their homes due to Hurricane Sandy, we send them love and warm thoughts until delivies allow for sending of goodies again!

Forging into November and living in San Diego, we feel fortunate this week to be warm and connected to our daily luxuries of sunshine, energy, cooked meals, and phone service.  We wish there was more we could do for all of them.

To celebrate our good fortune, we are thinking positive thoughts of chilly fall memories – although generally less the blazing fireplaces.  Our California fall still inspires us to create our favorite HOLIDAY FLAVORS in our baked goods, and we are excited to line up some packages to ship back home for our families next week!

This year, in addition to our super delicious SMASHING PUMPKIN with SPICED ITALIAN BUTTER CREAM, and our always popular CHEEBEE’S BEST CARROT CAKE with COCONUT CREAM CHEESE FROSTING, we have added another fun flavor combination for cupcakes:

:: GINGERBREAD with PEAR & CHAI SWIRLED BUTTER CREAMS and CANDIED GINGER TOPPING ::  “Yum-ville!” (as Michael announces at every bite)

We had a fun day with local photographer Laura Christin taking photos of these little gems, in between snacking, and wanted to share a couple.

If you live in the San Diego area, we are making HOLIDAY PIES this season – including GLUTEN FREE OPTIONS – for both RETAIL and WHOLESALE clients!

Do you have a favorite Autumn Dessert or Cake Flavor for fall that you’d like to see us create or that you’d like to share?  Please contact us at (619) 285-1220 or info@sweetcheeksbaking.com

 

 

 

All photos by Roger Knight, John’s proud Grandpa!

We love Old School style Winnie the Pooh!

1st Birthday cakes make every child smile!  We have so much fun making them for the little ones to smash, lick, poke, taste, and gobble up that we thank all of the parents for offering us the opportunity whenever they order a theme cake for their child’s 1st real party.

We will showcase a few upcoming blog posts, starring some fabulous cakes & happy kids, starting with this little cutie, who just celebrated his 1st birthday with family & friends last week…gosh he is adorable, and we LOVED their old school Winnie the Pooh theme!  Chocolate cake with slow-cooked chocolate fudge & raspberry preserves, frosted in pale blue Italian Butter Cream…truly a classic combination of deliciousness.

Cupcakes to feed the kids made a simple snacker for little hands.  Pooh Bear & his “hunny” pot in white chocolate; butter cream trees & grass; & forest flowers, #1, and tiny buzzing bees in gum paste completed the setting.

Mom Amy kindly sent us a glowing THANK YOU today that we just had to share around the kitchen (happy clients make our days worthwhile):

Hi!

We just wanted to let you know what a great hit your cake was at our son’s first birthday party. Everyone was in love with not only the way the cake looked but how great it tasted. We’ve attached a couple pictures of the cake, and also a picture of John enjoying his first cupcake. He enjoyed it so much that he even tried to lick the leftovers off of my husband’s hand. Thanks so much for working with us and making John’s birthday even that much more special.”

 

Do you have a baby, child, husband, sister, friend, or grandma, etc. who would love a cool and yummy gift of deliciousness?

Please give us a call or email to inquire about more of our fun SPECIAL EVENT CAKES, CUPCAKES, AND PIES!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sculpted cakes… We always love when we have the opportunity to do a cake that is a little out of the box. We got just that opportunity with Preston’s 40th birthday cake! Preston is a lover (and do-er) of all things music, from DJ to musician, and he has a lifetime of experience in the music industry. It is only fitting that his wife Helene (“Helene The Bean,” we like to call her) threw him an ALL MUSIC, ALL THE TIME birthday bash.  Held in a totally rustic warehouse location downtown, she added to the music motif an Arabian twist. The party reflected Preston’s love and passion for music down to the last details,from the table settings which sat on record players, to the candle sticks sitting in old tape reels. The cake was no different, it was a replica of a reel to reel tape player.  Preston’s own logo – a graphic image of himself in a turban (thus the Arabian feel) was carried throughout the party, so of course we added this cool image to one of the reels on the cake for a more personal touch.

Brett Rose Photography did an amazing job of capturing all of the details of the event, while Erin Hall Coordination helped to plan the event with Preston’s wife Helene Cornell. Happy Birthday Preston! It was a pleasure to be apart of such an amazing event!!

Other Accolades:
Event Space: Warehouse MONIKER GROUP INC.
Flowers: Diana Culver of Fleur De Lis Flowers
Catering: Sun and Glory Catering