cupcake boot camp at the chopping block

I will start by saying I definitely recommend this class to anyone in Chicago who likes to bake, I loved it! I went with my girl Christy to the Lincoln Square location, we made 5 different kinds of cupcakes in 4.5 hours, a boot camp for sure. When I told my friend Melinda I was going to "cupcake boot camp" she said "does that mean you eat cupcakes and then work out?" And though we did get a few discouraging looks from the instructor there were no orders of "drop and give me 20" so that was a relief!

There were 12 people in the class (all women, no surprise there) and we were split into groups of 4. We made all the batters and baked the cupcakes first and ate lunch while they cooled. After lunch we made all the toppings and then frosted the cupcakes. It seems like it would be a long class but you are busy the entire time and stopping for lunch is a nice break. Plus free lunch, woo hoo can't argue with that. Oh and they had breakfast treats too, holler!

A lot of the ingredients were pre-measured for us and then they had a community table set up to get all the dry ingredients. Some of dem ladies from the other groups were getting feisty but not to worry, no cat fights. Our instructor Carolyn did a great job, I was convinced she hated our group since we were off to a slow start but she warmed up to us later, I think leaving her some of our finished cupcakes may have helped. She had an assistant, Liza, who would take all of our dirty bowls and utensils, she would have them cleaned and then placed back on our table. Umm hello, where can I get one of those!

My camera did die about 2 hours into the class but then I was able to get a few shots at the end. We each got to take home about a dozen cupcakes, so far the peanut butter chocolate fudge cupcakes are my (and my husband's) favorite.

Thanks to Christy for helping me out taking photos today! Keep reading after the pictures for her hilarious comments on the boot camp.

I am obsessed with all things cupcake, so when I saw that The Chopping Block was offering a cupcake bootcamp, it was a no-brainer. All I had to do was convince one of my most favoritest people in the world (aka Emily) to go with me. Since she is as obsessed as I am, it was an easy task.

Like Emily said, the title of the class is a little misleading...... the instructor did not question our sexuality, give us disparaging nicknames or make us do any type of physical activity (other than standing for 4+ hours). Rather, it was a baking marathon where formulas for deliciousness were drilled into our heads.

(Actually, not really; all the recipes were on printouts. No memorization required!)

Our group did not get off to the best start, and I feel like I'm to blame. The first thing we did was make batter for Boston Cream cupcakes - this sounds simple enough, right? Except I was in charge of mixing, and I am 100% sure that I overbeat the batter. Sigh.

Luckily, things improved, and the rest of our attempts were on the successful side. Yay! The peanut butter fudge cupcakes are AMAZING, and I also like the coconut lime ones (though I will probably choose a different frosting the next time I make them).

I also learned a couple things (which I guess was the point). I can now separate eggs like a pro, and I understand the importance of having all of my ingredients at room temperature. And some other stuff, which I am not remembering right now (but which will hopefully come back to me next time I need to bake something).

Other awesome stuff:

1. Using James' camera! It's fancy, so I felt like a serious photographer. Even though I kind of suck at taking pictures.

2. Having someone to clean up after me, even when I get batter everywhere. (Though I was responsible for wiping off the chocolate I got on my face.)

3. Freshly baked cornbread at lunch! Also, enjoying said cornbread with a bottle of 312.

4. Hanging out with Emmers!

5. Cupcakes. (Obviously, but I thought I'd reiterate it just the same.)