The Beginning of the End?
November 3, 2008
My friends, I come to you today on a matter of grave importance for our nation's future. Many of you have shared with me your concerns over the impending crisis America is facing, and I felt it was best to address this issue head on, while something can still be done to avert total catastrophe. Some of you are scared. Some are angry. Others, just baffled beyond belief. Certainly the future as we know it is hanging in the balance. Still, all is not yet lost.
I'm talking, of course, about these:
That's right: thanks to retailer Bed Bath & Beyond, the dreaded cupcake-cake is coming to the masses. Call it a "Cupcake Puzzle" if you will, BB&B, but we know a Wreckerator when we see one!
Of course, BB&B is just the middle man; the real culprit is the manufacturer, Wilton:
Now, let's not panic just yet, people. Sure, the vast majority of "professionals" can't even produce a decent looking cupcake-cake, leaving us common Janes as likely to traumatize our families as delight them with our potentially half-baked efforts. Yes, the entire CCC concept is inherently flawed, and will therefore always resemble the demented flailings of a prepubescent Pollock. And yes, those separated cupcakes in the photos were obviously decorated separately, which could lead one to accuse Wilton of false advertising. Certainly no cupcake-cake pulls apart with perfectly shaped edges like that.
Still, this is a democracy, my friends, and you have a choice! Just say 'no' to CCCs! Stand up for truth, justice, and real cakes for all! And be sure to use lots of exclamation marks to get your point across!
Or, barring that, make a Wreck and send it to me - I'm kind of curious to see just how bad these bad boys look in "real" life. ;)
Reader Comments (149)
The store I work at carries the bear pull-apart cupcake cake and when I saw it, I immediately thought of this blog. :)
Is it just me or did the first wreck look like a bunch of jellies on top of a giant slice of ham?
I think I must be particularly dense because it's Monday morning (and I live in Alberta lol), but I kinda don't get how these are puzzles...
Assembling basic geometric shapes together does NOT equal a puzzle, in my opinion.
Plus, the shapes would make interesting cupcakes, but I don't understand how they are supposed to retain the shape while cooking, unless you have special pans or something... little paper cups aren't very stiff.
I saw the ad this weekend and you were the first person I thought of.
Ahhhh....I feel doom for every 1st grade birthday party in my classroom! I need 19 sick days!
DIY CCC's are just a recipe for disaster. Literally.
Oh I can't wait to see the wrecks that are submitted after people try to make some of these "puzzles".
Ack! how horrifying! i hope this goes the way of the bedazzler and dies out SOON!
It really looks like it would be so much easier to make an actual cake in the desired shapes than a ccc. It's just so much harder to keep the cc in the correct area while frosting. Am I the only person who's ever realized this? Maybe that's the allure of ccc?
OMG!!! I was at BB&B YESTERDAY and I saw these! I pointed their wrecky potential out to my husband!
I predict that at least once this holiday season I'll see one of these in person. I might not have the misfortune of being served one, but I'll sure as shootin' see one. I'll have to make sure I carry my cell phone with me all the time now. And chances are, the CCC will be poorly executed - a perfect combination of wreckiness.
Well, I suppose you could remove the cupcakes from their liners and create the shape and frost the sides, right?
I too saw these at my local JoAnns and was appalled. However, I do have to give them credit for the different shaped cups. Even though I would love nothing more than the abolishment of CCCs, if anything can cut down on the crappy scalloping it is a step in the right direction. You know if you were a glutton for punishiment you could decoarte them all separately using only the star tip, then when you put them together they won't be frosted together but it won't be as obvious where one ends and the other begins. Just a thought.
I am embarrassed to say I actually, just for a brief second, considered buying this from BB&B. But I came to my senses; I am fine now.
*hanging my head in shame*
I saw this in the BB&B ad and almost sent it in, but I was pretty sure others would. Needless to say, CW was the first thing I thought of when I saw this. =P
<3
Just plain wrong. Color me angry! There is no way I could make them look that nice at home. This is where truth in advertising laws are required. I know I'm probably saying something everybody else already said, but honestly I just dont have time to read all those comments. Peace.
I'll have to decline your invitation to use them and see how awful it turns out.
I can't bring myself to purchase these..
Liz V.
Reminds me of the stuffed bear that had the head, arms and legs attached with Velcro so you could rip them off when you were stressed. It was called the Dismembear.
So, I went to a birthday party where they made a cupcake cake like this (from a Wilton set) to look like a dump truck. The truck was carrying gum drops instead of boulders, and it was the cutest darn thing I've ever seen. Also, the 1 year-old, whom we were celebrating, was completely thrilled. Additionally, I'd comment that his mother was by no means a Martha Stewart, but she pulled it off beautify (if only I had photos to prove it!).
First the financial collapse and now this...how much more are we expected to endure.
Am I dreaming or has an entire entry disappeared? SATC/shoe cake?
Note to Kameron: Go ahead and take that Wilton class! Don't let the CCC's scare you off!
Wilton Method Instructors are independent contractors - don't hold it against us that the company has started schilling out such items. We are in it for the love of cake decorating and teaching that love to others. :-)
IMHO - I'd rather teach you how to do a full-fledged cake - or rather adorable individual cupcakes. The CCC's are pretty much made for those who just really don't want to TRY.
We'll teach you to make a cake that will hopefully never darken the doorstep of Cake Wrecks! LOL!
I saw these in the flyer this weekend as well and knew instantly that it would be here on the blog soon.
I'll end up owning them, but not by choice, lol. Since I'm the baker in the family, it will surely be under my tree with expectations of cute cakes....Though I might make one just to send in!
Ooh, my first time posting! I saw these in BB&B yesterday and almost took a picture...glad to know I'm not the only one who thinks this would be a disaster. Thanks for your blog--it makes me laugh every day, and now I can't walk through a bakery without looking for a wreck!
I have no problem with CCC under the following conditions:
1. It's for a kid.
2. It's being served somewhere where there are no plates, knives or forks whatsoever
3. I can't think of a third.
What's wrong with individual cupcakes?
All of Us: Maybe if you cut instead of pull the frosting it isn't so bad?
Maybe... but probably only if you use Play Doh instead of icing like they seem to have done for the photos.
To the foul-mouthed "anonymous" whose comment was so filled with racist slurs I couldn't publish it:
For your benefit I have hyperlinked my Pollock reference, so that you can see for yourself that he was an influential American painter. I happen to be married to a Polish man, and would never make a slur against people of Polish descent. Maybe next time you should consider consulting a dictionary before attacking someone.
Have a wrecktastic day!
Now I might have to go buy this, dammit! Foul temptation!
I am with most of the others - I got my BB&B ad in the mail and when I saw that kit - I immediately thought of this website! So funny to have logged in just now and voila! there it is on Cake Wrecks!!!!!
I had never even heard of cupcake cakes until I read this blog. The idea doesn't seem to have caught on in the UK. Maybe that's a good thing...
I saw this the other day in my BBB junk mail...yikes...of course my daughter (4) thought they were the GREATEST ever...clearly..CLEARLY I have some educating to do on the CCC.
If you look closely at the boxes, you will see cupcakes that are not all round thus allowing them to fit together better. Maybe this is going to save the CCC or maybe Wilton has just figured out yet another way to make money and put another one use pan in our cabinets. Don't get me wrong, I definitely think the traditional sheet or layer cake is and always will be the best.
While I love to see the atrociousness of ccc, can we move on? You have established that they are horrendous. What else is out there? I still love your blog though. Keep bringing us those wrecks.
Vote no on the CCC Education Amendment!
Seriously, though, these HAVE TO STOP. If cupcakes were meant to be REAL cakes, they would by CALLED cakes- not CUPcakes. Also, I think CCCs are tacky and inconvenient.
huh. this confuses me. they claim it's a 'puzzle', which leads me to believe that you could make different kinds of ccc's, but really, you can't. you have to buy a specific kit. that seems to take all of the fun and creativity out of this. wow, if i had time &/or patience, i'd totally try this. i hope someone does, so we can see what it 'really' looks like.
Please--where is the shoe cake??? I was hoping to find an update today with a backstory! I NEED to know!!!
Hi, my name is Jenn...and I'm addicted to CakeWrecks.
I feel like the worst thing about the CCC is that they deprive us of the best part of the cake: the filling. Where's the rich ganache, the german chocolate coconutty goodness, the fresh fruit with whipped cream? All gone in the name of the CCC! Bah!
I saw this ad yesterday and knew it was going to end up on here!
Poor Jen. As an art major, I knew immediately your reference was to Jackson Pollock, the painter. (There was even a major motion picture released about him a few years ago starring Ed Harris. Anyone remember?) Anyway, just like your website proves, you're bound to run into a few fruitcakes once in awhile. Thanks for the perpetually upbeat and classy way you take it all in stride.
Alixandra Hice
http://casahice.blogspot.com
I used to work for BBB, shhh...and yesterday when I saw the ad in their holiday booklet, I thought of you! The horror!
I saw the ad this weekend for the cupcake disaster in the making and KNEW I would find it here. How nice to not be let down
I guess I am in the minority. I actually got a CCC for my daughter's birthday. The parties at our house always end up so huge (sometimes like 20 kids) I just don't want to walk thru all of them wielding a knife.
It really turned out cute. The only issue was that some of the icing slid off when I pulled out a cupcake. Then again, I'm a cake person vs. an icing person.
It's a shame I even buy cakes...growing up my mom made Wedding cakes professionally!
I bought this for a gift.
I'm sorry.
I saw these ads this weekend and wondered how long it would take you to post on the topic ;)
AH! I got this in the mail, and set it aside for purposes of this blog... I knew someone would send it in before I did!
I'm all in favour of cake puzzles - like a cake maze, or a cake jigsaw, or a cake Kakuro.
These are just plain ole wreckeroonies.
I thought of your blog today when at the market the fruit and veg were labelled
5 "For" £1
With those funky shapes...I'd be tempted to make cupcake cakes in the shapes of various Tetris pieces. What wouldn't be too wrecktastic...would it?
And yes, the final product will come out looking /nothing/ like the picture on the box.
well, at least the cupcakes are shaped so the CCC are a *little* less likely to be total messes, as opposed to the ones in the bakery departments that are all round cupcakes.
Still sure to be wreck-tastic, but they did try.
Vote No On Prop Puzzle Cake!
I actually think these are cool. Having the cupcakes in correct shapes avoid the whole making-an-odd-shape-out-of-only-circles disaster.