Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
My Cupcake Obsession
My name is Katie Brown, and I am crazy about cupcakes. IâÈçm not kidding. I think about cupcakes every day. I even dream about them when I sleep. The other night I was dreaming that I was eating a giant cupcake, and when I woke up I was chewing on my pillow!
Okay, now I am kidding. But I do dream about cupcakes, I swear. There must be a name for this condition. Cupcake-itis? ThatâÈçs got to be it. I am stricken with cupcake-itis, and there isnâÈçt any cure.
My three best friends and I formed the Cupcake Club, and we bake cupcakes for parties and events and things, and sell them. WeâÈçre all different in our own way. Mia has long black hair and loves fashion. Emma has blond hair and blue eyes and lots of brothers. Alexis has wavy red hair and loves math.
I have light brown hair, and I mostly wear jeans and T-shirts. IâÈçm an only child. And I hate math. But I have one big thing in common with all my friends: We love cupcakes.
ThatâÈçs why we were in my kitchen on a Tuesday afternoon, baking cupcakes on a beautiful spring day. We were having an official meeting to discuss our next big job: baking a cupcake cake for my grandma CaroleâÈçs seventy-fifth birthday bash. But while we were thinking about that, we were also trying to perfect a new chocolate-coconut-almond cupcake, specially created for my friend MiaâÈçs stepdad and based on his favorite candy bar.
We had tried two different combinations already: a chocolate cupcake with coconut frosting and almonds on top and then a coconut cupcake with chocolate-almond frosting, but none of them matched the taste of the candy bar enough. Now we were working on a third batch: a chocolate-almond cupcake with coconut frosting and lots of shredded coconut on top.
I carefully poured a teaspoon of almond extract into the batter. âÈêMmm, smells almondy,âÈë I said.
âÈêI hope this batch is the one,âÈë said Mia. âÈêEddie finally started taking down that gross flowery wallpaper in my bedroom, and I have to find some way to thank him. I would have paid someone a million dollars to do that!âÈë
âÈêYou realize you could buy a whole new house for a million dollars, right?âÈë Alexis asked. âÈêProbably two or three.âÈë
âÈêYou know what I mean,âÈë Mia replied. âÈêBesides, you know how ugly that wallpaper is. It looks like something youâÈçd find in an old ladyâÈçs room.âÈë
âÈêHey, my grandma CaroleâÈçs an old lady, and she doesnâÈçt have ugly wallpaper in her house,âÈë I protested.
Emma picked up the ice-cream scoop and started scooping up the batter and putting it into the cupcake pans.
âÈêWe need to find out more about your grandma,âÈë Emma said. âÈêThat way we can figure out what kind of cupcake cake to make for the party.âÈë
âÈêRight!âÈë Alexis agreed. She flipped open her notebook and took out the pen that was tucked behind her ear. Sometimes I think Alexis must have a secret stash of notebooks in her house somewhere. IâÈçve never seen her without one.
âÈêFirst things first,âÈë Alexis said. âÈêHow many people are coming to the party?âÈë
I wrinkled my nose, thinking. âÈêNot sure,âÈë I said. Then I yelled as loud as I could. âÈêMom! How many people are coming to Grandma CaroleâÈçs party?âÈë
My mom appeared in the kitchen doorway. âÈêKatie, you know how I feel about yelling,âÈë she said.
âÈêSorry, Mom,âÈë I said in my best apology voice.
âÈêThe answer is about thirty people,âÈë Mom said. âÈêSo I think if the cupcake cake has three dozen cupcakes, that would be fine.âÈë
âÈêWhat exactly is a cupcake cake, anyway?âÈë Mia asked. âÈêDo you mean like one of those giant cupcakes that you bake with a special pan?âÈë
âÈêI was thinking more like a bunch of cupcakes arranged in tiers to look like a cake,âÈë Mom replied.
Mia nodded to AlexisâÈçs pen and notebook. âÈêCan I?âÈë
âÈêSure,âÈë Alexis replied, handing them to her. Mia began to sketch. SheâÈçs a great artist and wants to be a fashion designer someday.
âÈêLike this?âÈë Mia asked, showing Mom the drawing. I looked over MiaâÈçs shoulder and saw the plan: three round tiers, one on top of the other, with cupcakes on each.
âÈêExactly!âÈë Mom said, smiling and showing off a mouth full of perfect white teeth. (She is a dentist, after all.)
Alexis took back her notebook. âÈêExcellent,âÈë she said, jotting something down. âÈêNow we just need to decide what flavor to make and how to decorate it.âÈë
âÈêWhat do you think, Mom?âÈë I asked.
âÈêOh, IâÈçm staying out of this. This is your project,âÈë Mom replied. âÈêI think IâÈçll let you girls come up with something. You always come up with such wonderful ideas, and I know Grandma Carole will love whatever you do.âÈë
âÈêAll done!âÈë Emma announced, putting down the ice-cream scoop.
âÈêMom, oven, please?âÈë I asked.
âÈêSure thing,âÈë Mom said, slipping on an oven mitt. She put the chocolate-almond cupcakes into the preheated oven, and I set the cupcake-shaped timer on the counter for twenty minutes.
Mom left the kitchen, and the four of us sat down at the kitchen table to work out the details.
âÈêSo what kind of flavors does your grandmother like?âÈë Alexis asked.
I shrugged. âÈêI donâÈçt know. She likes all kinds of things. Blueberry pie in the summer, and chocolate cake, and maple-walnut ice cream âÈöâÈë
âÈêSo we can make blueberry-chocolate-maple cupcakes with walnuts on top!âÈë Mia joked.
âÈêHey, we thought bacon flavor was weird and that worked out well!âÈë said Emma. It was true. Bacon flavor was a really big seller for us.
âÈêYou know, we donâÈçt know anything about your grandma,âÈë Emma said. âÈêMaybe if you tell us something about her, we can get some ideas.âÈë
âÈêSure,âÈë I said. âÈêHold on a minute.âÈë
I went into the den where Mom and I keep all our books and picked up a photo album. We have lots of them, and there were pictures of Grandma Carole in almost all of them. I turned to a photo of me and my mom with Grandma Carole and Grandpa Chuck at Christmas. Grandma Carole looked nice in a red sweater and the beaded necklace I made her as a present at camp. Her hair used to be brown like mine, but now itâÈçs white.
âÈêThatâÈçs her,âÈë I said. âÈêAnd thatâÈçs my grandpa Chuck. They got married, like, forever ago, and they have three kids: my mom and my uncle Mike and my uncle Jimmy. She used to be a librarian.âÈë
âÈêJust like my mom!âÈë Emma said, smiling.
I flipped the pages in the photo album and found a picture of Grandma Carole in her white tennis outfit, holding her racquet.
âÈêMostly she loves sports and stuff,âÈë I said. âÈêShe runs, like, every day, and she won track medals in high school. She goes swimming and plays tennis, and skis in the winter, and she likes golf even though she says thereâÈçs not enough running.âÈë
âÈêDo sports have a flavor?âÈë Mia mused.
âÈêUm, sports-drink-flavored cupcakes?âÈë Alexis offered.
âÈêOr sweat-flavored cupcakes,âÈë I said, then burst out giggling.
âÈêOr smelly sneaker-flavored cupcakes,âÈë Mia said, laughing.
âÈêEw, sweat and sneakers âÈö those are so gross!âÈë Emma squealed.
âÈêBut I guess she does like sports most of all,âÈë I said. âÈêSheâÈçs always trying to get me to do stuff with her. Because I am soooo good at sports.âÈë I said that really sarcastically, because the exact opposite is true. Now it was EmmaâÈçs turn to giggle.
âÈêYeah, IâÈçve seen you in gym,âÈë she said.
âÈêItâÈçs even worse than you know,âÈë I confessed. âÈêWhen she tried to teach me to ski, I wiped out on the bunny hillâÈ'you know, the one for little kids? I even sprained my ankle.âÈë
âÈêOh, thatâÈçs terrible!âÈë Emma cried.
âÈêAnd when I played tennis on a team with Grandpa, I accidentally whacked him in the head with my racquet.âÈë
Mia put a hand to her mouth to try to stop from laughing. âÈêOh, Katie, that would be funny if it werenâÈçt so terrible!âÈë she said.
I nodded. âÈêHe needed four stitches.âÈë
âÈêSo I guess you donâÈçt take after your grandmother,âÈë Alexis said.
âÈêWell, not the sports thing,âÈë I admitted. âÈêBut everyone says I look exactly like she did when she was younger. And sheâÈçs a good baker, too. She used to own her own cake baking business.âÈë
Alexis stood up. âÈêYouâÈçre kidding! Why didnâÈçt you tell us?âÈë
âÈêI just did,âÈë I said.
âÈêBut sheâÈçs a professional,âÈë Alexis said. âÈêItâÈçs not going to be easy to impress her.âÈë
âÈêYes, the pressure is on,âÈë Mia agreed.
I hadnâÈçt thought of that before. âÈêWell, weâÈçll just have to make a superawesome cupcake cake, then.âÈë
Alexis sat back down. âÈêOkay, people, letâÈçs start jotting down some ideas.âÈë
We tried for the next few minutes, but nobody could think of anything. Then Emma looked at her watch.
âÈêYou know, I need to get home,âÈë she said. âÈêItâÈçs my turn to make dinner tonight.âÈë
âÈêWe need some more time to come up with ideas, anyway,âÈë Alexis said. âÈêLetâÈçs schedule another meeting.âÈë
âÈêLetâÈçs do it tomorrow,âÈë I suggested. But Alexis and Mia had whipped out their smartphones, and Emma took out a little notebook with flowers on itâÈ'and they were all frowning.
âÈêAlexis and I have soccer practice tomorrow and Thursday, and a game on Friday,âÈë Mia reported.
âÈêAnd I have concert band practice on Wednesdays and Fridays,âÈë Emma said. Emma plays the flute, and sheâÈçs really good at that.
âÈêSorry, Katie. You know spring is a busy time of year,âÈë Alexis said.
âÈêYeah, sure,âÈë I said, but really, I didnâÈçt. I donâÈçt really do anything besides the Cupcake Club, and itâÈçs not just because I have cupcake-itis. IâÈçm no good at sports, and IâÈçm not so great at music, either. When we learned how to play the recorder in fourth grade, I ended up making a sound like a beached whale. My teacher made me practice after school, after everyone went home.
Just then the cake timer rang. I put on a mitt and opened the oven door. All the cupcakes in the pan were flat. They should have gotten nice and puffy as they cooked.
âÈêMom!âÈë I yelled.
Mom rushed in a few seconds later. âÈêKatie, what did I tell you aboutâÈ'Oh,âÈë she said, looking at the deflated cupcakes.
âÈêWhat happened?âÈë I asked.
âÈêThis looks like a baking powder issue to me,âÈë she said. She put the pan of flat cupcakes on the counter and picked up the little can of baking powder. âÈêJust as I thought. ItâÈçs past its expiration date. You need fresh baking powder for your cupcakes to rise.âÈë
I felt terrible. âÈêSorry, guys.âÈë
âÈêItâÈçs not your fault,âÈë Emma said.
âÈêYeah, and anyway, EddieâÈçs not finished taking down that wallpaper yet,âÈë Mia said. âÈêWe can try again next time.âÈë
âÈêWhenever that is,âÈë I mumbled.
Emma, Alexis, and Mia started picking up their things.
âÈêWe can talk about your grandmaâÈçs cupcakes at lunch on Friday,âÈë Alexis said. âÈêEverybody come with some ideas, okay?âÈë
Emma saluted. âÈêYes, General Alexis!âÈë she teased.
âÈêOoh, if Alexis is the general, can I be the cupcake captain?âÈë I asked, and everyone laughed.
When my friends left, the kitchen was pretty quiet. Mom went into the den to do some paperwork, and all that was left was me and a pan of flat cupcakes.
As I cleaned up the mess, I thought of Alexis and Mia and Emma all going off and doing stuffâÈ'stuff that I couldnâÈçt do. They were all multitalented, and the only thing I was good at was making cupcakes. It made me feel a little bit lonely and a little bit like a loser.
In fact, it made me feel as flat as those cupcakes.
Âû 2011 Simon & Schuster
