This morning, in preparation, I went for a run. At 9:30, I caught the 20 and bused downtown to start my senior project at the delicious Saint Cupcake. I figure running will need to be a more integral part of my schedule if my daily cupcake intake stays at the current level.

Walking into the shop, I breathed in cupcake scent: sugar, chocolate, vanilla, baking cake, and a hint of banana and pumpkin (today's menu included fat elvis and pumpkin spice cupcakes). I guess I should get used to this (shouldn't be hard!). Jami Curl (owner, founder, recipe provider, etcetera. And my mentor.) greeted me from behind the counted and my day truly started.

Let me give you a little background on Saint Cupcake with a couple numbers:

It opened in November 2005 (yes, it's not even 5 years old).

In those 5 years, they have amassed 22 employes (the most current count. Doesn't include me or the intern from a local culinary school), and opened 2 additional stores, Saint Cupcake Deluxe (33rd and SE Belmont, but more on that later), and the online store (yes, that counts!).

They make about 3000 cupcakes a day on average (more on Saturday, less on Monday, this includes special event cupcakes).

Last year they donated over $30,000 worth of cupcakes to various organizations.

It's that last one that epitomizes the business plan of Saint Cupcake. When it opened in 2005, Jami's plan to advertise was to donate, donate, donate. Send the cupcakes out and get people coming back for more. And it worked like a charm!

Throughout the day I learned about all sorts of little quirks that are special to Saint Cupcake (it weirded me out when I saw that they kept their sugar and flour in giant bins identical to the bins my cousins use for horse feed). Have you ever felt like you're being watched while buying a cupcake there? I haven't, but in case you have then I can clear that up. The break room has a great people watching window:

During my tour I met everybody who was working there today, most names I'll need to be reminded of later, but the major recurring characters in this blog will most likely be Jami (owner, my mentor), Galen (online shop manager), Valerie (back of house manager, meaning she's in charge of the kitchen), and Jackie (front of house manager at Saint Cupcake and Deluxe). A store looks very different from the other side of the counter, and the behind the scenes shenanigans are certain to keep me busy for the next month. That black shadow on the right that looks kind of like a person is Jackie. I know, my photography skills are impressive.

I guess all I need to do now is realize that for the next three and a half weeks, my life will be totally and completely immersed in cupcakes.

(they're everywhere!)

-Margaret