2008 Year in Review

Her Love for Creations Became an Edible Business

It is edibly divine. So brings the name "Edibly Divine Cake and Dessert Creations by Amie".

Amie Behrens began making birthday cakes for her children, and the love for the creations became real. “I made a cake for some friends of ours who had just had a baby. The new dad kept going on about how good it was and that I should start selling cakes.”

Amie began practicing making roses. “Something inside me said, I could do this,” she said. “ I began looking, reading and trying different things. I then started making cakes for other family members’ birthdays.”

Amie took a class through Wilton Cake Decorating and was told with her abilities she could bypass the first three parts of the class and begin making fondant and gum paste. Fondant is a thick, creamy sugar paste used in decorating cakes. Most decorators buy their fondant but Amie has her own special recipe. Fondant gives cakes a smooth appearance making them easier to decorate and more professional looking. Fondant is also used for three-dimensional embellishments.

By word of mouth, more and more calls began coming in for orders. “I knew I had to get the proper licensing in order to do this,” she stated. Work began on a specialized kitchen in her home to accommodate the proper licensing and health regulations. She was presented with her license this month from the Whiteside County Health Department. “Originally, I wanted to have a cake shop. But statistics show that many new businesses go under in the first year. For now I am doing it out of my home but I am outgrowing it already.”

She was given a unique opportunity to design a cake for an Ace of Cake competition, which was held in Rockford, IL at the Discovery Center Children’s Museum. She was one of 50 contestants in Duff Goldman’s “Ace of Cakes Totally Awesome Cake Challenge.” Although she didn’t win a prize she was given the experience and opportunity to meet Duff and he made some exceptional comments on her cake.

Wedding cakes are her passion as she gets to work one on one with the brides to design a unique cake for their special occasion. “I also love it when someone says they need a cake for a special occasion and tells me to do whatever I want. That way I don’t have to stay ‘in the box’ of their mind, I can create my own. Sometimes it is hard because I have an image in my mind and they may have a different image of what they want.”

If you happened to wonder through the Decorated Cakes Department at the 2007 Whiteside County Fair you may have seen three of Amie’s cakes. She received 1st places for all three in: Most Unusual Decorated Cake (all edible), Best Decorated Cake-Amateur, and Wedding Cake. She also received a Best of Show for the Best Decorated Cake.

Amie is married to David Behrens and they have three children, Preston, Carter and Alyvia. “I love doing this. I can make my own hours. I get to create something. And every day is different,” she concluded.

She will have cakes on display on May 3, 2008 at Kreative Rentals, Fulton during the annual Dutch Days Celebration. She will also be participating in the Fulton Bridal Show.

Don’t have your graduation cake ordered yet? She is taking orders. Need a special gift for someone? Try one of Amie’s cookie bouquets. Call 815-956-0060.

To see some of Amie’s creations and information visit her website at Edibly Divine.

by Dawn Zuidema, theCity1.com
April 28, 2008