Apprenticing at Sweet T’s Bakeshop

I’ve hinted a few times that I’ve begun an apprenticeship at a local bakery, but knew I had to fully spill the beans eventually. And it’s such fabulous news, how could I keep it to myself?

Back in late December, my friend Robb popped in to Sweet T’s Bakeshop in Haddonfield, NJ for some goodies and chatted with Chrissy and Toni, the bakers/owners. He mentioned me, my hunt for an apprenticeship and my blog. They sounded interested, so he sent me an email with the scoop and I emailed them back, fingers crossed.

A week or so went by (it was the holidays, of course) and then I got an email from Chrissy. Sure! They’d love to meet me! Come on down! I think I did a lot of squealing and high-fiving with Ray.

I hit it off with both girls quickly and they invited me in to bake, putting me to work immediately on actual bakery tasks (though I would have had no problem doing dishes). And it’s been great! I’ve made batters and fillings, whipped together frostings, assembled cupcakes. I’ve even lent them a couple Cupcake Friday Project original frosting recipes–my nutella buttercream and honey buttercream–which have been big hits with the customers. And yes, I do dishes, but usually either Chrissy or Toni say, “Why are you doing dishes?!”

I love that I’m able to jump in with them, take directions from them and be in the middle of the action. I’ve kept to working on the cupcakes mainly, but Sweet T’s does a lot of business in custom cake orders, so I’ll eventually get to learn more about that (and yes … I will eventually work with fondant).

Currently, I’m doing weekends when I can fit them in, but the plan would be to spend some mornings and evenings there around my work schedule as well. And aside from giving the ladies some help with their flour and butter business, I’ve been slipping them some marketing tips along the way (I mean, that IS my day job). I’ve already set them up with a Twitter account, so follow them at . You’ll find some photos of their desserts there and they are drool-worthy!

This is a fantastic leap for me. The experience is unbelievable and it’s great to be in a creative space where you can bounce ideas off of other people. Toni, who worked at Carlos Bakery (that will sound familiar if you’re a Cake Boss fan), blends her art background with her love of food and baking. And a bakery that has Blood Orange Velvet and Green Tea with Lemon Curd cupcakes is most certainly the place for me! So stop on by, buy some cupcakes and maybe order a cake for your next special occasion!

Note: I did review Sweet T’s Bakeshop’s cupcakes after taking on the apprenticeship, however my opinions are solely my own. Those cupcakes are just that amazing!