The flour was flying and the pressure was on in Tanya Clark’s Bake Shop class this week as a talented group of seniors faced off in a high-stakes cupcake challenge. Working in teams, the students were tasked with conceptualizing, baking, and decorating themed confections that balanced professional technique with creative flair.

Student host Emma DeGeorge provided a play-by-play of the action, capturing the frantic yet focused energy of the kitchen. 

“It’s really cool to see everyone’s different ideas come to life,” DeGeorge noted as she navigated between workstations. 

Teams had only a limited window to execute their visions perfectly and Clark noted that there were several steps to completing this assignment.

“[The teams] need to make sure that they bake their cupcakes as soon as possible, unmold them and get them into the freezer so [the cupcakes] have enough time to cool so that [the teams] can decorate the cupcakes,” said Clark. The cooling was a crucial timeline step, necessary so the fondant and frosting would not melt during the decorating phase of the process. 

And decorating was a must as team concepts varied, and the details of decorating became a highlight amongst the competitors which was easily recognized.

DeGeorge highlighted the diversity of themes, from seasonal inspirations, like an ice cream stand complete with “ice cream cone” cupcakes to pop culture references such as Stranger Things, InsideOut, and Strawberry Shortcake. 

Throughout the competition, DeGeorge observed the critical role of teamwork, especially when technical mishaps threatened to derail a batch. At one point, a team two’s mixer, while left unattended, had the bowl dislodge from the base, causing the beaters to fling the bowl around, flinging butter cream frosting and clanging like an alarm bell. Senior Eddie Martinez was quick to the rescue, but quicker to point a finger.

“I think it was all TJ [Lewis],” said Martinez. “He was supposed to be watching it.”

Regardless of who was at fault, the result was a penalty in the scoring. And mechanical mishaps were not the only area that caused a ruckus.

On Team One’s table, the initial cupcake revealed burnt bottoms, a baking no-no that DeGeorge was quick to point out.

“You have to make sure you are checking your cakes consistently; the bottoms will burn and cook faster than the tops,” she observed. Behind her, the team huddled together to decide what to do with the overcooked cupcakes. When approached for an update, VIttoria Gasparri waved the cameras away. “Not now, not now,” she said emphatically, turning from the camera.

Over at table four, there was a more harmonious production as everyone in the group had their respective responsibilities and were ready to move on to the presentation phase.

Meghan Murray said she was responsible for the frosting and cakes along with Hannah Moffat. Rebekkah Lawton noted that she was the “bossy one” and Reese Fernandes was helping out in all areas. Madison Mento led the presentation display.

“Communication is definitely the most important part,” DeGeorge commented, watching as seniors pivoted to fix frosting consistencies, structural issues, and design elements. 

On Team Three, the decision to create a cupcake homage to Disney-Pixar’s classic coming-of-age movie, Inside Out, was a combination of technology and human ingenuity, according to Colby Sizer, theme proponent.

“It’s midterms week and we’re going through all our emotions of midterms, so I came up with Inside Out [as a theme],” said Sizer. “Then ChatGPT came up with a title which is Core Memory Crunch.”

Caitlyn Braun, cupcake decorator, was proud of how her team showed up and showed out. “We definitely put a lot of hard work into it and I think it shows,” said Braun. “We’ve never used [fondant] in class before but it was definitely exciting and interesting to try and figure it out as a team.”

As the timer hit zero, the kitchen switched from a scene of chaotic creating and baking into a gallery of professional-grade desserts that would be scored in four areas: individual cupcake aesthetic, cupcake flavor and texture, frosting flavor and texture, and overall cupcake presentation.

The judging panel was a selection of veteran cupcake eaters from the faculty and staff such as Kathleen Tranquillo and science teacher and cupcake enthusiast, Lisa Croce, who was excited by the overall scene and ready to find out about each cupcake story.

“I don’t know what I might find,” said Croce. “I see some beautiful colors so I am anxious to see.”

Brandon Moore, math teacher and cupcake judge, had a few favorites before judging even began. “The first kitchen looks pretty cool and the one on the end looks pretty sweet, too.”

CASC Assistant Principal of the Year, Dr. Dana Mulligan was impressed with the overall designs and layouts of the teams, but team three’s Inside Out cupcakes held a pleasant surprise for her.

“The crunch was definitely different; I wasn’t expecting the crunch in the middle, but it gave a nice texture in the inside of the cupcake,” said Mulligan. “And I loved the theme; it was very thoughtful and tied in with midterms.”

Team Four was adamant that every part of their project was homemade, including the ice cream cones used as the base for their cupcake, which Muhammad Aliyan said even those were homemade. “My mom made those,” he said. However, earlier reporting had noted that the cones had been DoorDashed at the last minute for the competition.

Regardless of the ice cream origin story, Eva Lynn of team two, was proud of the concept. “We tried our best, but I am really proud of the “ice cream” stand. That was really creative.”

Fellow teammate and baker, TJ Lewis acknowledged his team did not achieve the level that they were used to in this class. “All of our cupcakes fell, but I just want to show some of the artwork we made,” he said, holding up his phone displaying a photo of brightly decorated cookie. “That’s Cookie Monster. So you look at that detail and we should just look at our past work and be proud.”

In the end, it was the judges’ decision that would determine the winner.

“Everybody had something here that was very special and unique about not just the presentation but the flavor,” said judge Croce, just before the verdict was announced.

And while every team had something to offer, not every team got the honor of being the 2026 Cupcake Challenge Champion, as the overall victory went to Team One, Stranger Things.

All in all, for these seniors in one of their last elective courses at Woodland Regional, the challenge served as a flavorful finale to their culinary studies, proving they have the ingredients for success wherever they head next.