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Michelle Spell first opened Ava’s Cupcakes‘ flagship store in 2011 on Wall St. in Rockaway, NJ. Named after her youngest daughter, the bakery specializes in cupcakes with flavors ranging from traditional chocolate to bold ‘beer and pretzels.’ Since the opening, Michelle and her cupcake bakery have seen significant success between winning Cupcake Wars in 2012, taking 2nd place during the show’s championship and being included in The Daily Meal’s list of 101 Best Cupcakes in the Nation. Today, she continues to build off of the success of her sweet, small-scale creations with consistent new flavors and promotions.
What’s more is cupcake fans don’t have to travel to Rockaway to sample Michelle’s acclaimed cupcakes; Ava’s Cupcakes’ website offers both local and, just recently, national delivery options. Those who suffer from food allergies can also enjoy the brand with Ava’s gluten free and vegan cupcake line. With her already reputable flavors and ever-expanding options of how to enjoy them, it appears that Michelle and her bakery are primed for a national baked-good domination.
What first got you into baking and what informs your passion for baking?
The kitchen has always been a happy place. I can spend hours there testing new flavors and creating new recipes with my family. To me, dessert is the best part of any meal, but it needs to pass the ‘three bite’ rule. I opened Ava’s Cupcakes to combine my love of food and sweets. I love being part of celebrations, whether it is my own family’s celebration or yours!
You won ‘Cupcakes Wars’ a few years back and can clearly think creatively on your feet, how frequently do you come up with new flavors and products?
I’m always exploring and testing out new recipes and flavor combinations. At Ava’s Cupcakes, we get our inspiration from seasonal fruits, veggies, colors and trends. We also listen to our guests. Our favorite thing to do is explore nostalgic flavors and give them an Ava’s Cupcake makeover. For instance, this holiday season, our Sparkling Peppermint Red Velvet became a huge hit.
Tell us more about gluten free baking.
At Ava’s Cupcakes, it is important to us that everyone can enjoy our creations. As we continued to listen to our guests and follow food trends, we knew we needed to translate our best sellers into an amazing Gluten-Free and Vegan line. We took our time to perfect our recipes and it became our mission to provide Gluten-free and Vegan cupcakes that pack a punch of flavor with bold combinations such as Green Tea & Ginger and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup. Why? It’s simple. Desserts should taste great.
Is there any exciting upcoming news that fans should know about?
At Ava’s Cupcakes we are constantly challenging ourselves to create tasty desserts fit for any celebration. Just recently we decided to introduce our Micro Cookies. Small batch baking for the perfect portion with a flavor deliverable like no other! Ava’s Micro Cookies have plenty of nostalgic favorites such as our Raspberry Almond Thumbprints and our Pistachio Biscotti. We have also created some unique and exclusive cookies such as the Strawberry Chip and Ava’s Invisible Cookie. Ava’s Cupcakes and Cookies are available for Nationwide Shipping-, which might be the biggest news.
-by Johanna Silver