Meet One of Our 2014 Cupcake Camp Judges, Tara Baker!

America truly is home to some of the most delicious comfort foods, including none other than the delightful cupcake. Cupcakes weren't my main reason for moving here from England, but I'm sure glad I made the migration from across the pond! Red velvet, pumpkin spice, key lime, I can't get enough of those delicious mini cakes of flavor! I began baking at the tender young age of 3 years old. Baking cheddar scones with my mum in the kitchen was my all-time favorite thing to do and by 6, I had perfected the cheese to scone ratio. Under the careful supervision of my mother, it was an easy and natural progression to move on to things like sponge cake, shortbread, muffins and meringue.

As a fundraising consultant for Blackbaud, traveling is a big part of my job and the first thing on my list when prepping for a trip is checking for a local cupcake store in the city I'll be visiting. My job involves working closely with non-profit companies from all over the country and their passion for what they do makes my days very rewarding. Before my career at Blackbaud, I dabbled in my own cupcake business in which I baked natural organic vegan cupcakes for my friends and coworkers for birthdays and other celebrations. I hope to reignite that business in a few years as it’s truly such a huge passion of mine.

Outside of work, and baking delicious cupcakes of my own of course, I spend most of my time at home on Daniel Island with my boyfriend and our super fluffy and ferocious Maine Coon cat Pudding. My favorite way to spend the weekends and evenings are indulging in my inner Foodie and exploring the local restaurants of Charleston, cooking, reading a good book on the porch and good old fashioned retail therapy on King street.