By Cosima Marriner
If you've ever gone searching online for a cake to make for a special occasion, chances are you have seen one of Elise Strachan's creations. Ten million people globally follow the Gold Coast mother of two on social media to learn how to bake her amazing, yet deceptively simple, creations such as the Skittles Rainbow cake or Frozen cakepops.
MyCupcakeAddiction, her baking and decorating channel, is more popular on YouTube than Jamie Oliver's Family Food Tube, while in the US, the Food Network has given the 34-year-old her own TV show.
"They want that personal touch, to make it themselves." Credit: Courtesy of Murdoch Books
Yet it wasn't until a few weeks ago, when Strachan saw her first cookbook in a local mall, that the extent of her success sank in. "I walked into Big W at Robina, my hometown shopping centre, and saw my book on display," she says. "That was my 'Oh my god' moment. I didn't see any of this coming."
Her five-year-old son, Oliver, is a bit more nonchalant. He bowled up to a customer thumbing through the Sweet! Celebrations book and said: "That's just my mum. She's famous. I'm in it, too, but you have to look at the back to find me."
A former Jetstar flight attendant, Strachan dreamt of opening her own cake shop but couldn't make the numbers stack up. Instead, she started selling homemade cupcakes at Surfers Paradise market, before her husband, Alec, read an article about making money from YouTube videos.
Oliver was just two months old when, in 2011, Strachan made her first video A PIECE OF CAKE in her kitchen, using a $5 craft mat, $100 worth of lights from eBay and the camera bought to film their son's arrival.
"I put choc melts on a Cookie Monster cupcake and hoped somebody would watch it," Strachan says. They did, and while growth in viewer numbers was haphazard for the first year, comments were encouraging. "I liked getting the pat on the back. People didn't just like it, they were loving it. There was a point where we had to choose between the market stall and YouTube. We banked on the world instead of the Gold Coast."
After her initial success on YouTube, Strachan realised much of her target audience was more likely to want to watch a three-minute clip on Facebook than subscribe to her YouTube channel to sit through a 12-minute tutorial. So she set up a Facebook page and established a presence on Instagram and Twitter.
The various MyCupcakeAddiction social media sites have now had close to a billion views in total. Strachan attributes this success to the fact she is her audience: mothers aged 25 to 45 who want to make, rather than buy, a special cake to celebrate a significant event in their loved ones' lives. "People don't necessarily always want to have to buy something," she says. "They want that personal touch, to make it themselves."
Strachan knows how important it is that her recipes are quick, easy and fun. "I think, 'What do I want to see as a busy mum in a busy world? Could I realistically do this after school with two kids running around, or on a busy Saturday morning?'
Strachan is the first to admit she's not a world-class patissier or master chef. Instead, she aims to break down the barrier between baking experts and those novices at home who still want to create "buzz-worthy" creations using what they have in their kitchen cupboards. "I once thought I had to be the best at everything. Then I realised my niche was being good at lots of things, and showing people how to do things very easily."
While Strachan has plenty of grassroots followers here who love their local girl made good, it's in the US that she has really capitalised on her digital audience. "We hit a little bit of a ceiling here in Australia," she says. "To find the next level, we had to go to the US."
After three years travelling to the US, Strachan set up a base in Los Angeles, complete with full studio kitchen, last June. Thanks to her well-groomed, slightly mumsy look – which is more middle-America than glitzy Gold Coast – and a personality that exudes the relentless positivity that Americans love, business has boomed. Strachan and her family now split their time between the Gold Coast and LA, and Oliver attends schools in both cities. Strachan has even developed one of those hybrid international accents, like Kylie and Elle.
Strachan says the family will have to choose their permanent base in the next year or so. "It's been a huge year," she says as she prepares to jet off to Bora Bora with Alec to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary. "The great thing about working for yourself is you can change your mind as often as you like."
Elise Strachan's garden teacup cakes
Photo courtesy of Murdoch Books
Recipe makes 24
Classic vanilla cake batter
• 250g salted butter, at room temperature
• 225g caster sugar
• 3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• ½ vanilla bean (halved crosswise), split lengthwise, or 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 260g plain flour, sifted
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 110ml milk
• 125g white chocolate chips
• 350g frozen unsweetened raspberries
White chocolate ganache
• 220ml thin (pouring) cream
• 700g white chocolate
You will also need
• teacups and saucers
• edible flowers, such as pansies, nasturtiums and violets
Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Line 24 holes of two cupcake tins with paper liners.
For the cake batter: Use a stand mixer with a whisk or paddle attachment and beat the butter, sugar and eggs on high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape the vanilla bean seeds into the mixer bowl. (Or add the vanilla extract, if using.)
Add the oil and combine. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add flour mixture and milk to the creamed mixture and beat on high speed until the flour is completely mixed (30 to 60 seconds).
Gently fold in the chocolate chips. Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them two-thirds full. Add 4 raspberries to the top of each cupcake. Place cupcakes in the oven and bake until the centres spring back when touched (15 to 18 minutes). Check first at 13 minutes, then each minute thereafter. Cool the cupcakes in the tin for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Place the cooled cupcakes into teacups.
For the ganache: In a small saucepan, bring cream to a rolling boil. Remove from heat, add chocolate and stir until there are no lumps and the ganache has reached a whipped consistency. Place the ganache in a piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Pipe a medium swirl onto each cupcake and top with assorted blooms. Serve on saucers.