Mouth watering

By David Maurer

Published: April 8, 2008

When Jennifer Bowman received an order for 525 cupcakes, she didn’t start warming the oven.
The founder and chef executive officer of Jenni B Originals is in the business of making what she calls “the best desserts you’ll never eat.” She specializes in creating zero-calorie faux dessert items ranging from cupcakes to full-sized cakes with nonperishable cherries on top.
The large order was placed by a major appliance manufacturer. The company will be using the handmade cupcakes in its exhibit at the humongous Kitchen and Bath Show in Chicago, which opens Thursday.
Although the Albemarle County woman has been making the display-only delectables for just a year, her niche business has attracted considerable attention. In December she was a guest on “The Martha Stewart Show” and showed the host and national television audience how to make faux sugar cookies, gingerbread men and tiny cakes for Christmas tree ornaments.
“I started doing this last April to give me something to do in the evening when my husband is studying,” said Bowman, whose husband, Jeff, is a law student at the University of Virginia. “I set up my Web site in July and in October I got an e-mail from one of the producers of ‘The Martha Stewart Show.’
“I thought it was a joke, but I called the telephone number they gave me. I talked to one of the show’s producers and was asked to send them a sample of what I do.
“I did that, and they invited me to be on the show right
before Christmas.”
Bowman got into the faux dessert business quite by accident. She initially started making pedestal cake stands using vintage plates and was so pleased with the results that she took a few of them to a shop owner to see if there would be interest in selling them.
“The shop owner really liked the cake stands,” Bowman said. “But I was told in order for them to be displayed in the shop, there needed to be something on them to show what they’re for.
“I put my thinking cap on and came up with the idea of making faux desserts. I did some research and went to bakeries to see the treats they have.
“After looking at the bakery items I thought about what materials I’d need to make faux cakes and cupcakes look real. The first ones I did were sad looking, but through trial and error, and a lot of practice, I got better and better.”
By the time Bowman was invited onto “The Martha Stewart Show” she had her techniques perfected. Good thing, too.
“The show airs live, and I was so nervous,” said Bowman, who holds down a full-time job as an administrative assistant and purchasing coordinator for PBM Products in Gordonsville. “But the people there were so nice and made me feel very comfortable.
“They rehearsed everything with me and even asked me questions that Martha might ask. I didn’t meet Martha until we were on the air, but she was very nice.
“During the commercial breaks she talked to me about Virginia and my mom, who was in the front row. She was really very warm and made me feel at ease.”
Trade secrets
Many of the ingredients Bowman uses to create her faux desserts are trade secrets, but two of them are glue and papier-mache. It was the glue that caused a somewhat sticky situation about halfway through the televised demonstration.
“The producer had told me that Martha loves to learn how to do new crafts on the show, and she is very good,” Bowman said. “But at one point she used her paint brush to clean the glue out of a bowl.
“If you watch the clip, you can see this look of horror appear on my face, because I know the next step was going to be painting with that brush. When Martha needed the brush she said, ‘Oh, I used it for my glue.’
“I told her it would be fine, and it all worked out. She had just done her 500th show, so she is very much at ease with everything.”
Bowman has her own public access television program called “Crafting with Jenni B.” It airs on the Virginia Living Television network based in Culpeper.
“On the show I demonstrate how to make different things that don’t take any special skills or equipment to do,” Bowman said.
“My mom is a crafts person and used to run a craft show. I remember making crafts when I was little, like a candy train using things like packages of gum and Life Savers. I think my grandmother bought every one of them.
“Although I’ve never considered myself an arts person, I’ve always liked crafts and making things. And doing this gives me a creative outlet.”
Bowman said her appearance on the television show created a “massive response” to her Web site http://www.jenniboriginals.com. To date she has shipped her products throughout the country and as far away as England and Hong Kong.
Most customers have been individuals, such as the woman who ordered a faux chocolate cake with cherries on top to display on an attractive plate. Bowman said many people like the homey look of baked goodies around the house, but don’t want to be constantly tempted.
Amie Bright was simply looking for a few faux cupcakes for mementoes of her daughter’s first birthday.
“We have two little girls and we call our youngest Cupcake,” Bright said during a recent telephone interview from her home in Columbus, Ohio. “For her birthday I wanted to find something with a cupcake on it.
“I found Jenni’s Web site and ordered a full-sized cupcake and a miniature one for a Christmas ornament. I wanted a purple cupcake with pink sprinkles, and she was more than willing to make exactly what I wanted.
“When I got them I couldn’t believe how real they looked. I telephoned her to say how perfect they are. She is such a sweet person herself, that selling sweet little items seems perfect for her.”
The cupcakes for the trade show were in a custom order as well.
A representative from the company told Bowman that they had looked at 70 different samples from various vendors, and her faux cupcakes were selected as the best of the bunch.
“They were so particular about how the cupcakes looked that they had some food stylists come down from New York to work with me, and show me exactly how they wanted them,” Bowman said. “They brought down all the supplies, as well as four dozen cupcakes from a New York City bakery so we could practice frosting real cupcakes.
“My mom came in from Utah for a week to help me, but I did all the frosting myself, because they had to be perfect. I had to make each one individually.
“Each cupcake has eight layers and each layer is done individually with a spatula. I then put the frosting in a bag and squeeze it on. It took about five minutes just to put the icing on each cupcake.”
No food included
The products Bowman creates contain no food items or wax so they won’t spoil or melt if exposed to sunlight.
And they look so real that she places labels on the bottom of them cautioning owners to keep them out of the reach of children.
The local faux dessert business is still in the hobby stage, but that could change if the orders keep coming in. And with prices from $5 to $65, these look-but-don’t-taste treats are affordable.
Later this year Bowman will be giving a class on faux treats for Christmas as part of Albemarle County’s Open Door continuing education program. She will be teaching techniques similar to those she demonstrated on Stewart’s show.
“The reason why I started this little hobby was to have something fun to do while my husband is studying,” Bowman said. “Right now I don’t know where it will lead, but I do like having a home-based business.
“And I’ve learned there’s something very gratifying about creating things that people like so much that they’re willing to buy them.”
A complete menu of Bowman’s nonfattening products can be viewed at her Web site http://www.jenniboriginals.com.