BELFAST – The Muffin Man has some new competition.

Sue Coolbeth is the dread headed, cool-as-ice cupcake queen who has turned her love and passion for cooking into a new sweet treat business.

For the past several months, Coolbeth has been perfecting and expanding her craft, using local and organic ingredients to create some of the funkiest and cutest vegan mini cupcakes.

Sue and her “Suecakes!” business have been making quite the splash locally, generating interest within a handful of food co-ops, restaurants, and markets from Belfast to Unity to Rockport and beyond.

My video camera and I recently joined Coolbeth at the Unity Community Center kitchen, where she was making some samples of Suecakes for those interested establishments.

An afternoon of baking, what could be better?

Coolbeth’s journey to vegan cupcake entrepreneurship has been a long time coming. A vegan for the past ten years and a vegetarian since childhood, Coolbeth has always loved being in the kitchen, sharing meals and treats infused with passion as well as nutrition for her friends and family. The sparks of a budding business were beginning to fly.

New to the business side of things, Coolbeth enrolled in a course with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension of Waldo County. Described by Coolbeth as an “an incredible wealth of info,” the course helps aspiring food entrepreneurs take their profession from recipe to market.

Coolbeth decided that if she was going to turn her love for culinary treats into a business, she would have to narrow down what her product would be. She decided on starting off exclusively with mini cupcakes. (Note: she has since expanded into more tasty treats such as cookies, pretzels, donuts and more)

From the “Oh my goodness me green tea cakes!” (Green tea, pistachio and lavender) to the “Fluffy lil red devil cakes!” (Red velvet and chocolate fudge frosting), Suecakes come in many cleverly named and delicious flavors.

In the video above, we join Coolbeth as she makes her “Mexican Fiesta Cakes!”

Contact Wes Sterrs: wes.sterrs@gmail.com

Contact Suecakes!: Coolbeth.Suzanne@gmail.com