Look out Hello and Georgetown, even on an off day, Selena can still make prize-winning cupcakes.

Before we went away to Egypt, I agreed to be on the hook to bring in cupcakes this Friday for the Motley Fool cupcake competition. I knew Selena would be excited for an excuse to make cupcakes, so I had signed us up… and then completely forgot.

Selena had come up with a very appropriate idea (for my office) of coffee flavored cupcakes with cappuccino icing, served in Starbucks sample-size cups, but as of 9pm on Thursday, we hadn’t done any test run and the only ingredient we had was the sample cups.

After a quick Giant run, we were in the kitchen making the cake and the icing. Well, Selena was in the kitchen, Greg was floating in and out of the kitchen still fighting off jetlag. Selena was not exhausted, but not at the top of her game. She forgot key ingredients at key times and had to double-back.

Eventually, things started coming together, but not perfectly. Selena found the cake a little dry, and the icing too gooey, unable to swirl. The sprinkled cocoa topping was a no-go.

She was unhappy.

But like in so many of Selena’s endeavors, she is her own harshest critic. While the cake and icing were problematic separately, they really came together deliciously. The presentation was not as delectable as intended, but still came off clever and creative due to the use of Starbucks sample cups instead of wrappers.

By midday the Fool offices were abuzz with cupcake talk, and to my delight there was much praise being given to our Afternoon Coffee cupcakes for creativity and for taste. I called Selena and let her know that our cupcakes had sold out, even faster than the odds-on favorite red velvet cupcakes.

In the end, we came in 3rd place losing to some stiff competition (but beating out the red velvets). We won a gift card, which is great, but more rewarding is the confidence that this brings for Selena that even when so much goes wrong, things can still come out smelling like a rose, or in this case like a cappuccino.

Selena and Gregs Afternoon Coffee Cupcakes