WHEN FOOD Network cast Chloe Coscarelli on the competition show Cupcake Wars back in 2009, she had only been baking professionally for three months. The episode featured four bakers in three rounds of eliminations, culminating with the challenge of baking 1,000 aphrodisiac-inspired cupcakes in three flavors—plus a unique display dreamt up on the spot.
For the final challenge, Coscarelli and just one other baker remained. The two contestants sifted, mixed, folded, baked, frosted, decorated, and ran around their kitchen spaces with team members dizzily weaving throughout. They had the nerve-racking task of timing the two-hour bake, cooling and frosting of a thousand cupcakes, and perfecting the final set-up. The champion would receive $10,000 and have their cupcakes featured at a sleek magazine launch party, but of even more value, they…
