Jan 10, 2024 4 min read

Angelica Coneybeer had never baked a cake before, until she made one for her Dec. 7, 2019, wedding.

Coneybeer, of Waynesburg, grew up in the Philippines and her family didn’t own an oven.

“An oven is not a necessity there, it is a luxury, and we didn’t have one. I never imagined I could even bake a cake,” said Coneybeer.

But when Coneybeer and her husband, Daniel, were planning their wedding four years ago, the couple decided to make their own wedding cake to save money.

A team effort, they headed to Hobby Lobby to buy cake decorating supplies. Daniel baked the cake, and Angelica, who watched tutorial YouTube videos, decorated the two-tiered blue and white rosette buttercream cake.

“It turned out good, and my husband said, ‘Are you sure you haven’t decorated anything before?'” said Coneybeer. “I found out that I enjoyed doing it, I loved doing it. That’s where it started. I’ve been baking away since.”

Inspired, Coneybeer has been fashioning increasingly elaborate buttercream cakes in her modest home kitchen.

Her skills landed her a first-place finish at the Greene County Fair last summer and second-place honors at the 2024 Pennsylvania State Farm Show Homemade Chocolate Cake Contest in Harrisburg on Saturday, where judges evaluated 79 cakes on taste, presentation, consistency and other criteria.

The self-taught baker created a Facebook page called Buttercream Angel, where she showcases her cakes and cupcakes – all covered with a creamy, decadent, buttercream frosting – and shares baking tips and work from other bakers.

“I basically bake for friends, family and friends of friends,” said Coneybeer, who created more than 30 customized cakes in 2023. “Buttercream is my main decorating style. I do not do fondant. I don’t enjoy rolling fondant. I don’t really like it, and I don’t like putting it on my cakes. For me, fondant is merely for decoration. I want people who eat my cake to enjoy it, from the frosting to the cake.”

Her designs are beautiful and wide-ranging: a basket overflowing with flowers, a unicorn, a festive, six-layer rainbow cake, a NASCAR design, and more.

One cake can take at least eight hours. It’s important, Coneybeer said, to have a plan before she starts: She spends days researching the design once she receives a request, and determines what filling to use and what tools to use – usually a spatula and Wilton piping tips – to make sure the design comes out right.

She loves decorating, but Coneybeer’s goal is for her cakes to taste good. All of her cakes are made from scratch, and she’s committed to using fresh, high-quality ingredients.

“It’s very important to me. People will say it’s too pretty to eat when I make cakes, but I don’t want them to say it’s beautiful and then cut into it and it doesn’t taste good. That would break my heart,” she said. “I put my heart into it.”

Coneybeer’s biggest supporter is her husband, and she has an “assistant,” her 3-year-old daughter, Dahlia.

“Actually, I usually bake when my daughter’s sleeping. Having a toddler makes it harder. I have my hands full,” she said laughing.

Coneybeer said she was surprised to win the Greene County Fair cake competition, and even more surprised by her showing at the state competition.

She is continuing to merge her talent with her love of learning the latest trends and techniques, often from researching on Instagram and other sites.

“It’s an honor to be recognized as one of the winners,” said Coneybeer, who was encouraged by her success. “I wasn’t expecting to win. I’m actually thinking of entering some apple pie contests and angel food cake competitions. And I’m going to continue to bake and make more cakes and cupcakes. I’m going to keep on doing it.”