Jackson wedding cake maker persevering during the pandemic

By long tradition, June is regarded as a top month for weddings.

Katie Goodpasture has made five specialty cakes for June nuptials in the basement of her Jackson home.

But until this month, Goodpasture’s business, Fancy That Cake, struggled due to COVID-19.

The coronavirus took a big bite out of the baker’s revenue, so to speak.

“I had no income for 2 1/2 months,” the Woodland High and Southeast Missouri State University grad said.

“There were no cake orders at all for April and May,” she said, as customers delayed their nuptials and postponed birthday celebrations because of the pandemic.

“(Weddings) got pushed back to July, October, even into next year,” the mother of three said.

Katie Goodpasture has been making cakes to order for 10 years.

“I remember watching ‘Cake Boss’ on TV and thought, ‘I could do that,’” said Goodpasture, who got her start while making a cake for a daughter’s fifth birthday in 2009.

“I had so much fun, so I just kept doing it,” she said.

Goodpasture considers herself principally an artist who bakes.

Sometimes people show her a photo of what they want in a cake.

“Occasionally, they’ll tell me, and I will make a drawing,” Goodpasture said, “because I need a picture in my head before I bake.”

Customers find Goodpasture via her website, Facebook and especially by word-of-mouth.

“A lady at Saint Francis (Medical Center) has ordered 12 cakes from me,” Goodpasture said, “and she refers people to me.”

Goodpasture has noticed wedding receptions seem smaller than in the past, consequently the cakes are not quite as big, she said.

An exception was a groom’s cake she made in 2017.

“It was a Batman cake and it was 2 1/2 feet tall,” said Goodpasture, 40.

The cake shows Batman with an electric guitar, on his knees, with the superhero’s cape seemingly waving in the air.

“Batman’s head was made of Rice Krispies treats,” Goodpasture said, “and the whole thing took me two weeks to create.”

“We delivered that cake (to the customer) down a gravel road in Wappapello, Missouri,” she recalled, “and, remarkably, nothing at all happened to it.”

Husband Jon, who works a salaried work-from-home job, is Katie’s jack-of-all-trades in helping her promote and maintain the business but he knows making incredible confections is not his forte.

“She’s the creator,” said Jon, who has been married to Katie 18 years.

“I can’t eat anyone else’s cakes,” he adds.

Goodpasture said virtually everything in one of her cakes is edible, even the decorations.

“Sometimes people want wafer paper flowers (on the cake). They’re not terribly tasty, but you can eat them,” she added with a smile.

Goodpasture said the average cake takes 24 to 30 hours to create, and while she uses store-bought cake mixes, the icing is all homemade.

She charges $200 minimum for any order. The Batman groom’s cake was $600.

The reward, for Goodpasture, is not only payment but also the pleased reactions of customers.

“I’ve had people cry and jump up and down,” she said. “I’ve also gotten lots of hugs.”

Goodpasture admits more than one customer has told her a cake she made looked too good to eat.

“I tell them to take lots of pictures, then eat it,” she said. “You don’t want it to go bad.”

Goodpasture’s website is www.fancythatcake.com.