“I can do this” is the recurring phrase that encourages Amina Adeyemi to push through life’s challenges – from taking the bar exam to baking her first cake to starting Veeyon Cakes, her Eden Prairie-based custom cake business.
Adeyemi’s baking journey began in 2018 while she was studying for the bar exam. In need of a different kind of mental break – and with her husband’s birthday coming up – she decided to bake him a cake. While the cake turned out fine, the greater impact was the confidence it gave her to keep baking.
Next came her son’s birthday cake, and then her other son’s. After each one, she found herself thinking “I can do this.”
Hungry to learn more flavors and techniques, Adeyemi started baking for her friends’ children as well. They offered flavor ideas and suggestions, prompting her to research, watch YouTube tutorials and experiment in her kitchen.
Two years after her first cake experiment, Adeyemi was invited to bake for someone outside her circle of family and friends, and she began charging. What had started as a hobby quickly grew into a business, born from a chorus of “I can do this.”
Looking back on that time, Adeyemi says there has been “lots of laughter, happiness, some tears in between, some disappointments. But at the end of the day, it’s five years and we’re still here.”
Juggling a business on top of being a parent and working full time as an attorney isn’t easy. But she just does it.
The key to Adeyemi’s schedule is batching her work throughout the week. Cake pick-ups are only on Saturdays, and she starts the process on Sundays, spreading the tasks over several days, often in the evenings after work and family dinners. Loving the work makes Adeyemi extra careful not to burn out – she never wants to lose the excitement that comes from the process and from seeing her customers’ reactions.
Whatever challenges arise, Adeyemi faces them with resilience – dusting herself off, trying again and reminding herself of what she calls her superpowers.
“You never know you can do something until you try it … I call it superpowers,” she said. “I didn’t know I had those superpowers. I didn’t know I could make cakes, decorate them, make them beautiful. I didn’t know that creative side of me.”
Adeyemi found her passion by accident and now loves the creativity that comes with the job. She enjoys working with customers to bring their visions to life for weddings, graduations and birthdays. Her favorite orders are for children, who often hand her drawings to use as inspiration.
Kids’ wild imaginations challenge her skills. One customer drew a detailed cat cake that led to a few sleepless nights as Adeyemi planned how to make it. The result brought a lot of joy for both Adeyemi and the customer.
Customers – and Adeyemi’s own kids – provide plenty of ideas to practice new techniques. One year, her son asked for a cake shaped like a cooler with edible pop cans coming out of the top.
To anyone wanting to try a new challenge, Adeyemi advises planning – then taking the leap. Have an open mind, believe in yourself and tell yourself, “I can do this.”
“As human beings, we get scared…. Each cake that I do unlocks another level of determination, creativity, resilience, and proves to myself that irrespective of what I think about myself, I actually can do this,” she said.
To order a cake, visit her website at veeyoncakes.com or Instagram @veeyoncakes.
Editor’s note: This article is part of a series highlighting home bakeries in Eden Prairie. To suggest a bakery, email editor@eplocalnews.org.
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