The Cy-Hawk game isn’t the only competition this Saturday.

Cupcake Emporium, the local cupcake shop, will appear for a second time on Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars” at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14.

After a lot of back-and-forth with the network, Cupcake Emporium first appeared on the show last June.   

The first time on the show did not go the way owners Tawnya Zerr and “pastry minion” Katherine Hickman had hoped.  

The Cupcake Emporium was eliminated in the first round of competition and returned home empty-handed.

“We were disappointed with the outcome [of the first appearance] and thought we wanted revenge,” Hickman said.

The two knew if the opportunity came to do the show again, they could not turn it down.

This time, “Cupcake Wars” reached out to Cupcake Emporium, asking if they would like to come back on the show for a second chance at the $10,000 prize.

Cupcake Emporium will not be the only cupcake bakers returning to the show. The episode airing Saturday consists of four previous cupcake bakers who also went home empty-handed throughout the season.

The cupcake bakers will create a variety of flavorful cupcakes to be presented at an event honoring the 60th anniversary of Marilyn Monroe’s hand prints at the TCL Chinese Theater.

After many hours of practice, added stress and a few extra pounds gained, Zerr and Hickman were ready for the competition.

“They give us tasks to make sure we are completing things on time, we are up to what they want and see what they want to see,” Zerr said.  

Hickman added that this clock is a real thing, counting down from 45 minutes, an hour and 15 minutes, and two hours in each progressing round. With all the extra practicing, preparing and figuring out what to expect, the duo felt prepared for the competition.

“We were pros and we rocked it,” Zerr said. “We were the fastest people ever.”

Although Zerr and Hickman cannot reveal the flavors they created nor the results of the episode, they said they created the cupcakes to fit the event rather than only working with the products given. Zerr said they are sure there is a favorite that everyone will be excited to see. 

Cupcake Emporium not only offers more than 90 different flavors of cupcakes ranging from the classics to fried ice cream but also a variety of cookies, ice cream, milkshakes, sandwiches, old-fashioned bottled beverages, soup and walking tacos.

Cupcake Emporium is hosting Pack the Shop from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14, in honor of the episode airing. They will offer a free mini “Cupcake Wars” cupcake for every six-pack of cupcakes sold. They will sell their game-day cupcakes for Iowa State and Iowa fans, as well as a variety of other flavors.

Starting Monday, the cupcake shop will offer the flavors seen on Saturday’s episode of “Cupcake Wars.”