"Cupcake Wars" contender Patty Katopes with some of her creations.

Could Cobb County confections claim a consecutive “Cupcake Wars” clinch?

You may recall that Mamie Doyle of Miss Mamie’s on the Marietta Square took top honors on the Food Network reality show this spring. On Sunday night, a crowd of friends packed the west Cobb home of Patty Katopes of Patty Cakes Cupcakes to find out if there was another winner in their midst.

“I’m so proud of her,” said Katopes’ daughter Katherine, 15, as friends milled around sampling some of the 700 cupcakes her mom prepared for the party.

Patty Katopes' friends Leslie Magarian, left, and Wanda Clancy, seated, came to cheer her on during the "Cupcake Wars" episode that aired Sunday.

“She deserves this,” said Amanda Smith-Vogel, a friend Katopes met when both were competing in the Miss Georgia pageant. (Amanda was Miss Georgia 1985; Patty was Miss Atlanta 1989).

Katopes’ sister, Emily Theriot, served as her assistant during the “Cupcake Wars” contest.

“If she ever needs an extra hand, she knows to call me,” Theriot said.

So … did Katopes win?

Spoiler alert … spoiler alert …

YES!

Perfect wine pairing!

“This has been a huge celebration for our family,” Katherine Katopes said.

Patty also has a son, Michael, who is 10. She’s always enjoyed baking, but started it professionally following a divorce, when she needed to earn money to keep her household afloat. At first she sold cupcakes out of her home; now she has partnered with Great Harvest Bread Company at 3894 Due West Rd. to sell her treats there.

“I had to create a business,” Katopes said. “When I created the business, I created the audition tape. It was kind of putting the cart before the horse.”

Cupcake champions

Judges Candace Nelson, Florian Bellanger and Minnie Driver loved her creations and crowned her the winner during the episode that aired Sunday night. Katopes wins $10,000 to grow her business and a chance to provide sweets for an upcoming Wild Aid charity gala in San Francisco. She’s also a hopeful for “Cupcake Champions,” which pits past “Cupcake Wars” victors against each other.

On Sunday night, though, she was just savoring the moment. The greatest challenge she recalled from the competition was just beating the clock.

“I don’t really want to see it,” she said as the tense moments aired on numerous television screens throughout her home. Instead she visited with family, including her parents Donna and John Lula; and friends, including Leslie Magarian and Wanda Clancy.

“It’s an amazing night!” Katopes said.

- Jennifer Brett/The Buzz/jbrett@ajc.com