It's time for a break

It was inevitable at the pace I was going. One of these days, I was going to need a break, and I think that day has come.

For the past three years, I have thoroughly enjoyed myself, starting a business from nothing, learning what I needed to know about running a food-centered business, taking classes to become certified in food preparation safety guidelines, marketing my business, meeting a ton of new people, baking delicious treats for everyone. It's been great, but I have to stop for a while.

Every year after the farmer's market would end, I'd find myself contemplating whether I wanted to do it again the following year. After the first year, I was tired and unsure, but by the time the following April rolled around, I knew I wanted to dive in. I missed the interaction I had with my customers. I missed baking. And I missed the feeling I'd get making everyone else happy with my food.

So year two of the farmer's market began. And it was great, again. But by the time year two ended, I started having bigger dreams. I didn't want to just do the farmer's market. I wanted to sell wholesale; I wanted to make this side business a real one—open a bake shop, make fresh goodies every day, and continue to make people happy. So I really started to pursue this new venture.

When the next April rolled around, sure enough, I was ready to get back to the market, because I now had new intentions. I wanted to grow my business, so of course I had to do the farmer's market to keep my customer base growing. But then a funny thing happened. New opportunities opened up for me at my "real" job, and I couldn't turn them down. Staying at my real job meant more security, and more time I'd be able to spend with my family. And with my daughter being only 7-1/2 years old at the time, there were so many things I'd miss out on if I started my own business. My husband and I decided that the time wasn't right yet. 

But at that point, I had already committed to doing the farmer's market, and I still enjoyed doing it, so I stuck with it. That was this past summer. But once the market ended, and I made it through the holidays, I started thinking long and hard about what I wanted to do this year. 

I'm tired. For the past three years, I've been working non-stop. Sure, I'd get a few months off each year from the 7-day work week, as business really slows down for me in the early part of the year, but for the most part, I'd work 7 days a week between June and December. And that's hard. It's hard on me, and hard on my family. They're great troopers as they've helped as much as they could over the years. But Lila and I have had no time to play for three summers. Every Thursday on my day off from my "real" job, we'd run errands for my "passion" job, or I'd be baking, or whatever. But never playing. Never doing what she wanted to do. My diet and exercise routine suffered. My energy levels were shot.

So I've decided that for 2013, I'm going to take a break from it all and not do any professional baking. No farmer's market. No orders. Let me tell you, this decision did not come easy. My baking is truly a labor of love. I don't need the money. I just love to do it, and I love all of my dedicated customers and fans. I love hanging out with the other vendors on Monday afternoons at the market. I love chatting with everyone that stops by to purchase cookies, or inquire about my business. I'll miss all of you that have supported me so much over these few years.

Is this break forever? I don't know. I hope not. But I don't know how long it will last. Maybe I'll miss it so much, I'll come back in 2014. But maybe I'll realize what I've been missing at home, and want to take some more time off. At any rate, I'm pretty certain you'll see me at the farmer's market every week as a patron instead of a vendor. And I sure hope that someday, maybe in about ten years from now, you'll find me again selling my treats, but this time from a quaint little storefront, maybe at Caste Village, where I'm selling baked goods, paninis, soup, pancakes, and coffee. That's my dream someday... a small cafe where everyone wants to hang out, and where you feel at home. It'll be warm and cozy, smell like mom's kitchen, and be the place you go to make your day better. I'll welcome you with open arms.

Please don't forget me. I promise I won't forget you. You've made my small little dream come true, if only for a little while.

With love,
Lynnette

DC Cupcakes—Love it or Hate it?

My almost-8-year-old daughter likes to watch the TV show "DC Cupcakes." Being a baker, I was intrigued at first, and thought I'd give it a whirl. This was last year some time. But I quickly realized that I couldn't take it. It is so scripted, Sophie is a terrible actress, and Katherine is almost as bad, that I couldn't get past the acting to find any enjoyment in the stories that happened in each episode. So I stopped watching.

But then over the summer, we spent a long weekend in Washington D.C., and of course, we had to visit Georgetowne Cupcake. We weren't sure what to expect. I have had their cupcakes before, but they were always a few days old after someone brought them home from D.C., or actually ordered them online. Those versions weren't that great. Plus with all the hype, could the cupcakes really be all THAT fabulous?

Well, they were. Oh my gosh, you can't imagine how good they were. We purchased a dozen, plus received two free ones. If you follow them on Twitter, every day they post the "secret flavor" for the day, and if you order that secret flavor, you get it for free. So we enjoyed some kind of chocolate raspberry lava cupcake, or something like that, for free. Every single one of those cupcakes was fantastic. The cakes were moist, tender, delicious, while the frostings were just sweet enough, with a nice creamy texture, not too buttery. The flavors were awesome, too. We actually even saw Sophie running out of the shop, probably to go to their satellite shop close by. That was kind of cool. And the shop itself is so cute, and they do everything very well there. It's a well designed store, and a well designed process, and a well designed package.

So I thought I'd give them another try on TV.

But yet again, I was terribly disappointed. We watched an episode that was on last week where they featured a new employee. I forget his name. Let's call him Dave. Dave was in the back making boxes when a delivery guy arrived with fresh fruit. Dave signed for the fruit, and later Sophie discovered that the strawberries were moldy. She was upset and wanted to know who signed for the rotten fruit. This whole debacle was so staged and scripted. I wouldn't mind the staged and scripted part of the show if it were better acted. But it's not. So it doesn't feel like reality TV, and it doesn't feel like I'm watching a sitcom. It's somewhere in between, which makes it awful. 

But my daughter likes it. And I like to watch shows about baking with her. So will I watch it again? Maybe. But my interest will probably not last for long. 

So what about you? Do you watch DC Cupcakes? Do you love it or hate it?

Farmer's Market—Week 16, September 24, 2012

This week's market was pretty awesome. I arrived at my usual time, about 2:15 pm, set up my tables and tent, and again had a small line formed right before the bell rang at 3:00. I sold a few things, and was just settling in at about 3:15. This is about the time, after the initial rush, that I text my husband to see how his afternoon is going, and to update him on any news from sales. However, before I had a chance to do that, he showed up and surprised me. I was so very happy to see him on my last day at the market for the season. It was wonderful to have his company and help as the day progressed. 

It was a chilly day, too. The sun was shining, but it was cool in the shade under my tent, and when the wind would blow, I would get too cold for comfort. I ended up giving in to the weather and put on my new winter parka. Well, it's not quite a winter parka—it's more of a fall jacket with a fuzzy lining. But it helped a lot.

Then, to my surprise, my mom and dad stopped by at about 5:15 pm. They ended up staying for the rest of the night, which was very helpful, as they helped me tear down my tent, drove home with me, and helped me unload. Jack actually left shortly after they arrived because he had a volleyball game to get to—he's a coach. Then at 5:45 pm, Lila arrived with the babysitter, and the babysitter hung out for a little while for a visit, too. 

So it was great! I had a lot of company to pass the time, and I had all of my great customers stop by for one last hurrah! Several folks stocked up on treats that they were planning to freeze. I had pre-sold a batch of pumpkin gobs, and also pre-sold a batch of Grandma's Peanut Butter Cookies. I also had a few pre-orders for some cookie packs, so overall, it was a very good day for sales, and I only ended up with one blueberry HappyJack left at the end of the night (we call our mini pies "HappyJacks"). I gave it to my mom. I love her.

But now it's over.

How about some stats? Over the course of the 16-week farmer's market, I made 5769 cookies, 13 apple pies, 173 mini pies (apple and blueberry), 93 gobs, and 16 pound cakes. No wonder my shoulders are sore. And how do my sales this year compare to the past two year's that I've been selling at the market? Well, they've been pretty steady. There's maybe been about a $200 fluctuation among the three years, but also in the first year, there were 15 weeks, last year I participated in 17 weeks, and this year I participated in 15 weeks. So that fluctuation is to be expected because of that. Now, granted, ideally in any business, you grow from year to year. But I haven't raised my prices in these three years, and I can't force people to buy my products. I'm happy to just have a following that loves what I do for them, while I make a small amount of money on the side. It's fun, and I truly enjoy every minute of it (well, except maybe those times at the end of a day of baking when I just want to sit down and rest, but have to clean a mound full of dirty dishes, pots, pans, and baking utensils).

So what's next? Well, I'll be selling Squish Monsters and Chocolate Chip Snowballs to The Dancing Bean coffee shop in Caste Village, so in the off season, if you need a fix, you can always stop there. I'll also be happy to fulfill orders for you at any time. My website lists the variety of goodies that I make, in addition to the ones I sell at the market. And if there's something you'd like that you don't see there, send me an email and ask. I may still be able to get you a price and whip it up for you. I'll also be taking orders for Thanksgiving (apple pies and pumpkin tortes are my specialities), as well as for the Christmas holiday season. So please keep in touch, and let me know if you need anything.

Until next time, have a yummy day!

Farmer's Market—Week 15, September 17, 2012

Whew! We are in the home stretch, ladies and gentlemen! Only one more week left. 

But before we talk about next week, let's talk about yesterday. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, but it was a mild 70-some degrees. No rain in sight, at least not at 3:00, and I was comfortable in my shorts. As I was pulling in to set up, an old friend stopped by to say hi. I didn't expect him to stay for long, as he seemed to have other things he needed to get home to do, but he was sweet, and hung out with me during my 45 minutes of set up. He even pitched in and help. It was nice to have the company, and to visit for a while.

At 3:00 when the bell rang to open sales for the day, I actually had a line! I never have a line, but I had a line! It was so exciting!!! (As I'm typing this, I'm thinking how lame that sounds, but trust me, you would have been excited, too.) I had printed out some ballots for my customers to vote for the final week's cookie of the week, but I was so bombarded with customers during those first fifteen minutes that I totally forgot about the ballots. Oh well. 

The rest of the day went pretty well. This week, I sold my cranberry orange pound cake in four small pans, and they all sold. I had found these adorable little brown paper pans at the grocery store, and they seemed the perfect size. And they were! I was able to bag them like all of my other cookie packs with my ribbon and stickers. So I think I'm going to try that again for next week.

I did end up with some leftovers—not many, but enough that I can contribute to the bake sale that my daughter's school is having this evening, without having to bake anything new. Thank goodness, because I didn't have time to bake anything new anyway. 

Cookie of the week yesterday was the pumpkin gob. I really should be taking pictures of these things. I'm not sure why I don't think to do that. Maybe because I don't have a camera that takes beautiful pictures like I've seen other people use for good food shots. The lighting in my kitchen is very orange, so everything has this weird glow; although I guess for a pumpkin cookie, that might not have been bad. Anyway, I made a double batch (61 cookies), and I was sold out by 5:00. I even had a customer who didn't get to try one order a batch for next week. How cool is that?

So, I mentioned that I did this ballot to determine next week's cookie of the week. In the end, I didn't have very many people vote (totally my fault for not pushing it more), and only one cookie ended up with two votes—the potato chip cookie! So that's what I'm going to make for next week. I hope that everyone else feels the love and stops by to buy some. They really are a delicious and unique cookie.

This is going to be a busy week coming up, though. I have a few special orders, plus I have to make dough for three of my regular cookies, as my frozen inventory is just about wiped out (which makes sense since we're going into the last week of the market). In addition, we have to give our house a good cleaning this weekend, plus we're having my niece and some of her friends over on Sunday afternoon to jam (not to make jam.... to jam.... sing, play instruments, that kind of thing.... more on that later if it turns into a successful venture).

I hope to see you all next Monday, September 24, as it is our last week for the farmer's market at Caste Village. To everyone that came out yesterday, thank you so much! I'm so glad that you get as much enjoyment out of eating my treats as I get out of making them for you!!

Until next time, have a yummy day!

Farmer's Market—Week 14, September 10, 2012

So did you miss me? Yes, we were off for Labor Day, but there was no break for me. I baked my tushie off over Labor Day weekend to help my niece celebrate her 21st birthday. I made her all kinds of yummy desserts for her party—peach pie, birthday cake, cookie cake, cheesecake, and a bunch of cookies and cupcakes. I think they ended up ordering too much from me, but what's wrong with having some leftover HappyJack treats? Nothing, right?

Well, this past Monday's market (I realized today that I hadn't blogged yet this week... so sorry for the delay) went fine. I went back to making the amount of treats that I had been consistently making, and although the market seemed pretty slow, I still ended up selling most of what I took. I think I only had leftover one pound cake (this week it was cranberry orange!), and two packs of Cinnasnappers. So although it was a slow day, it must have been steady, as I ended up with a good day of sales.

So let's talk about this pound cake for a minute. Every week up until this week, I had been making a blueberry sour cream pound cake. I made one every week, and every week it sold. This week, since we're now in September and the beginning of the fall season, I thought I'd mix it up and make a cranberry orange pound cake. I actually made two because one of my customers pre-ordered one. I figured surely someone else would want one, too, but I was wrong. It didn't sell. I don't know why. Is cranberry just not appealing to people? Well, for this coming week, I'm not giving up on the cranberry pound cake, but I am going to try smaller portions. I found these awesome little cardboard bread pans at the grocery store. They even came with their own little bags that look like the bags I wrap all of my cookies in. So I'll see if the smaller size will appeal to more people. If that doesn't do the trick, I'll either skip the pound cake for the final week, or go back to blueberry sour cream.

My cookie of the week this past week was Pumpkin Pie Bars. I made a double-batch, so I had about 80 cookies to sell. These went very well. I love these things, and I considered making them again for the last week (two weeks from now on September 24), but I don't know. I'm now actually considering doing a survey this coming Monday, and see which cookie-of-the-week flavor was the crowd's favorite. For Monday, September 17, I'm making pumpkin whoopie pies (gobs). Those are always a favorite, too. I love anything that has pumpkin in it. I love this season. I love sweets. I love it all!!!!!

I had a customer on Monday that I didn't expect. My daughter's teacher stopped by to buy some Squish Monsters and Better Than Regular Old Chocolate Chip cookies. I realized that she must have been a returning customer all summer, as she knew exactly what she wanted, but I never realized that she was a teacher at the school. But now I know. No wonder Lila likes her so much. She's pretty awesome!

That's about all I have for you today. I can't quite remember details about anything else special that happened. That's what I get for not blogging right away.

Oh, and totally unrelated, is anyone else thrilled that the new TV season has started? I am a TV junkie, but have no idea how I'm going to keep up with all the shows we love, considering I usually only have about an hour of time each evening to watch. Maybe once the market is over, I'll be able to squeeze in a little more time. And maybe it will give me something to blog about during the times I don't have baking stories to tell. I wonder if you'd be interested in reading my take on my favorite TV shows? I guess time will tell.

Until next time, have a yummy day!

Farmer's Market—Week 13, August 27, 2012

Boy, was I off to a great start yesterday! The market opens at 3:00, and by 3:30, one of my mom's friends stopped by my table and bought 6 of my blueberry happyjacks (mini pies). Dee had stopped by my table the week before after I had run into her at church the day before that, and reminded her about the farmer's market. Last week, she bought 2 blueberry happyjacks, and some cookies. Over the course of the week, she ran into my mom and told my mom how great the pies were, and that she'd be back for more. So, as promised, she stopped by again and bought all 6 blueberry mini pies that I had. She paid me a lovely compliment by saying that friends that she has that are "in the business" raved about my happyjacks. It was very sweet, and I was very grateful for her business. She bought a few packs of chocolate chip cookies, too. It was a great way to start the day.

My cookie of the week this week was a sugar-free cookie—my last of the season. These ones were made with oatmeal, peanut butter, and bananas, plus a small amount of maple syrup (pure, of course), and some raisins. My diabetic customers, and those watching their sugar intake, loved these cookies. A few people purchased a dozen, and another purchased a 1/2 dozen, which didn't leave very many cookies left for the rest of the crowd. But that's ok. I'm just so happy to be able to provide a treat for those that can't really eat much sugar, or don't want to eat much sugar. 

So the cookie of the week was pretty well-depleted by around 4:30. Same with the apple happyjacks, too, and several other cookies. And I think I would have had another sell-out had it not been for the rain that set in around 5:15 and lasted pretty much until the market closed at 7:00. But I only ended up with 7 packs of cookies leftover, which isn't too bad. Jack was happy to have some brownies to gobble up for his bedtime snack last night.

The market is closed this coming Monday for Labor Day, but there's no rest for the weary in my house. My very special niece is turning 21 next week, and my brother and sister-in-law are throwing a big party for her. They've asked me to make the desserts for 60 people, so I'll still be busy this weekend, but in a different way. For her party, I'm making a bunch of cupcakes, a pie, a cookie cake, a regular cake, and a variety of cookies. So it will be fun, as most of these are desserts I don't make regularly. It will be nice to change it up a little bit. Oh, and on top of all of that, I have to make a batch of old fashioned chocolate chip cookies (you know, the ones from the recipe on the bag of chips) for my husband's fantasy football draft this Saturday. Whew, I'm tired already!

When we are back in business on September 10, we'll only have three weeks left to go. I'm planning on doing pumpkin infused treats for cookies of the week for those three weeks.... I'll probably do pumpkin pie bars on September 10, pumpkin whoopie pies on September 17, and then pumpkin pie bars again on September 24. They seem to be very popular this time of year. Lastly, I'm planning to make cranberry orange pound cakes those last three weeks, instead of the blueberry sour cream pound cake I've been making, so be on the lookout for that.

Until next time, have a yummy day!

Farmer's Market—Week 12, August 20, 2012

The weather today started off beautiful. The sun was shining. The humidity was low. The temperature was pleasant. The wind was refreshing. But then around 5:45 pm, the threat of rain started to set in. We got lucky, and it never really did rain, except for a few sprinkles for not even 10 seconds at a pop. But I think it still drove customers away, and it caused extra work for me, as I decided to put up two of my tent's sidewalls to try to ward off the dampness from the rain that never came. Those sidewalls are a pain every time I try to use them, but during a rainstorm, it's helpful to have them, as it protects me from the rain that decides to blow sideways into the tent.

Anyway, I'm not sure how to evaluate my week this week. I didn't sell out, but that's because I made a bunch more stuff. I had the equivalent of 97 items to sell, and I only sold 84. That's not too shabby. Last week, I had 80 items to sell, and I sold out at 6:30. That's why I decided to make more. I guess I didn't need to go as overkill as I did on the extra stuff, but I must admit, HappyJack is pretty happy tonight because he got to eat some apple pie. He's been begging for leftovers for weeks, and I just haven't had any to bring home. Tonight, he is a happy man.

Today's market was fun, as usual. It was nice to see all of my regulars, as well as the few new customers I had today. I hope the newbies enjoyed my treats. I had one customer ask about what happened to the other girl that had been selling pie at the market. I told the woman that the other pie girl was no longer selling her pies at this market, and the woman said, "Her pies were so good!" as she was standing there in front of my mini pies. I had to laugh (to myself, of course). So I then said, "Well, have you tried mine? They're very good." That wasn't enough to convince her to buy one. Oh well. Maybe next week. Someone else bought one, commenting, "This better be good for as fattening as I'm sure it is." Hopefully she ended up a satisfied customer. But I may never know.

This week's cookie of the week was my mom's old peanut butter cookie recipe. They're so fabulous. I just love them. I used to make them all the time before I discovered all of these other wonderful cookie recipes (back when I was more of a one-trick pony in the kitchen), so it was a nice memento of another time in my life. They sold pretty well. I had made a lot of them, and ended up selling about 75% of what I made. My friends at work will probably be happy to have some leftovers tomorrow.

I'm thinking of doing another sugar-free cookie for next week's cookie of the week. It's been about a month since I did one, so I'm interested in trying another recipe.

This time of year starts a rough time for me and the market. I have a love-hate relationship with it at this point because of my husband's schedule (he coaches volleyball, so he often has games or practices on Monday nights). He was unable to make it to help me pack up my gear (and subsequently unpack it back at home) at the end of the day today. And I think over the course of the remaining weeks of the market, he may only be able to help me once. It may not seem like a big deal, but it is for me. Everything is heavy, it takes a long time when there's only one of me, and I have to do it all after having worked a 12-hour day between my regular job and the farmer's market. But c'est la vie. I manage, and it's never enough to make me want to quit, because I get so much joy and satisfaction out of baking, and making friends with my customers and the other vendors, that at this point, I can't imagine my life without HappyJack Bakery.

So until next week, have a yummy day!