Christmas Baking

Tis the season for holiday baking,
I remember when I was little my mom and grandmother making Rum Balls for Christmas and stained glass cookies.
Memories I will cherish forever.
At this time in the holiday season I seem to get lost in all the baking that has to be done so let me tell you things that I am trying this year instead of going nuts.
1. First thing figure out how much baking needs to be done.
2. Can you pre-bake anything if so start
3. Make sure you have all your ingredients before had (you do not want to be making a batch and reliaze oh no I need sugar)
4. Ask for help
5. Relax

This is my plan this year you will have to check back and see if I actually make it through this holiday season or did I lose my mind.
Hope that all your hioliday baking brings memories of joy and laughter

Jen

Cake Cost

(cake above is a cake done by Bronwen Weber)

Wal-Mart sells their cakes for $15! I can't match that price, much less beat it!Never, ever compare your prices to Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Costco, or a grocery store. People can't get the same cake at Wal-Mart that they get from you. That cake at Wal-Mart was made months ago, flash-frozen, and shipped to the store, where an employee working as quickly as he/she could frosted it with icing from a bucket, and maybe added some airbrushing or buttercream roses. That employee probably had 50 other cakes to complete in the same shift. The difference between your cake and Wal-Mart's cake can be likened to the difference between custom garments and off-the-rack clothes. Say you went to a seamstress, consulted with her about the perfect fabric and cut for your body type, discussed your coloring, took measurements, went back for several fittings, and in the end had an exquisite dress, hand-made with excruciating attention to detail, perfect for your body and your coloring. When the seamstress required payment, you would not tell her that a Wal-Mart dress costs $14.99, so that's all you should pay. The two products are not comparable.

I can't charge that much, it's just cake!"Just cake" can be found in the cooler at Wal-Mart for $15. If you are going to sell your cakes, it's important to eliminate the phrase "it's just cake" from your vocabulary. Custom cakes and cookies are edible works of art that require skill and artistry, and can take days to complete

Gingerbread Houses

When you are making a Gingerbread house either for Halloween or Christmas it all starts the same. The first thing that you need to do is design a cardboard one first.
Here are a few helpful links that I have found for gingerbread houses

http://www.gingerbread-house-heaven.com/

http://www.haunteddimensions.raykeim.com/

http://www.wilton.com/

http://www.bobvila.com/HowTo_Library/Building_a_Gingerbread_House-Miscellaneous_Decor-A1534.html

and

http://www.kungfoodie.com/gingerbread-house-pattern/


The pictures of our haunted house will be coming up soon.
Can't wait to see everyones.

Happy Thanksgiving

As we all rest from another holiday week-end, some of us are resting from way too much turkey others are resting from too much of a long drive home.
We here at Simply Cakes are already working on the Haunted Gingerbread Halloween Houses. We will be putting up the house stage by stage for all of us to see.

We would love it if you would share with us your;
Best Haunted Gingerbread house thoughts and ideas.

Maybe you will see some of your ideas on our Haunted Gingerbread house
We would love to see what you have done and we will be more than happy to share with you our recipies and easy to follow ideas.

Thanks to all
Jennifer