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Bake Sale Tips

Michelle Maseth, owner One Sweet Cookie

November 15, 2012

Remember when, perhaps when you were a kid… treats were placed on a paper plate, wrapped in foil, and sent with you to school for the bake sale? Well, those days are long gone. Enter Martha Stewart, Etsy, and Pinterest. Millions of ideas for moms everywhere; some of you are shouting “Yay!” and others are thinking “Who can I bribe or pay to do this for me?” Well, obviously I have the answer to the second thought (One Sweet Cookie, heard of it?), but for those of you who really love to and want to make these goodies on your own, I thought I might offer some tips. I am not an expert; these are just some tidbits of wisdom from my own experiences.

1.Super cute usually equals super time consuming. Yes, cutesy cake pops and cut out cookies are adorable. However, are you willing to put 20-25 minutes into ONE pop or cookie? Some cut out cookies take DAYS to make, depending on the dry time for icing between each step. Try this to estimate how long you will need. Make one cake pop or cookie from start to finish. Now imagine (or actually do the math) making 24 or 36 of those? You might need to modify your final design to save yourself some time.

2.Make a plain or rather simple cookie, and put it in a clear favor bag, with a nice bow. Maybe add a sticker to the bag. Jazz it up a bit. Packaging sells. You can change the bow and stickers with the season or theme. Don’t forget you can always add a pop stick to the cookie to give it that “extra cool” factor.

3.Try to bake for your crowd. For example, I make thumbprint cookies a lot. If I’m going to an event that I know kids will be at, I always roll the cookies in sprinkles, dye the icing a bright color, and use what I call the “kid” thumbprint icing- super sweet. Most kids love them. I package them in a clear bag with a twist tie. It’s easy to open, and you can get a cookie out in a hurry (hello, meltdown…meet cookie….mmmmmagic!) If the event is more upscale, or for adults, more sophisticated sweets come out- like salted caramel latte cookies. I tend to package these in a clear box with a bow, and my company label.

4.Don’t forget to get the kids involved, especially if they will be at the event. Kids are so proud to show off their efforts! It might take a little bit of patience, but in the end, it’s worth it.

Don’t forget to check out my Facebook page, One Sweet Cookie and my website here. Take a stroll through and get some ideas for your next bake sale!



Super cute, but really time consuming owl!



Simple pops tied with a bow!