Share Our Strength’s Great American Bake Sale is now in full swing for 2010… Food bloggers all over the country took part in the National Bake Sale Challenge on Saturday with the National Food Bloggers Bake Sale. You’ve heard me talk about the sale quite a bit lately, so I thought I would share a few pictures and a quick recap of the sale!
I dedicated a large part of last week to my bake sale preparations. The week started out with quite a few errands. In addition to the bake sale necessities (flour, sugar, and about 5 pounds of butter!), I found some fun Fourth of July decorations on sale a bit early, so I picked them up to help decorate the bake sale tables and stick with the patriotic theme.
After I was done with all of the errands, I got started on all of my goodies for the bake sale. I made roasted almonds (cocoa and cinnamon), chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate marshmallow peanut clusters, toffee pretzel bark, chocolate chip cookies, cranberry oatmeal cookies, vanilla cupcakes, and cinnamon rolls! It may sound like a lot, but I actually enjoyed spending a few days in the kitchen… Hard to believe, I know!
In addition to the baking that I did, I had quite a bit of help from my family! My aunt made lots of cookies (chocolate chip, peanut butter blossoms, and brownies), my grandmother brought an assortment of goodies (biscotti, chocolate peanut butter fudge, cinnamon muffins, and rice krispy treats), and my mom brought some bread and cakes (homemade whole wheat banana bread, blueberry coffee cake, and pound cake). And, even though he didn’t bake, my hubby helped out with the sale quite a bit, helping transport baked goods, set up tables, and provide moral support!
I also had the opportunity to meet two new bloggers from the area, who both contributed to the sale. Ashley from The Cookie Sheet Bakery brought some beautifully decorated cookies (cupcake shaped cookies decorated like the Great American Bake Sale logo and blue patriotic star cookies). Christin from Oh It Is Love brought some gorgeous cupcakes (vanilla with pretty “tiffany blue” icing and chocolate with peanut butter icing). It was a lot of fun to meet them, and I look forward to getting to know both of them better… They have even offered to help with future bake sales!
On Saturday, we arrived at the Outlets at Hershey around 9am to start setting up for the sale. Unfortunately, we had a cold front come through on Friday (complete with heavy storms and power outages, although I managed to escape that part of it), and it was quite cold and windy. We braved the cold and wind from 10am – 3pm for the sale, but there wasn’t nearly as much shopping traffic as I had hoped! I’m afraid the unseasonably cool weather kept people away!
The good news is… Despite the cool weather, we still managed to make $270 at the sale on Saturday. When combined with generous online donations, the total for the Central PA sale was $400! It wasn’t quite as much as I had hoped, but I am still happy that I was able to help. And, I’m looking forward to my annual bake sale at our neighborhood yard sale coming up in a few weeks!
While the $400 we raised in Central PA may not seem like a lot, every little bit helps in the fight against childhood hunger. The Food Bloggers Bake Sale proved that over the weekend. As individuals, our efforts may seem small, but combined, we were able to raise over $16,500 for Share Our Strength! And, hopefully we have inspired you to hold a bake sale of your own this year!
I think you did great Jen. I’ve been amazed at this effort on the part of so many bloggers and even more amazed at the quality of products they made for consumers. Beautifully made, packaged and displayed…great job!
Very cute. What a great effort! I hope we all did some good. Fun to see these bake sales throughout the country!
great job Jen! The same thing happened to us with the cold weather. You’re right though – every little bit helps! :)
All of your goodies look so beautiful, and delicious! It’s so fun to read about everyone’s bake sales. No amount of money is too small when there are children who need food. Great job Jen!
Yay!!! That is so cool! Great job…and beautiful goodies. I’ve never been to a bake sale with such pretty offerings….I would have gone home with an empty wallet, for sure!
Jen did such an amazing job on both her beautiful decorated tables and the many delicious goodies. Bridget, you would’ve had an empty wallet because she’s an incredible baker. I just wish I’d bought more!
Thanks again Jen for a great experience and your gracious comments. I need to invest in a nice camera now, my cookies have never looked better.
I’m glad you were still able to sell some of the goodies despite the unpredictable weather. Really awesome that you were able to pull it off. And meeting a couple bloggers is a plus while helping for a good cause.
GORGEOUS! Not only are the baked goods great looking, but the presentation is beautiful, too! Fantastic photos…..Jen, you are the best!
Congrats on your bake sale. All of your treats look amazing! Thanks for all of your help with SOS! You are the best!
Jen- loved your post! The weather was chilly for KY too- had the sun but didn’t help much. Still a great event for an important cause!!
Loved it! Loved it! Loved it! Congrats on your success… I am so happy I was able to play a part in the First National Food Blogger bake Sale in Orlando… Everything looks so delicious!!!!!
-Tasha
Kudos Jen – you did an amazing job! All of your treats look delicious and I’m sure people loved them :)
Wonderful photos Jen!!
Carmen
Baking is my Zen
(New Jersey)
Wow look at how much stuff you made! I participated in ours as well and it was cold here, too! It looks like you had a great turnout!
Congratulations Jen – what a wonderful idea for a great cause. Every little bit counts, really!
Considering everything, I think you guys did an AMAZING job! And wow does your stuff look amazing!!
Wow Jen, you did a lot of baking! Great job! We had that same cold front down here in DC — there were several times our table nearly blew away! Fortunately the food all survived unscathed. :)
Jen I love watching you do this! You give me motivation to dig deeper and do more. Whenever I help somewhere I always think of you now and it somehow gives me strength to keep going.
Laura