Are you ready to get more creative with the items you sell through your cottage bakery? Are you tired of selling standard items such as cakes, cookies, cupcakes, and brownies? I am here to help get your creative juices flowing. Let’s take a look at a variety of options that we can bake/create as cottage bakers. As always, check the cottage laws in your state before offering new products, but check out these ideas below:
Breads
There are many more options than your standard bread, like white, sourdough, wheat, rye, or pumpernickel. Try one or more of the following to spice up your bread-baking options:
- Bagels
- Cornbread
- Biscuits
- Focaccia
- Dinner rolls
- Croissants
- Pita bread
- Pull-apart bread, both sweet and savory
- Naan
- Garlic knots
- Soft pretzels
- Breadsticks
- Sub rolls
- Babka, sweet or savory
Jams
Jam goes perfectly with homemade bread! And even if you have no interest in selling bread, you can still provide delicious, homemade, chemical-free jams for your customers. Take any fruit that is in season and create a delicious jam. Jam is easy to make. You only need fruit, sugar, pectin, and glass jars with lids.
Here are some jam flavor ideas for each season:
Summer/Spring
- Strawberry/Banana Strawberry
- Blueberry
- Cherry
Fall/Winter
- Apple cinnamon
- Cranberry
- Pumpkin Butter
Spices
Create spice mixes! Get creative and create spice mixes for cooking, baking, or even to use on popcorn.
For example: Create your own chai sugar by mixing white sugar, cinnamon, cloves and ginger. You can also include anise and cardamon. This spice mix would be great over popped popcorn or in baking recipes.
Candies
- Homemade chocolates make great gifts and can be a popular seller during the holidays.
- Hot cocoa bombs have been super-popular over the past several years and can be lucrative for making and selling.
- Homemade Reese’s peanut butter cups are another great idea.
- Hard candy such as lollipops or chewy caramels is also a tasty idea for making and selling candy.
- English toffee is another candy option. It is easy to prepare and delicious to eat.
Trail Mix
Who doesn’t love a tasty trail mix? Put together a variety of sweet and savory mix options. Package them in zip-top bags and adorn them with a sticker decorated with your logo. Customers will love it!
Trail mix typically contains nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and fun treats such as chocolates, popcorn, or pretzels.
Nut Options:
- Peanuts
- Walnuts
- Pistachios
- Cashews
- Pecans
- Hazelnuts
- Almonds
- Macadamia
Seed Options:
- Pumpkin
- Sunflower
- Sesame
- Pine Nuts
Dried Fruit:
- Raisins
- Cranberries
- Shredded Coconut
- Cherries
- Blueberries
- Apples
- Bananas
- Mangoes
- Apricots
Fun Treats:
- Chocolate Chips
- White Chocolate Chips
- Peanut Butter Chips
- Butterscotch Chips
- Chocolate Chunks
- Candy Bars, cut into small pieces
- Popcorn
- Pretzels
- M&M’s
- Cereal
Potato Chips
Have you ever met a person who hates potato chips? Chances are you have not. Usually, people say, “I can never eat just one!” Create your own potato chips with unique flavor/spice combinations.
Flavor Ideas:
- Sea Salt
- Celery Salt
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Cayenne
- BBQ Seasoning
- Ranch
- Cinnamon Sugar
- Parmesan
Owning a cottage bakery does not mean you are limited to the basics. Get creative, think outside the box, and draw in new customers with fresh ideas.
(This article appeared in the Fall 2023 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)
Deanna Martinez-Bey is a cottage baker, baking class instructor, content creator, and multi-genre author. With fifteen published books under her belt and a certified cottage bakery, everything she does revolves around food and writing in one way, shape or form. www.deannasrecipebox.com
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