How to bake cakes to order. Business cakes to order

A cake is a mandatory attribute of almost any holiday, be it a birthday, wedding or Easter. At the same time, a sweet treat can be both the main gift for children and adults, and an addition to it. Despite the wide variety of factory products, products prepared at home have always remained the most in demand. If you know how to bake and have decided to open a custom cake business, we suggest you read this article.

Where to start?

So, where to start your custom cake business? First of all, you should do advertising. The most common option for selling sweet products is the Internet and disseminating information through friends. Let's look at everything step by step:

1. Tell your friends and acquaintances about your business idea for making money on cakes, ask them to spread this information if possible.
2. Bake some culinary masterpieces for the holidays for friends and family. Before giving sweet gifts, be sure to take beautiful photographs of your cakes for the future catalog.
3. When you have a sufficient number of photos, create your own group on social networks and place them in special photo albums. For each photo, write a description with composition, name and any information you consider necessary.
4. Invite people from your city to your community and constantly update your photo album.

To quickly promote a group online and attract subscribers, you can resort to smmbox services, which will significantly save your time. Social networks are a good opportunity to attract customers.

To begin with, such actions are quite enough to get your first income from making custom cakes. Remember that in order for your business to become successful and profitable, you need to stand out from other chefs. Constantly improve, use new materials and study numerous recipes on the Internet. For example, it is now very fashionable to prepare confectionery products using mastic, because thanks to this substance you can give the product any shape, as well as decorate it beautifully.

As you may have already noticed, there is nothing particularly complicated about this type of cake business. However, there are some special points that you need to be aware of. We invite you to familiarize yourself with useful tricks to be fully armed:

Any family or corporate celebration without a cake is considered incomplete. This is a tradition, there is no escape from it. But this is also an idea for an excellent business if “your hands grow from where they need to be.” Let's figure it out. Let's start with who this business is for - custom cakes.

Don't think that you need to understand cooking. This is a desirable quality, but not at all mandatory. The fact is that to start any business you need “start-up capital”. One will have talent, another may invest money and organizational skills in the production of cakes. But both need to understand where to start.

How to start baking custom cakes

The first step, as any marketer will tell you, is choosing a team. Let's say you yourself are excellent at baking and decorating your products. This means that your small team will for now consist of one person - yourself. To let the world know about your talents, you need to prepare promotional materials. You will have to work hard for this. You need to prepare a whole catalog of photos of your own products.

The “custom cakes” business will have to start with a “charity event”. Where else will you put the dozens of products that you will need for the first photos? It is recommended to turn this preparation into a kind of advertising. The prepared masterpieces can be presented to potential buyers, whom you can easily find at school, kindergarten, at your husband’s work, and so on. People will see your talent and at the same time have a tasting. You will be guaranteed your first clients.

Advertising

Next you will need to develop. Attracting customers can be expanded by searching for advertisements on the Internet or publishing your own. Be sure to use photos, dividing them into “topics”. That is, make separate texts for children’s cakes, holiday, anniversary and other products. This will expand the audience of interested parties. In addition, you will demonstrate the versatility of your skills.

Feel free to choose epithets to describe your masterpieces. The “custom cakes” business is a very delicate area. Firstly, the product can be sold in a specific, well-defined territory (it is not profitable to transport it to another city). Secondly, you may have competitors. Most likely, you will also find their advertisements online. Therefore, colorful photographs need to be accompanied by colorful descriptions. If you do not have literary talent, then you can order “tasty advertising” from an experienced copywriter.

Organization of the first production

Naturally, at first there will be few orders. The space of your own kitchen is enough to carry them out. Of course, it makes sense to find a convenient room in advance. Just renting one until you understand whether the custom cake business is right for you is not recommended. You will spend money, but there will be little profit.

If you initially appointed yourself to the role of manager, then the first orders can be made in the kitchen of your “chef”. You will have to do the delivery yourself for now. Although this issue is resolved individually with each client. Someone can come pick up the order themselves. Don't be shy and ask what's more convenient.

Procurement of products

Baking cakes is a rather expensive and material-intensive process. In order to master a wide “menu”, you need a lot of different products and decorations.

Do not forget that some products will have to be sent to the buyer in their own container. You will need to purchase many different products and materials.

Naturally, you will have to think about special equipment. Nobody whips creams or biscuits by hand anymore. For this purpose, specialized devices have been invented.

You need to make sure that your equipment is reliable, powerful, and does not fail at the most crucial moment. Products can be stored on your home premises for now. Moreover, for the most part, fresh ones are used in confectionery production. Therefore, they will have to be replenished daily.

Business plan for cake production

When you have roughly imagined how and what you will do, proceed to boring calculations. This must be done before the first sale. The point is that you need to know exactly how much a certain product costs. For this purpose, a calculation is prepared. Enterprises strictly calculate how much one kilogram of a particular product costs.

Don’t forget that you need to include other costs in addition to products. These include electricity, water, and most importantly, labor, that is, wages. You may not receive it at first, but it must be included in the price of the product. In addition, you need to calculate the cost of boxes, stickers and other decorations. You can order them at the nearest topography.

Naturally, the total figure will greatly depend on the region. But we can assume on average that you will need about one hundred and eighty thousand rubles for products, six thousand for advertising and decoration. It should be taken into account that the calculations include a profit of at least twenty-five percent. Otherwise, the “company” will burn out.

How to win the competition

In order to overtake your business colleagues from the start, it is recommended to immediately think through the “highlights” of your products. To do this, you should wander around the confectionery shops and study the assortment. The client can be attracted by originality and specificity. So, every time before official holidays, offer people new ideas for cakes.

For men, it’s worth coming up with something grandiose. Please note that the stronger sex loves scope and volume. This woman will be tempted by miniature cakes with small details (she protects her figure). An ordinary man will look at a three-tiered masterpiece,
decorated with large appliqués. This is, so to speak, a “classic of the genre.”

It makes sense to work on children's themes. You understand that parents buy sweets with great pleasure for their offspring. Therefore, it is advisable to come up with cartoon, fairy-tale and other decor for your products.

Some enjoy tasting sweets, while others enjoy the process of creating them with their own hands.

If you finally have the time to make more complex dishes than soup and mashed potatoes, learn how to learn how to make cakes at home for yourself and to order. We'll tell you where it's best to start this delicious and beautiful hobby, what you need to buy, where to learn the skill and how to ensure that your confectionery masterpiece will delight your guests.

Where does the path of a respected chef begin?

Any skill begins with desire and practice. But if you dream of learning how to bake beautiful cakes, then do not rush to immediately take on masterpieces from the portfolio of cool confectioners. Start with the basics, gradually moving up the steps.

Simple recipes - quick results and powerful incentive

It is known that success inspires and gives confidence in a new business. There is only one way to quickly get the desired result - first choose the simplest recipes with simple decorative elements accessible to a beginner.

The easiest way to learn how to make cakes is from ready-made sponge cakes, which are sold in stores. They are always perfectly smooth and have the same thickness of the cake. All you have to do is prepare the cream and decorate the product.

Equipment and tools - necessary tools

If you want to learn how to bake cake layers, you will definitely need a gas or electric oven. For biscuits, it is convenient to use a multicooker with a baking function (we will learn more about this technique and its choice). You will definitely need a mixer from household appliances; it is advisable to buy a stationary one so that you can do other things while whipping cream or dough.

If you have a lot of dishes, then most likely you won’t have to buy anything, but make sure that there are bowls of different sizes, containers made of plastic and stainless steel, with non-stick and enamel coating, spoons and forks of different sizes.

However, the most important thing in preparing confectionery products is the decorating tools; it is difficult to create admirable beauty with “bare hands.”

What a novice pastry chef should have:

• kitchen scales, measuring cups and spoons;
• baking molds - professionals recommend buying metal ones with a non-stick coating with a removable ring; silicone molds and non-stick mats are also useful;
• a pastry bag with a set of nozzles - it is better to purchase a bag, since working with a syringe is not very convenient;
• stencils for quickly transforming simple homemade tori using powdered sugar or cocoa powder;
• brushes for decoration;
• tools for rolling out dough, sugar mass and mastic;
• leveling blades;
• cling film.

Supplies you will need: baking paper, border and packaging tapes, boxes or disposable paper coasters.

There are many recipes, but there are products that are bought in stock because they are used very often:

• dyes;
• vanillin, cinnamon;
• flavorings;
• nuts;
• cocoa powder;
• powdered sugar;
• impregnation for cakes;
• powdered milk or cream;
• gelatin;

Later, when you learn how to make cakes and decide on the basic recipes, this list will be supplemented with other ingredients.

How to learn to make beautiful cakes

There are a lot of techniques for decorating homemade confectionery products; we will consider only those suitable for beginners.

Mastic is a quick result without any disadvantages. Mastic is a sweet, elastic mass that is used to cover cakes and make decorative elements. To cover the cake, the mastic is rolled out into a layer (like dough for dumplings) and the product is wrapped completely or partially with the resulting layer. The result is a ready-made field for creativity - other decorations and inscriptions can be applied to the surface. You can buy ready-made or make it yourself.

Confectionery spray - a new product for instant effect. This product deserves special attention; unlike mastic, it does not require any preparation. The spray just needs to be sprayed onto the product, after which its surface will acquire the effect of a flocked coating.

Ready-made sugar figures – beauty without effort. Today there is a huge selection of ready-made decor for cakes on sale:

• flowers for every taste in different sizes;
• figurines of animals and people, including the bride and groom;
• toys and cartoon characters for children's cakes;
• numbers for anniversaries and children's themes;
• inscriptions, names and individual letters;
• imitation fruits and berries and other decor.

All kinds of sprinkles in the form of gold and silver balls, beads, and stars look interesting.

Edible decals are another secret to a beautiful cake for those who are just learning the confectionery craft. Such pictures are printed with food dyes on rice, waffle or sugar paper. The decor is applied to the cake lined with mastic.

Openwork decorations and chocolate figures also quickly transform an ordinary cake into an elegant and festive one. Later you will learn how to make lace and leaves yourself, but first you can buy ready-made decor.

The most popular types of homemade cakes

Handmade cakes do not have to look like the masterpieces of famous confectioners. Over time, you will have your own flavor, and perhaps your own style. But with all the variety of options, they can all be divided into several types. Let's look at the most popular and fashionable ones, because the confectionery world also has its own trends.

Jelly cakes contain a minimum of dough and fat, for which they are valued by adherents of a healthy diet. Jelly is made from sour cream, cream, cottage cheese, soft cheeses, juices, and fruits. Read about how to prepare and decorate sour cream cake.

Products made from puff pastry are most similar to homemade ones, as they resemble grandma’s favorite Napoleon.

Waffle cakes are suitable for making simple cakes at home. They do not require complex decoration and can be quickly transformed by sprinkling them with chocolate, nuts, and powder.

Honey cakes are a favorite delicacy for those who love tender and aromatic dough. The degree of softness of these cakes depends on the cream. If it is sour cream, you will get a very soft and delicate dessert; if you use butter cream, there will be a slight crunch left.

Biscuit cakes are the most popular; there are dozens of others in this group, classified by the number of layers and tiers, types of cream, and type of decoration.

At the peak of popularity is the naked cake - with this method, the sides of the product are not covered with cream, but are left as is, showing creamy layers. Fresh fruit is most often used for decoration.

Where to improve your skills and learn professionalism

If you have been baking sweets at home for several days now, but want to learn how to make custom cakes, consider taking a course. There are three options here:

Homemade cakes are in demand because they are associated with naturalness. Making money from dessert lovers is a hot trend, but making it a reality will require a little more effort than learning to bake for yourself. This is described in detail in our other publication.

If you are determined to learn how to make homemade cakes with your own hands, then start baking! Only with experience come skills and abilities; no books can replace practice.

The cake will be a table decoration for any occasion. Sometimes you want to surprise your guests with unusual baked goods, not bought in a store. In this article we will tell you how to learn how to bake cakes at home. Let's consider all the subtleties of preparation. But first we’ll tell you where a beginner can start.

Sometimes a person has different desires. For example, one fine day the thought may come to mind: I want to learn how to bake cakes. Before you start learning the basics, you need to be aware that the process is long and requires skill, patience and imagination. And you shouldn’t be afraid to experiment. But this is when you will already get classic cakes with a solid A+.

Room

How to learn to bake cakes? What do you need for baking? Of course, every master will need a room to work. The kitchen should be spacious (preferably), fully equipped with high-quality appliances. When there are problems with the oven, it will take much more time to learn how to bake good cakes. After all, it is important that the base is baked and not burnt. You can also use a slow cooker.

Tools

You will also need tools:

• Be sure to have a mixer with different attachments; a whisk won’t hurt either. At first, he will be a lifesaver. If you don’t have a mixer and need to buy one, then it’s better to take a stationary one. Beating egg whites sometimes takes time. And while the mixer is doing this, at this time you can prepare other ingredients.
• Bowls of different sizes made of plastic, stainless steel and enameled.
• Different sizes of spoons, forks and spatulas.
• cakes. It is advisable to purchase detachable metal and silicone ones in different sizes. The shape can be varied; it is not necessary to buy only round ones.
• Be sure to have a kitchen scale that is accurate in grams. Sometimes just 1 extra gram can ruin a masterpiece.
• Measuring cups and spoons will come in handy.
• Pastry bag with nozzles. It is much more convenient and easier to use than a syringe.
• Stencils for applying patterns.
• Brushes for smudging and painting on a cream base.
• Equipment for rolling out dough. For example, a rolling pin.
• Food film.
• Apron and headscarf/cap.

Ingredients

It is important to check the recipe more than once to ensure that all the necessary products are available. Before you start cooking, be sure to have everything at hand or within close reach. There is a basic list of products that is used for almost every baked product. It is advisable to have them in the house all the time. In the process of work, each cook develops his own list of necessary products.

Books are needed!

To learn how to bake cakes professionally, you need to buy more than one cookbook about baking cakes and short layers for them. After all, the recipe for one pastry varies from book to book. You can take into account all the nuances, choose the most useful chips, then the cake will turn out incredibly tasty.

Think about the design of future products

You need to work on decorating the cake in advance.

• It is recommended for a beginner to start with mastic. This is a fairly elastic mass, reminiscent of unleavened dough for chebureks, and tastes sweet. You can simply cover the entire cake with it. And put an inscription or a kind of design on it. You can cut out decorative elements from it.
• You can buy a spray (confectionery) and cover the cakes with it, either separately or on top of the mastic.
• Or buy ready-made figures to decorate the cake. They are all edible. They can be in the form of flowers or with inscriptions.
• There is also simply colored sprinkles that will decorate any baked goods, not just a cake.

Sometimes it is recommended to start making cakes from store-bought cake layers in order to thoroughly master the process of assembling and soaking the base with creams. Moreover, the purchased cake is always smooth and perfectly round. Initially, the simplest cake designs are selected.

How to learn to bake cakes from scratch

Before you start practicing, it is recommended to watch several videos on making simple cakes. Then start learning how to make cakes. A perfectly smooth and well-baked and fluffy (sometimes not fluffy) cake layer is the basis of a beautiful cake.

Description of making a cake from scratch:

1. Buy special confectionery flour. It contains less gluten, so the dough is not as fluffy as in buns. It is sold in any grocery store. If it happens that it is not on the shelves, then you can cook it yourself.
2. To do this, take 1 empty glass with a volume of 250 ml. You need to pour 60 g of corn starch into it and fill the glass to the top with wheat flour (highest grade). Pour the mixture from the glass into a bowl of the required size and mix thoroughly. After this, the resulting flour must be sifted. To make the dough more fluffy, it is recommended to sift it 2-3 times.
3. Before you start kneading the dough, you need to prepare all the necessary ingredients. You need to start by mixing all the dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly so that you can use it immediately later.
4. Recipes often call for the use of milk and even specify its fat content. It is not recommended to deviate from the recipe at first. But you need to know that whole milk can be replaced with its analogues.
5. Be sure to keep track of what kind of oil is required in the recipe: butter or vegetable. If it is creamy, then it must first be melted in a water bath. Sometimes it also needs to be whipped. If the oil is mixed up, the taste of the cake will not be the same, and this will also affect the appearance.
6. Use the mixer only to beat egg whites. In other cases, use a whisk or spatula.

Step-by-step preparation of sponge cake

The ingredients are for one large cake or two medium ones. You will need:

• 4 chicken eggs (elite);
• 450 g pastry flour;
• up to 7 g salt;
• 17 g baking powder;
• 350 g granulated sugar;
• 250 ml milk (whole milk or its analogues);
• 25 g vanilla sugar;
• 180 g butter (pre-melt).

You should start preparing the dough by mixing: flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Be sure to mix everything very thoroughly.

Add milk, melted and cooled butter, eggs and vanillin to the dry mixture. Stir until the mixture becomes homogeneous. It is better to use a spatula to mix the dough.

While the dough is preparing, you need to preheat the oven. The temperature should be 180 degrees. It is better to cover the mold with baking paper, do not grease it with oil. If one cake is baked, then the baking time is 45 minutes. And if there are two cake layers, then bake for 30 minutes. Until the baking time is up, it is better not to open the oven. Otherwise the cake will lose its fluffiness. When it's ready, it will have a brown crust on top.

The cakes should remain in the pan for about 15 minutes after they are removed from the oven. This will make it easier for them to come away from the paper. And they don’t deform too much when transferred to a plate. The advantage of the prepared cake is that you do not need to beat the egg whites separately; the dough is prepared without any difficulties. Plus, the finished product can be consumed immediately. Or you can lubricate it with: boiled condensed milk with butter (200 g of butter per can of condensed milk); You can soak it in regular yogurt and so on.

An additional advantage of the cake is that it can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 days; before serving, it must be warmed to room temperature, this will take up to 4 hours.

It’s better to start mastering the culinary art of making cakes with recipes like these. You can also experiment with decorations on them. Then you can complicate the recipe for the cakes and diversify them with creams.

Honey cake is also considered one of the simplest. Although there are nuances in preparing the dough. You can try making cakes based on dry biscuits.

Now let’s figure out how to learn how to bake cakes according to the advice of experienced chefs. You should always follow the recipe exactly, taking the exact quantities of all ingredients. They are calculated by trial and error. Be sure to use scales. The components must be placed in strict sequence. Any, even minor, deviation from the recipe can result in failure. Experiment and add other components only when experience has already arrived. There it will be possible to determine by eye the required number of components.

Be sure to observe the temperature regime. If you set it a little less (for fear that the cakes will burn), then there is a high chance that they will not bake and will settle when they are taken out of the oven. If you rush and increase the temperature, the cake will most likely burn, but the dough inside will remain raw.

For cooking, use only clean and dry dishes and tools. Even a small drop of water can ruin everything. This is one of the important rules on how to learn how to bake cakes.

When mixing ingredients with a mixer, sometimes you should turn it off and mix with a spoon. It is good to scrape the contents from the walls. There may be lumps left there.

If the cakes were baked in advance, they should only be stored in the freezer. In the refrigerator they lose moisture and become stale. To make a cake from a frozen crust, take it out in advance so that it comes to room temperature.

You can decorate only completely cooled cakes. Otherwise, the butter decoration may melt or heavily saturate the cake. And this can cause it to become dry and begin to crumble. Don't overdo it with sugar. Of course, it will sweeten the product, but because of it the cake may burn, and the dough will not have the desired consistency.

If the recipe does not specify what the product used in the recipe should be (warm or cold), then all ingredients should be taken out of the refrigerator in advance so that they come to room temperature. This is especially true for eggs. Otherwise they will not beat well.

The dough should fill the pan only halfway, since during baking it rises almost 2 times. And as a result, the edges will be uneven, plus the escaped dough will fill the entire apartment with a burnt aroma.

If the cake is made from several cake layers, you should not simplify your work and bake one and then cut it. It's better to bake several. Then the chance that they will bake will be 100%. Give the cakes time to cool in the mold, and only then remove them from it. This way they will keep their shape better. The cream is applied in two stages. At the beginning to soak the cakes. Then for decoration. You need to wait at least 15 minutes between them.

The taste and shape of the product are important!

Those who are interested in learning how to bake cakes to order should definitely monitor the taste of the product. Its beautiful shape is a secondary thing to strive for. Even the most beautiful cake, if tasteless and dry, will not be in demand.

At first, you need to experiment only with one recipe until it tastes and looks the way it should, without any flaws.

Where can you learn to bake beautiful cakes?

When you manage to cook cakes without mistakes, you want to know where you can learn how to bake products. There are several options here:

1. Attend one-day courses. They often talk about all the new things in cooking, without knowledge of which you can begin to lose even regular customers. These courses are important for those who want to learn how to bake custom-made cakes at home.
2. You can just watch online video lessons on the Internet, but there is a minus. Mostly simple recipes are considered and the most important features are not revealed, without which masterpieces will not be created.
3. A good option to learn how to bake custom-made cakes at home would be to attend paid courses. The so-called from A to Z. All the intricacies of cooking will be explained there. There will be feedback from the pastry chef and you can figure out why the dough has settled after baking, or why the cake crumbles so much, and so on.

Conclusion

Nowadays, homemade cakes are gaining great popularity. Learning to bake cakes at home is not difficult. The main thing in this matter is patience and the desire to achieve results. Then what you love will also bring financial stability. Here you need not only to know how to learn how to bake cakes, but also to be able to look for clients, and even advertise for yourself.

You can learn the skill of making cakes at home very quickly if you listen to the advice of already experienced chefs. Making homemade cakes can become a real hobby for any housewife, bringing not only a good mood, but also income to the family.

First, it is important to understand what kind of cake you want to get. For beginners, it is best to start making cupcakes or simple pies. A little later you can start baking pastries and cakes.
Having decided on the type of cake, you need to carefully study the information on its preparation. It is also important to understand the techniques and techniques that are used to create delicious treats. It also doesn’t hurt to pay attention to common mistakes made by chefs in order to avoid them when creating your own cake. For example, when baking dessert cakes, it is important to strictly observe the correct temperature. When the cake is baking in the oven, you do not need to open the door so that it does not fall.

Some cake layers need to be made with very cold butter in a cool room. Such subtleties for beginners will seem impossible at first glance, but when performing complex techniques, the cakes will become more beautiful, and the process of preparing them will be enjoyable;

Adviсe:

1. Beginners are advised to start creating with the simplest recipes. Try baking small cupcakes or a regular plain cupcake first. Then you can treat your family with chocolate or banana cake. If the previous sweets turned out great, you can try baking meringue, open fruit pie or apple charlotte;
2. Having mastered simple recipes, move on to baking more complex ones - fruit pies and cakes, multi-layer cakes, birthday cakes with different decorations. For example, you can treat your guests to a shortbread cake, a cupcake with candied fruits and almonds, a chocolate cake or a biscuit dessert;
3. If you have the opportunity to take a few baking lessons from a professional, take advantage of it. An experienced master will tell you about the techniques and tricks for baking cakes. It will help you bake your first cake, clearly demonstrating and prompting step-by-step execution steps. If your sister or grandmother is a good baker, ask them to teach you culinary masterpieces;
4. If possible, find out what people bake in different countries for different holidays. To do this, read culinary magazines, newspapers, online publications, or watch culinary TV shows.

Recommendations that are important for beginners to heed:

1. You need to learn to bake gradually. Don't be upset if the cake doesn't work out the first time. Next time it will be more even and soaked in better. Each professional also had failures at the beginning of his creative culinary journey;
2. Buy a real good book with recipes for various baked goods. Such publications contain many useful tips and explanations that will help solve any problem;
3. In addition to baking cakes and pastries, it is also important to understand the process of preparing icing, various creams, and caramel. Additionally, check out how you can decorate a cake so that the hero of the occasion will like it.

After some time, a beginner will be able to independently come up with his own variation of the cake and become a real professional. The main thing is not to rush! And if you fail, create again and again. And then any cake will definitely turn out great!

Newbie mistakes: