Just putting together my 09 holiday brochure. Trying to decide what to promote this holiday season thought I would check and see what everyone else is promoting.
We tend to make a gazillion decorated sugar cookies. No one wants to deal with the mess. they let us instead. we also do cookie classes for families.
Looking forward to seeing what everyone has going for the holidays. TIA

here's a bump

I've been thinking a lot about the holidays lately too. I really need a good amount of sales, December is looking scary at this point. Curious about what you all will be promoting and also HOW you go about promoting it.

This year we are also promoting more our homemade candies. The candy shop down the street closed over the summer so there is a void in the market.
We host a holiday open house beginning of november with other downtown stores.
If you don't have a storefront contact a local gift shop and strike a deal to supply goodies for their open house if you get to stay adn hand out info to customers who come in to shop.
That is originally how I got started. It was an amazing kickstart to my business. started out of my home and within 10 months I had outgrown my home kitchen and was moving into a storefront. And I am based out of a town of only 5000 people.
We recently added assorted bars to our bakery case too. I have been playing around with a way to package for holidays for gifts and get togethers.

I am giving this another bump. Surely we are not the only ones thinking about the upcoming holidays.

Thank you for the suggestion, I will ask around and see what I can find out.

In my area, Pumpkin Rolls are popular in the fall and at Christmas. I always advertise them for holiday parties and as gifts. This years I am adding a Chocolate roll with PB filling to my list, that also seems to be a popular cake combo in this area. I have been trying to think of some other goodies too. Everyone loves my Buckeye candies. I usually only make them for personal/family but I am considering selling them. Right now I am looking into packaging for them, any suggestions?

something sweet. packaging for your buckeyes.
you can use candy boxes. country kitchen sweetart has several decorative boxes for the holidays that are pretty inexpensive.
or try metal tins. They sell holiday tins affordable at dollar general adn dollar tree. I have found little baskets there too before.

I agree Lenette. I can't believe that more people aren't thinking about the holiday season. I am trying to really think outside of the box and offer new things for my customers. I feel like I am kinda ina rut and really wnat to freshen my holiday offerings this year. people have really focused on special occasions this year and are tryiing tomake them extra special so i think if I have that to offer we will have a really great season.

Just reading this you guys made me hungry for bars and pumpkin roll, I vote for those two, in assorted flavors, and will take one of each please. LOL...just thought I would throw my two cents in there, and I was thinking of the holiday stuff too, but I am not as experienced as you guys, but like the ideas though.

oops! forgot, what about an assortment of fudge? maybe for an idea? I know my two cents again, sorry.

thanks brenda! i carry 3 kinds of fudge during the holidays but i am wanting to add more flavors. Just need to find some new recipes. I am not a fudge eater so it makes it a little hard for me to pick ones sometimes.
I also make fudge cups for candy platters. I use mini cupcake liners and portion the fudges in them.

I can eat fudge every now and then, I like a good peanutbutter one, or a good choc. one, not too fond of the ones with nuts in them. I know you will find a site with loads of recipes for fudge and you will then have fantastik flavors, I will check some sites out and pick some flavors that sound good to me, if you don't mind, maybe you can try them, providing I find them. LOL...I just think at the holidays, after the meal , sitting down having coffee or whatever your drinking, a nice little piece of fudge would just hit the spot. Now I am hungry for some fudge , will have to find my choc. recipe to make some. LOL...so if you don't mind I will look at some flavors and see which ones that I would pick if I were in a shop, maybe that will help.

Ok, Heavenlys here it goes, LOL...Kandy Kettle Kitchen for these flavors, cappuccino, cherry vanilla, choc. amaretto, choc. mint, creamsicle, peanutbutter choc. chip, and pumpkin pie. and the next one is from The Mill Fudge Factory site.....The snowy moose. you can check those sites out if you want to. these are just some flavors that if I saw them in a shoppe I would give them a try.

Why not some assorted Homemade Toffees,,I made a great one last year with drizzled white,milk and Dark chocolate and everyone who tried it...wents nuts!! Easy to do also..just butter and sugar and boil it until almost candy consistency.Pour out on a sheet and let cool.Drizzle with chocolates.I found a recipe on the web..

Oh, that sounds wonderful too! I think I am gaining my five pounds I just lost , right back, LOL..

My husband and I were away a few weeks ago and went to a local Fudge shoppe. They had 3 marshmallows on a stick dipped in fudge! They were sooooo good! I and going to try to make them this year too, but probably more for fun. Anyway, they had them dipped in Chocolate or Peanut Butter. Some were then rolled on sprinkles or nuts. They also had apples like this, dipped in fudge and nuts. I thought it was a very cool idea, and very yummy!

The fudge in the little cups are a good idea, I never thought of it. I am thinking that I need to expand my Holiday sweets menu as well! This is a good thread, I hope that you get some more responses.

Brenda i will check out those sites. Love the funky flavors!! And I just bought a candy display case to go on top on my bakery case so I must find things to fill it with.
Kiddie cakes I was debating the toffees. Kinda of a downfall for me so I was worried I would eat the profits.
Something sweet we were just talking about marshmallows ona stick dipped in chocolate and graham cracker crumbs yesterday int he bakery. I had an employee who dreamed about them. Too funny. We make a candy dipped apple fuji apple dipped in caramel and chocolate and rolled in toasted almonds and toffee. They are amazing!!!!

A couple of threads from the past on holiday goodies.
https://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=610671&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0
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Cocoa cones.
http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopic-594607-previous.html
WARNING: The last page of the thread is corrupted, so cannot be posted on.
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Well poop. See if this works.
http://forum.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=12453&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0

Hey, look at these! So cute!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/queenofthecupcakes/2128202166/

and

http://www.flickr.com/photos/queenofthecupcakes/2123493208/in/photostream/

I'm not a pro, but the two biggest hits of my Christmas baskets are peppermint bark and Oreo truffles, people beg me all year to please make them more truffles, but I keep them as a special Christmas treat, they are sooooo good. I make several different kinds with the special holiday edition Oreos, yum!

I'm introducing chocolate covered oreos this year - I learned so much last year from this site about them!
Any new thoughts/ideas about them?

Oh my ! I am getting hungry! Don't have any ideas to add right now but wanted to save this thread. My poor family & friends, I am going to rot their teeth and make them pack on some pounds trying out all of these wonderful holiday treats.

I have always wanted to bake sugar cookies to use as an advent calender for kids. Each day they eat a cookie. But how in the world would you package something like this?

I'm thinking of carmel and candy coated (cinnamon) corn among other things for my store. Also fudge, marshmellows on a stick and several kinds of decorated sugar cookies. Does anyone have a good recipe for peppermint bark and homemade fudge? Pam from Bama

Pretzel Yummies - the recipe is all over the internet so I don't know who should get credit for it. I have modified my own version and people LOVE them. I wish I could figure a way to get the caramel mixture on fast and efficiently because they are very time consuming. I only make them for friends and family.

In food processor combine and process until mixture is coarsely chopped:
1 cup pecans
1 cup peanuts
12 oz of peanut butter/chocolate chips

In small saucepan bring to boiling, stirring constantly:
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter

Stir in
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
return to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until it reaches 236 degree F, soft ball. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Cool 15-20 minutes.

Dip pretzel into caramel and roll in crumb mixture.

Now anyone have an idea how to do these quickly? They are unbelievable!

Hello all

After having read all of your ideas for christmas, I've become very keen on trying this myself, not to mention hungry. Unfortunately we don't have a tradition for these kinds of things in Denmark and I have no idea where to start. Does anyone know of a book (preferable available on Amazon) that can help me?
I'm thinking recipes for fudge, caramel popcorns, chocolate dipped oreos and all those other holiday treats mentioned here.

Thanks in advance.

Yuck I went to my photos to link some ideas and none of the pix are showing.
Maybe later today things will work out.

Want an inexpensive alternative to dipped Oreos? Use crackers Yep, any kind - saltines; Ritz types etc etc....just dip in chocolate like one would Oreos. Any other kind of cookie too - Nutter Butters; Vanilla wafers and things like that all make great slightly different taste treats.
Use some of the other chips too - peanut butter, butterscotch, either double dip or mix them. Melt each flavor separately, then swirl a little into choco or white melts. After each dip or two you need add a bit more of the other flavor.

Don't know if this is relevent enought but last year, while working at a high-end chocolate shop I sampled trubbles an even "higher end" shop in CA (their prices - $94 pr lb so they usually only sold a few pieces at a time), went back to shop and created some seasonal flavors. Our big hits starting in Oct were pumpkin pie spice (quatre epices), rum, champagne, a white chocolate bark with cranberries and pistachios, Aztec spicey (with cayenne and orange), and the always popular peanut butter balls. I looove the photo of the little marshmellow snowmen - they would have really gone over with the kids. Anything with liquor seems to be a big seller at that time of year. Hope that helps/inspires...

My little input:

Homemade caramels
plain
dipped in milk chocolate
dipped in dark chocolate
sprinkled with sea salt

Also, decorated cupcakes filled with jello shots

Chocolate covered pretzels or pretezel rods garnished with holiday sprinkles, chocolate chips, white choc chips, pb chips, cranberries, crushed peppermint, heath toffee pieces, chopped up Reese's pb cups or any other candy bar, M&M's, Reese's pieces, the list goes on & on

One more
Browine bites, plain or dipped in chocolate or topped with a swirl of fudge icing

Guess you can tell i love anything covered in chocolate...