hi i went and sold my cupcakes at the local farmers market on saturday. It went so well lots of networking great for getting orders. but i have a problem , how do i keep them from melting? i only had 1 pack melt, ti wasnt even hot out:S but when the sun got to them it started. maybe someohow make fake ones and keep them in a cooler? and what about sugar decorations or fondant. im wanting to make them all pretty but i know when i cover my fondant or sugar candy with th cupcake containers it starts to sweat. i need feed back from anyone thank u guys so much![/img]

The cupcake booth at our market has the "naked" (i.e. no frosting) cupcakes in drawers in tall bins, then pulls them out individually and frosts them ....what's the term.....per order? ya know...after they're ordered..

anyway that might be an idea if you were willing to cut out some of the decor, you could keep the frosting in a cooler

And not that you asked, but might I suggest you forgo all the packaging?? That seems like an expensive waste...If I bought a cupcake I wouldn't need a clamshell for it, but providing it just in case would be great! Just a thought!

thanks for the reply the packaging is mandatory where i live. so have to have them packaged like that. and its not very expensive

ahhh got it!

I also like ur idea of putting dummy cakes out and keeping the real ones in a cooler...just don't keep it too cold in there..I wouldn't want to eat a cold cupcake..maybe keep the ice away from the bottom ??

Any other suggestions out there?

can you have "display" ones ... like the dummy idea ... but real cake that's iced with Royal Icing instead? RI won't get melty, right? and the sell-able cakes in a cooler?

Metria that's what I was wondering if the royal icing would melt cause the dummy idea would save me

Do you have an awning for your spot? That would keep most of the direct sun off them. I use a buttercream that has meringue powder and cornstarch in it and I didn't have this problem at the farmers market last year.

Cheatize yes I do except I'm gonna be having a friend join me with another table so an going to figure how I can still cover my table. Do u make the simple butter cream and add the powder? Maybe I should do that?how hot did it get at the markets for u? Thanks so much for all the help everyone

What if you placed frozen gel packs in a layer in the base of a chafing dish or sheet pan, then place the top of the chafing/catering container or another sheet pan on top of the frozen packs to hold the cupcakes? Isn't that how they keep the cold salad items or cocktail shrimp chilled during a food buffet? It works in my mind, anyway!

The recipe I used is here:
http://www.wilton.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=7&threadid=92577

It was mid-80's and sunny from what I remember. If you have an awning, is there a tree nearby where you can set up? The tree would provide even more shade and as long as you use the awning you won't have to worry about tree goop getting on your stuff.

Won't gel packs add moisture to the situation?

"Won't gel packs add moisture to the situation?"

No, the gel packs are just frozen, then they thaw -no water. I use them to ship chocolate items I sell. And, the long explanation I gave probably didn't portray what I was picturing in my mind.
Picture a double boiler, but instead of boiling water in the bottom vessel, it would be frozen gel packs getting no where near the cupcakes. They would just provide cold underneath to chill the metal that the cupcakes are sitting on.

Does your market allow electricity? For $5 extra, mine does... I found great coolers at WalMart that plug into either your cigarette lighter or a power source. No ice needed...

Britt - where did you get your little clam shell boxes. I think they are great!

plug in coolers thats brilliant! and i get my containers localy on vancouever island where i live

Britt in your bc icing if you used butter and shortening you might want to try it with just the shortening and see if that helps. Good luck

fill your sheetcake pans full of water and freeze them! Then you can just display the cupcakes in containers right on top of the slab of ice, it will take MUCH longer to melt than ice cubes would!

Had you thought about filling with buttercream and topping with fondant? You could do some really cute designs with the fondant that you can't do with the buttercream.