A Question Nobody Has Asked........
Business By Annabakescakes Updated 8 Jan 2011 , 1:43am by Mama_Mias_Cakes
A 2" wedge cut from a 10" cake is a massive serving to me.
Five inches long and four inches tall--that's big.
When you look at it that way it does sound big, but looking at the surface area that 2" wedge is 4.9 square inches, which is less than twice the size of a 2"x1.375" wedding cake serving (2.75 sq in).
We often hear from our brides that many of their wedding guests lined up for second servings of cake. This is probably due to people being conditioned by restaurants and advertising to expect larger serving sizes...an interesting book on the subject is "The End of Overeating", the author was a former FDA commissioner.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1605294578/?tag=cakecentral-20
A 2" wedge cut from a 10" cake is a massive serving to me.
Five inches long and four inches tall--that's big.
When you look at it that way it does sound big, but looking at the surface area that 2" wedge is 4.9 square inches, which is less than twice the size of a 2"x1.375" wedding cake serving (2.75 sq in).
We often hear from our brides that many of their wedding guests lined up for second servings of cake. This is probably due to people being conditioned by restaurants and advertising to expect larger serving sizes...an interesting book on the subject is "The End of Overeating", the author was a former FDA commissioner.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1605294578/?tag=cakecentral-20
I forget how to do the math with pi and all that to get a proper cubic inch measurement for circles, but a 1"x2"x4" piece is 8 cubic inches. And I could google it but I don't want to. But with cake you don't just scrape the surface area off to eat it, so your measurement doesn't really make sense.
The problem with using surface area to calculate here is that it doesn't take into account the width of the pieces.
you need to use volume
Standard wedding cake 1x2x4 (rectangular)
Large slice stated here 5x2x4, but triangular
so
volume of a rectangular wedding slice =8 cubic inches
volume of a triangular slice =20 cubic inches
So the large wedge is about 2.5 times the size of the wedding slice.
Thank you, Titia.
I get way lost in cubic math.
I just know that cutting 2" wedges out of an 8" cake is a most generous serving.
However a 2" wedge out of a 10" cake means thunder thighs built for two (and a half).
The problem with using surface area to calculate here is that it doesn't take into account the width of the pieces.
I used surface area instead of volume because our wedding cake tiers and party cakes are both 4" high, when there's no difference in one dimension you can ignore it to make calculations easier.
Standard wedding cake 1x2x4 (rectangular)
Large slice stated here 5x2x4, but triangular
so
volume of a rectangular wedding slice =8 cubic inches
volume of a triangular slice =20 cubic inches
So the large wedge is about 2.5 times the size of the wedding slice.
We use 1.375"x2"x4" for wedding cake servings (based on the link below), which is 11 cubic inches...so the party size serving is 1.8 times the size of the wedding cake serving. YMMV if you use different sizes for wedding cake servings.
http://www.pastrywiz.com/cakes/servings.htm
Industry standard wedding serving is 1x2x4.
Some folks go a little bigger and there's different serving charts now but I go by 1x2x4. Everybody does it a little different to some extent.
If I used a diiferent medium I would use cups of batter rather than calories to recaluclate in a different format.
You have GORGEOUS cakes, Jenniffer! I spent about an hour checking out your cakes with my kids, about 3 weeks ago. I was so impressed, but my sweet little man said, "Wow, that cake is so beautiful, but you could do that, Mommy." I had to tell him that it's okay that some cakes are better than mommy's and these are better." But he is so sweet! I think you could definitely do an increase, you have the skill to justify it.
And i know that I have the skill to cost as much as the second bakery I mentioned. I go in there every couple months and I am amazed at the junk they put out. They don't even attempt to get even edges or smooth sides. or square corners.
I do want to be affordable for brides on a budget, and there are some cakes I am willing to do cheaply. When I see girls with horrible cakes I think, "Girl, we could of worked something out!" She could have cleaned my boys'
bathroom and i would have done it at cost!
I am afraid that I will want to raise my prices or not be taken seriously if I
am lower than bakery #2. But I want to save people from walmart. Can I have the best of both worlds?[/quote]
Just my opinion, so people will disagree. We aren't here to save brides from bad cake, we are here to make money and enjoy what we do. Anna, you and I both have big hearts and would make cakes for free if we could. But we can't. Just like there is a car for everyones price range, there are cakes for ever pocket book. I want to always make the best cake I know how to make, not the cake they can afford. My name is on it. If a Cadilac cost the same as a Kia, everyone would have one and they wouldn't have as much appeal. These days if someone wants a football stadium and only wants to pay $100, I can't help them. I could make a crappy quick and diirty version to fit their budget, but it would have my name on it. The customer can choose a football field instead or go to someone cheaper. You just can't be both (cheap and best) so stop beating yourself up. Since posting prices on my website, people know how much I charge before they call. Before I did that I got a lot of phone calls that made me feel bad foe my price but that is crazy! Do you think Cadillac feels bad for their prices? You have to take the emotion out of part of it and realize it's a business. Every time I get the chance I do way more than the customer paid for and surprise them. It's a great thing to do for the customers that are already yours and ensures you keep them.
Thanks so much for your sweet compliments and I agree with your son! We all look at others cakes and say "I can do that! I just haven't yet!"
Thank you, Titia.
I get way lost in cubic math.
I just know that cutting 2" wedges out of an 8" cake is a most generous serving.
However a 2" wedge out of a 10" cake means thunder thighs built for two (and a half).
No doubt, when they get so big they barely fit on the plate......
Thank you, Titia.
I get way lost in cubic math.
I just know that cutting 2" wedges out of an 8" cake is a most generous serving.
However a 2" wedge out of a 10" cake means thunder thighs built for two (and a half).
No doubt, when they get so big they barely fit on the plate......
Dessert plates are typically 7-8" in diameter, so they can easily hold a 5x2x4" wedge.
The problem with using surface area to calculate here is that it doesn't take into account the width of the pieces.
you need to use volume
Standard wedding cake 1x2x4 (rectangular)
Large slice stated here 5x2x4, but triangular
so
volume of a rectangular wedding slice =8 cubic inches
volume of a triangular slice =20 cubic inches
So the large wedge is about 2.5 times the size of the wedding slice.
WHAT A FREAKING SLAB! I was so hoping someone would come on here and do that! Thank you.
Thank you, Titia.
I get way lost in cubic math.
I just know that cutting 2" wedges out of an 8" cake is a most generous serving.
However a 2" wedge out of a 10" cake means thunder thighs built for two (and a half).
You said it! I prefer to fit through doors without turning sideways, so I will stick to my 1x2x4 sizes of cake.
We aren't here to save brides from bad cake, we are here to make money and enjoy what we do. Anna, you and I both have big hearts and would make cakes for free if we could. But we can't. Just like there is a car for everyones price range, there are cakes for ever pocket book.
lol! I started to cake to save have fun, then to save money and have fun, then to make money and have fun! I would like to still provide cakes for people that can't afford a nice cake, but only if I like them! Maybe I will take names and "award" a free cake to a couple a month? And charge good for the ones who can afford it!
If you serve someone a 1x2x4" piece of cake at any party I've ever been to, you'd get a lot of strange looks. There's a reason party slices are bigger than wedding slices: after a cocktail hour and a multi-course meal, wedding guests are usually pretty full by the time dessert comes around; by contrast, a party cake will typically be served to a swarm of hungry kids after a few slices of pizza. If I increase the number of servings, customers will run out of cake. I'd rather customers have cake left over so they can send some home with guests...that way more people get a chance to try the cake.
For those that offer party cakes, how many servings do you recommend for a 10" round double layer?
And for those worrying about putting on weight, we're talking about a 300-500 calorie delta between a wedding cake slice and a "slab" of party cake in a food that will be served a few times a year. Not a significant difference.
If you serve someone a 1x2x4" piece of cake at any party I've ever been to, you'd get a lot of strange looks. There's a reason party slices are bigger than wedding slices: after a cocktail hour and a multi-course meal, wedding guests are usually pretty full by the time dessert comes around; by contrast, a party cake will typically be served to a swarm of hungry kids after a few slices of pizza.
For those that offer party cakes, how many servings do you recommend for a 10" round double layer?
And for those worrying about putting on weight, we're talking about a 300-500 calorie delta between a wedding cake slice and a "slab" of party cake in a food that will be served a few times a year. Not a significant difference.
And they take two bites and run off again and their ice cream melts into soup and then nobody knows whose plate is whose, and Jimmy had the runny nose so you serve your kid another piece to make sure there are no germs on it. Then it too gets set down while they run off. Then the kids run past again and a plate hits the floor, so Susan picks up all the full plates and dumps them in the Hefty bag to keep them out of the floor.
I have 4 kids and we have had at least 20 parties, and it is the same way every time. And all parties with kids are like that, every one I have been to. The names change, but the kids are the same. Sometimes you get some lard butt that eats cake and ice cream soup off 6 plates. Out of 20 kids, maybe 2 finish a piece, and that is a tiny piece.
Do you have kids Jason?
Thank you, Titia.
I get way lost in cubic math.
I just know that cutting 2" wedges out of an 8" cake is a most generous serving.
However a 2" wedge out of a 10" cake means thunder thighs built for two (and a half).
No doubt, when they get so big they barely fit on the plate......
Dessert plates are typically 7-8" in diameter, so they can easily hold a 5x2x4" wedge.
I typically see paper plates at parties, and they are typically only 6 inches.
If you serve someone a 1x2x4" piece of cake at any party I've ever been to, you'd get a lot of strange looks. There's a reason party slices are bigger than wedding slices: after a cocktail hour and a multi-course meal, wedding guests are usually pretty full by the time dessert comes around; by contrast, a party cake will typically be served to a swarm of hungry kids after a few slices of pizza. If I increase the number of servings, customers will run out of cake. I'd rather customers have cake left over so they can send some home with guests...that way more people get a chance to try the cake.
For those that offer party cakes, how many servings do you recommend for a 10" round double layer?
And for those worrying about putting on weight, we're talking about a 300-500 calorie delta between a wedding cake slice and a "slab" of party cake in a food that will be served a few times a year. Not a significant difference.
I follow Wilton's chart, which is 1.5x2 per slice. It says 28 for double layer 10" round.
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