News from Baking for Good

Getting recognized by TED makes it a good Wednesday! :)

milkmadeicecream:

Special ‘snaps for a special ‘scream.

We’re gearing up for our October flavors of the month (TBA next week!) by chompin’ on some gingersnaps made by local bakers and friends, Baking for Good. We love working with Baking for Good and here’s why.

1. We’ve become friends with founder Emily Dubner over the years. She’s great.
2. They donate 15% of all proceeds to charity.
3. Their wares are legit, and when we collaborate, they are always willing to create special goodies for us. Like the mini snaps above. Or the rum balls for our Red Rum flavor of the month October 2011 (shown below).
4. We are hoping they’ll make us some of their super rad Instagrahams one day.

[TEAM APPRECIATION MONTH]

Introducing: Paul - Director of Business Development

Q&A

Tell us a little about yourself.

I am originally from a small town in New Jersey (the part that Springsteen doesn’t sing about). After a sojourn in PA during college, I settled in Brooklyn where I’ve lived for the past 7 years.  I was doing sales at a national bakery chain for the past few years and was looking for a change. I found a listing online for a position at BFG and was immediately smitten with the website and the concept!

You manage all the customers and orders.  What do you personally like and usually recommend?

Hard to narrow it down. I adore the cobbler cookies - last month it was peach, this month apple.  My recommendations really depend on the event or what type of gift it is. 

What’s a busy day like at BFG HQ for you?

Ask me around December 12th. :)

What’s the most difficult thing about your job?

Finding the right balance between sales and customer service and making sure everyone is 100% satisfied with our product and service.

Have you run into any bizarre order requests?

So far at BFG, nothing too outlandish, but I’ve had some interesting ones in the past such as the woman who wanted a 5 foot tall cupcake to wheel out to her boss for the company’s anniversary.

Borough of New York that best describes you?

Brooklyn all the way, but I do appreciate a little bit of what every borough has to offer (even Staten Island).

Any hobbies?

Anything gastronomy-related: cooking, shopping for food, registering for interesting kitchen gadgets that I neither have room nor much use for, dining out, etc. Sometimes planning a meal takes up an entire weekend. I also enjoy golf, but rarely get out to play these days. I also enjoy reading and pre-war architecture. Oh, did I mention food?

Song that describes you.

Flowers Never Bend with the Rainfall by Simon & Garfunkel

[TEAM APPRECIATION MONTH]

Introducing: Hope - Baker Extraordinaire!

Q&A

Tell us a little about yourself.

I grew up in Rumson, NJ on the Jersey Shore - the kind Bruce Springsteen sings about.  I went to Cornell Hotel School (‘86 grad) because it was a great undergraduate business school that was built around my favorite type of business - Hospitality and more specifically FOOD!

I have been baking since I was 13 making chocolate chip cookies and the family recipe for Cheesecake.  I started a storefront bakery in Red Bank, NJ in 1995, closed it December 31, 2002 but couldn’t stay away after trying some other work.  I got back to baking in 2005 in NYC and met Emily the Christmas season of 2010.

I had moved to my new faciilty in Long Island City, November 1st of 2010, and I started making some cookies for Emily’s company. Now I do about 90% of the baking for BFG (with our growing team!), and I’m also the operations partner for the onsite production.

Whats your favorite kitchen appliance? or tool?

I love my 5 quart KitchenAid that is approaching 20 yrs. As for tools, I am a kid in a candy shop when I get the Williams-Sonoma catalog or go to Sur La Table and see what new gadgets there are that I really don’t need but just would like to have because they look fun. 

Which borough of nyc best describes you?

Manhattan

Cutest cookie request? or most bizarre? 

Cutest - kids who want their favorite TV characters on a cookie (I probably drew 1000s of Pikachus in their heyday). 

Bizarre - Buffalo Wing Sauce cookies.  I made it for a friend’s husband who doesn’t like cookies but eats wings like candy.  It is “oddly delicious” - I call it a man’s cookie.  

Your musical taste: 

My favorite song has been Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know because I am a Glee-kster, not due to a boyfriend break up . If you look at my most played songs on my iTunes you will see everything from Nickelback to Paramore (love Twilight - yes, I am a Twilighter) to Broken Bells to Filter.  Toss in some Katy Perry, Taylor Swift with LMFAO and you understand what kind of woman I am - unpredictable!

Congratulations to Lindsay Brown, President of She’s the First-Notre Dame chapter! She’s featured on the cover of Seventeen magazine this month for her work sponsoring girls’ education in Nepal. 

More about She’s the First: This wonderful organization promotes the importance of educating girls, especially in the developing world. They send girls to school around the globe by encouraging young women to unlock the power of their social networks and creatively fundraise for sponsorships, giving underprivileged girls the means to break barriers. Most will be the first in their family to graduate.

She’s the First is a nonprofit that falls within our Education, Children, International, Women, and Young Philanthropy causes. 

You have to wear about a thousand hats at once. It can get tiring, wearing all those hats!

What sort of company would you like Baking for Good to grow into?

I want Baking for Good to be the go-to online bakery. I want it to be a no-brainer that if someone in Chicago needs to send a gift to someone in Atlanta, Baking for Good will have the perfect, most thoughtful, most delicious solution.

What’s your favorite activity in the city?

Trying new restaurants. When I moved to New York, I made a goal never to visit a restaurant twice. Six years later, I’ve broken that rule time and time again, but at least in the beginning, I tried a ton of great places!

Which borough of nyc best describes you? 

I’ve always lived in Manhattan, so it’s probably the one that fits me best. I like how fast-paced it is. Living here has made me a very fast walker.

What is your favorite Iphone/Ipad App? 

I love instagram (the inspiration behind our snapshot cookies!)

Favorite song/Current song on repeat/Song that best describes you

Like everyone else in the world, I have Call Me Maybe on repeat.