Cake Talk

A word about UberEats for parents of UA students

Mary's Cakes and Pastries partners with UberEats for deliveries of basic items such as cookies, cookie cakes, and dessert cakes. We have tried chasing students down with deliveries, and prefer to stick to what we do best - baking!

Sometimes UberEats works like a charm. Sometimes it takes some work. I am of the opinion that UberEats was designed more for internet savvy people to order food for themselves from a nearby restaurant, rather than out of town parents to order sweets to be delivered to their student in a dorm or apartment.

Here are some things we have discovered to make UberEats work better for deliveries of sweets to your student:

• I like the app better than navigating the website, but if you are averse to apps you can go to Ubereats.com and place an order. The app (or website) defaults to your city. If you are trying to place a delivery order from OUTSIDE TUSCALOOSA OR NORTHPORT, you must FIRST change the delivery address to your student’s local street address. UberEats does NOT deliver to post office boxes or mail drops. You will need to enter a physical street address.
• The app (or website) also defaults to DELIVER NOW, which means NOW. While the bakery is capable of prepping an order for delivery in 10-15 minutes, we'd prefer a bit more time to decorate or personalize your items (such writing happy birthday in a particular color on a cake). You can schedule a delivery up to 5 days in advance. Pick "SCHEDULE" at the top of the screen to schedule a delivery, even if it is an hour from now.
• Your delivery must be scheduled for a time when the bakery is open. This may seem obvious, but the the delivery driver has to come to the bakery to pick up your order and they can only do this when we are open. Our hours are 10-5 on Tuesday through Friday, and 10-3 on Saturday. UberEats will tell you we are unavailable if you try to order or schedule a delivery outside these hours.
• You must PLACE your delivery when the bakery is open. Again, this may seem obvious, but we must manually accept the order, and we can only do this if we are physically at the bakery, and the UberEats tablet is turned on. Again, our hours are 10-5 on Tuesday through Friday, and 10-3 on Saturday. UberEats will tell you we are unavailable if you try to place or initiate an order outside these hours.

Also, UberEats will NOT track your student down. You can choose the option for leaving the delivery at the door, but there is no guarantee that your student will get the delivery, and there is nothing we can do about that. Please let your student know to expect a delivery.

 

We are the restaurant partner/provider. We have ABSOLUTELY NO connection to UberEats or the driver. The only personal information the bakery sees is the order number, first name of the person ordering the food, and any notes to the kitchen. We have no way of contacting you or your student. We have no information about the delivery driver. We do not know where the food is supposed to go. The delivery driver does NOT have your student’s contact information unless you provided it to them. If they have a problem with the delivery, they might contact YOU, or they might contact UBEREATS. They will NOT contact the bakery. Once the food leaves the bakery, our role is complete.

 

If you have a problem with the UberEats app or their website, please contact UBEREATS. As much as we would like to, we CANNOT HELP YOU with app problems or website problems.

 

If all this seems too complicated, call us and order something they can PICK UP AT THE BAKERY. We will gladly take an order over the phone for pick up. The bakery is only a couple of miles from campus.

 

A message from Mary...

Happy New Year!

Now that 2020 is behind us, we look forward to the new year. We are a bakery, and we love being a part of your celebrations. We are enjoying an extended winter break, but can't wait to get back to work on January 26.

Unfortunately, the pandemic is still raging and we must be cautious. I know a vaccine is on its way, but we're not quite there yet. As a small business owner, I am concerned for the safety of my employees. It is remarkable that we made it through the year - albeit a few close calls - but nobody got sick, and we did not have to close. I had to make some tough decisions, such as switching to curbside and window service.

We miss seeing everyone and welcoming people inside the shop. There is something magical about a bakery, from the smell to the sights. Mary's Cakes was designed to resemble a family kitchen, where you can chat while we work. Even after 15 years, I still love the smell of cake in the oven, I'm still mesmerized watching a cake being decorated, and I still love making new friends and talking to customers. I'm so proud of the way Sarah and Macy make that magic happen every day.

We want to get past COVID and keep doing what we love, so our caution will continue until summer. Here's what you can expect:

• We will continue offering curbside and window service. You may call us from your car and we will gladly carry items out. We've also set up a window so we can talk face to face with you if you would prefer to chat in person.
• We have a monthly menu posted on our website, social media, and on the building. The menu is limited, but we will offer daily and weekly specials. Please bear with us if your favorite sweet is not currently on the menu - baked goods are perishable and we have had to limit the items we can economically make. We will try to add items as specials when feasible. You may also order any of our menu items online for pick up at the bakery.
• We had to cancel our weekly cookie decorating throw downs last winter and will not host them again until 2022.
• We DO plan to offer baking camp sessions this summer. The sessions are limited to 6 students each week, and registration will go online in late February or early March. We MAY offer some day camp sessions during spring break, depending on what the school systems do. We will make that decision when we have more information.

Mary's Cakes is up for the challenge! Please bear with us as we adjust our services so we can continue to provide cakes and sweets to you as safely as possible. I'm hoping we can welcome you INSIDE the bakery this summer, with a grand reopening and extended menu.

Sending bakery love,

Mary

 

A new era...

 

Who would have thought (last year, let alone 2006 when we opened), that the bakery would be learning to operate under a major global pandemic, at the ripe old age of 14?

First off, Happy Birthday to us! We opened the bakery in July 2006. Back then, the biggest issue we had to deal with was what color chef coats we should wear (we've had white and black, before we switched to t-shirts).

Over the years, we've dealt with many life events, including our little misunderstanding with the University of Alabama over the first letter of the alphabet, the tornado of 2011, and the untimely loss of a much loved member of our bakery family. We've also watched children in the neighborhood grow up and graduate from college. We've welcomed new friends and customers, and said good bye to others. Each one of these events has made its mark on the bakery.

2020 is no different. 

Whether motivated by reality, fear, or regulations, day-to-day life has changed, and it has impacted the bakery. People aren't having big events that require big cakes and lots of cookies. Weddings are either postponed or smaller. We are not gathering to celebrate in the same way as before.

Consequently, the bakery is adapting. If you've been by lately, you might have noticed...

• We are curbside only.
• We don't let people INSIDE the bakery.
• We have a menu.
• We wear masks.

THESE CHANGES WILL CONTINUE FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE.

As a bakery owner I (Mary) have to look after the safety and well being of my employees, our customers, and myself. We were always a small bakery family. Now - during this pandemic - we are even smaller, with only the most essential baker (Macy) and decorator (Sarah). I sometimes call it "survival mode." We do what we must so that we can still be here when things get better.

We want to go back to the days when we could welcome people into the bakery, safely. We want to be able to hug people, to hand children cookies, and we will. Just not today.

Please bear with us. Wear your mask. Stay home when you feel ill. Visit us often, and eat lots of cake! Smile with your eyes, and we will, too.

 

 

Winter Break: Day 12

The Nicene Creed is, by far, the longest and most complicated thing I have ever printed.

It is finally finished, and my workspace is (mostly) cleaned up. Printing on a vintage press requires a lot of stuff, and it all has to be cleaned and put back in its place so it can be found when needed for the next project. If you are interested in this kind of thing, you will find a great list of letterpress tools with their proper names, pictures, and descriptions here.

I put away all the furniture, and the larger wood type, and cleaned up my inks and rollers. It will be a couple of weeks before I get back to the print shop, and I can look forward to distributing (putting back) all the small metal type - something mindless but best done when you are not tired.

I think my next few projects will be in the kitchen and the garden.

Winter Break: Day 11

We're 11 days into our winter break and I'm making blueberry muffins. You may have noticed I'm on a creating healthy food kick. That continues with this recipe.

This recipe came from a printer friend. With a few tweaks, I was able to make it without a trip to the market. The muffins are barely sweet, and made with organic honey from bees that live only a couple of miles from the bakery (definitely local). They are gluten free, high in fiber, and low in sugar. And delicious! Give them a try with this recipe, or come by the bakery after we reopen. We'll definitely put them on the baking rotation.

Psyllium Blueberry Muffins
Makes 12

1 1/2 cups oat flour
1/2 cup flax meal
4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup psyllium whole husks
1 egg
1/3 cup honey
1 cup milk (I used almond milk)
1/2 cup coconut oil (melted)
1 cup blueberries (frozen whole)

Preheat oven to 350^oF. Line regular sized muffin or cupcake tins with paper liner. Place all wet ingredients in a bowl and combine well. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add blueberries and stir until incorporated into batter. Spoon equal amounts of batter into each liner (I used a yellow scoop from the bakery, about 2 oz). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool and serve.

Notes: The original recipe called for 2 cups of spelt flour. I used gluten free oats, ground in the food processor to make 1 1/2 cups "flour," and filled in the extra 1/2 cup with flax meal.

Nutrition (per muffin)

Calories: 208
Fat: 11.9 g
Carbs: 24.5 g
Fiber 6.8 g
Sugar: 10 g
Protein: 3.8

Winter Break: Day 10

It's the 10th day of our annual winter break at the bakery and I'm baking. Cause, you know, that's what I do.

Time off gives me a great opportunity to experiment with new ingredients, without the pressure of having to make something I can sell.

Today, I made psyllium husk flatbreads. Psyllium husk is a fiber supplement, which is beneficial if you are on a low carb diet. Some people (add it to water and) drink it as a laxative (it is the main ingredient in Metamucil), but that's no fun. As a baker, I appreciate the ability of psyllium husk to bind gluten free items together, much like gluten or xanthin (or guar) gum. In this recipe, it adds about 5 grams of fiber per serving.

Flatbreads made with psyllium husks are gluten free, grain free, nut free, keto, and vegan. And delicious! The soft and spongy texture was unexpected (especially for something gluten and egg free) and amazing. They were crazy quick and easy to make, with only a few ingredients.

They make great buns for burgers and sandwiches, or a base for pizza. Or just eat them plain like I did.

Psyllium Husk Flatbreads
(makes 4 servings of 2 flatbreads each)

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/8 cup psyllium husk (whole, NOT powder)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1.4 oz coconut oil
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

Place the coconut flour, psyllium husks, baking soda, salt, and coconut oil in a food processor and pulse until combined and the mixture resembles gravelly sand. Add the vinegar to the boiling water, and stream through the top of the food processor while it is running. The mixture will soon form a soft ball of dough.

Dump the dough on a work table, and divide into 8 pieces. Roll into balls and flatten to about 1/4 inch (I used a tortilla press with very light pressure). Cook on a hot, uncreased griddle for a minute or two. Turn over with a spatula, and continue cooking on the other side for another 1-2 minutes. They will resemble large, fluffy pancakes, and are delicious warm, or reheated in the microwave from the freezer.

Nutrition per Serving

Calories: 151
Fat: 11.8
Carbs: 6.3
Fiber: 4.8
Protein: 1

Winter Break: Day 9

Day 9 was another day at the print shop. Today I learned the Nicene Creed will indeed fit on the page, even though there is still one paragraph, plus Amen, plus the title left to print. The type for these has been laid out and measured and there will be about a half inch to spare at the bottom of the page. Whew.

Im gonna take a day or two off printing to hang out in the kitchen and try baking with psyllium husk as a healthy addition to gluten free baking. I've got a few new recipes to try and will tell you all about it tomorrow.

Winter Break: Day 8

Another few paragraphs were printed today. Things are looking good, but at this point I will be glad when I can move on to a new project. There are three more paragraphs (two short, one long), plus two more large print lines, plus the title. I'm thinking two more days.

There is (at least) one mistake already. I left a letter out of a word and didn't catch it until I had printed 18 of the 20 copies. The print pictured is one of the two that were printed after the correction. When the project is finished, I will post a photo of one with the error, and you can look for it.

Reminds me that no one (except God) is perfect, so I am not starting over.

On a totally separate note (and subject), my gym (Iron Tribe) is starting a new challenge next week. My 6-week goal is to be able to complete five unbroken pushups (from my toes), plus one pull up. Currently, I can do two unbroken pushups, but can't pull myself above the bar. At all. My coach for this project, Leslie, has given me a plan that, today, included 4 sets of 6 negatives from two kettlebells (like this, except with your hands holding kettlebells). I was never a serious athlete, ever. So when I reach my goal, it will be the first time in my 60-plus years on this planet that I have done a pull up or more than two "boy pushups" in a row. Hope springs eternal. I'll keep you posted.

Winter Break: Day 7

Another day printing, but today went better than yesterday.

This version will go a bit slower, as I'm having to reset all the type, one paragraph at a time. After each paragraph, I clean the type, change the ink color, then set and print the next bit. I'm thinking at least two more days, maybe three, but so far, so good.

There is still no guarantee that I won't get 90% of it done and still run out of space on the page, so there's that.

I'll give you an update after tomorrow's work creative project.

Winter Break: Day 6

I spent the day in the print shop, and accomplished nothing except learning one way NOT to print my project. I'm not a planner, and thought I'd be able to just print the Nicene Creed on the fly. 

Before you get too excited, the print on the bottom was computer generated AFTER I totally messed up guesstimating how the entire creed would fit on my paper. AFTER I laid out the type for the first 2/3 (there was not enough type to lay out the entire creed at once) and still thought there was enough room on the page to print it. AFTER I printed 50 copies of the first part in a custom shade of gray. AFTER I decided to take that type apart to lay out the last bit (because I wanted to print it while I still had the printer inked with the custom gray). AFTER the last lines ran off the page. And AFTER the color didn't match (even though it was the same ink I used for the first part).

I had intentionally left spaces to print the beginning words of each important part in larger type, in contrasting colors. In hindsight, I realize I'd probably never get all those random lines to line up properly, and 50 copies of the small print might not be enough to get 20 or so clean copies of the finished piece.

What did I learn?

• I should have laid out the entire project on the computer first.
• I should have just used black ink straight out of the can, instead of trying to match a custom color.
• I should have printed one paragraph (large and small type) at a time.

Tomorrow is a new day. We'll see if I actually learned anything from my mistakes.