Sometimes Cold Pineapple Cake Should Be Good Enough

When it comes to the bakery I have the tendency to be a perfectionist. I literally want everything we make to be fantastic, an experience of pure pleasure mind you. But this business will teach you that sometimes the reality is good should be good enough.

Last week we had a special request for our pineapple upside down cake the raspberries and pecans for Sunday. I made an extra one for the store to sell and one for the customer. When it was getting late I asked my employee to call and as it turns out the order was for the following Sunday. So now we have an extra cake, one that tastes best the first couple of days after it's made.

I like to make good out of mistakes like this so I offered the cake to Jack's old school PS 295. They were having a pta meeting the next day and were happy to have a cake with their breakfast. The school is just a bit more than a block away so the families and teachers that go there are certainly potential customers so this was a good chance to do some outreach for the business too. We are starting lunches next week so Ruth, the pta president invited me to speak about Little Buddy before the meeting and bring menus for the parents to take.

In my haste to get the bakery open and be at the school by 8:30 am I forgot to take the cake out of the refrigerator to get it to room temperature. For most people it was probably no big deal but I was thinking most of the morning how it would have tasted better if it had been not so cold. I hope that all the obsessing I do over my baked goods translates to great product because from a mental health point of view it's probably not such a good idea.

Luckily many customers have noticed the quality and have been very complimentary of our baked goods, so I guess being a perfectionist can pay off. It's a great feeling when someone comes to the store and sends an email later that day or the next day to say how much they enjoyed their treat land that happened twice today. It makes it feel like the hard work we do is worth it and that we are already enjoying success.