Rebecca Moesinger, chef and owner of 45 Surfside in Nantucket, Massachusetts — voted “Best Cakes on Nantucket 2018” — swears by Perfect Purée for her recipes. Her location on the bike path outside of Nantucket’s busy downtown appeals to people on their way to the beach or locals taking their kids to and from the nearby schools. She has been baking with The Perfect Purée for six years and keeps a variety of flavors in the freezer so she can fill any custom request. She appreciates them because they’re not too sweet and their vibrant colors complement her desserts.

As for color trends, “it’s very often that you will get an order for a custom cake where a shade of color is very important to the client,” Moesinger says. “With thousands of shades, everyone’s description of color is different. They could order a light blue cake but could be disappointed when the shade is baby blue rather than the desired sky blue. Sometimes bakeries will ask clients to bring in an object that has the desired color. The problem with this is now the bakery is responsible for that item whether it’s lost or damaged. Not to mention they need space to store a variety of items labeled and kept for each client.”

She has found the best way to avoid these problems is to ask customers to bring in a paint swatch. “This gives the color they are ordering a specific name and avoids any miscommunication, such as Benjamin Moore Melrose Pink. The paint swatch can easily be stapled onto the contract and put away.”

Spring cake flavors that profit

“During the spring months, we partner with our customers to help them deliver the best sweet treats possible for St. Patrick’s Day, Easter and Mother’s Day,” says Jean Hayes, technical sales representative for Dawn Foods.

At Easter, the items that have the highest spikes are cupcakes, dessert cakes and iced cookies. Specifically, the flavors for cakes that work well during Easter are Assorted, Yellow, Vanilla, Carrot, Coconut and Strawberry. Marshmallow flavors and inclusions are a great way for bakers to highlight the Easter holiday, as well.

Mother’s Day causes the largest seasonal spikes in the spring for bakery, according to Dawn. Sweet baked goods that sell best during this timeframe are cakes, specifically cupcakes, dessert cakes and decorated cakes.

Although St. Patrick’s Day is a smaller holiday, bakers experience seasonal spikes with Boston Cream Cakes, in addition to iced cookies and mini cookies. Top trending flavors during the spring overall are brown sugar sweet flavors, seasonal fruits and tangy flavors. Brown sugar sweet flavors like Sea Salt, Toffee, Banana Cream and Peanut Butter over index.