Strategize Your Shipping Timeline
The old adage says timing is everything, and thats especially true when it comes to shipping perishable food. Ship early in the weeknever over the weekend when packages can warm up, says Ecwids Jesse Ness. Shipping delays can cause your baked goods to spoil, which will inevitably lead to an unhappy customer.
To avoid any potential snafus, create a shipping timeline that encompasses everything from the time your baked goods have cooled and are ready to go until the time your customer is ready to enjoy them. This includes how much time it will take to package all of your shipments and hand them off to your carrier in addition to the overall transportation time.
You may also consider setting order cut-off times to ensure an order will be delivered within a specific window of time. You can offer rush delivery for an additional fee, but setting a cut-off time will keep you, your customers, and your shipping carrier on the same page about a realistic timeline for an orders arrival.
Can I Send Cooked Food Through Mail
When shipping prepared meals, using insulated styrofoam coolers is the best way to ensure that the food stays at the right temperature. Its crucial to choose the correct shipping cooler for your meals to ensure that they maintain the temperature during delivery.
Use the steps below to help make shipping foods easy.
How To Ship Bread
Homemade bread is time-consuming to make but oh so delicious. Many would rather order bread from a premium bakery than try to make it themselves. However, not all loaves of bread ship as well as others. The best type of bread to ship is quick bread leavened with baking powder or soda such as pumpkin, zucchini, and banana bread. Unyeasted, “quick bread” is heartier and has a longer shelf life than yeast-risen dough. Your next best choice is bread leavened with sourdough. Yeast leavened bread has the shortest shelf life and is the most fickle, making it the most challenging type of bread to ship.
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Mailing Baked Goods Doesnt Have To Be Complicated
- Cakes: Carrot cake, pound cake, and fruitcakes
- Candy: peanut brittle, rock candy.
- Wrapping cookies- Cookies can be placed back to back and wrapped securely in plastic wrap. Place a piece of wax paper in between the cookies to prevent sticking. Place each cookie pair in a separate plastic bag. Nestle the cookies securely in a container, ensuring they can not move around if shook. If the cookies are decorated wrap them individually.
- Wrapping bars and candy- Bars and candy are best shipped in containers, used wax paper to separate the layers. A decorative tin container works well and will keep them protected.
- Wrapping quick breads and cake- Wrap each slice in plastic wrap and place into a container. Make sure that they can not shift around if moved.
The Idea Of Shipping Cake Jars
My client posed the idea of shipping cake jars to Chicago for her daughters 13th Birthday in December. The idea lingered for a while and we finally got the ball in motion in November.
Plastic Peanut Butter Jars
The crucial component to this order was the containers, I knew plastic jars would be the best options but we also had to find a brand that was also food safe.
We found a suitable option through sks-bottles.com using their 12oz plastic peanut butter jars with white ribbed induction lined cap.
Since the containers were small, I thought cupcakes instead of baking a sheet cake would be best. When picking what cakes to bake I decided to go with a frosting that I knew would freezes well and not turn to mush at room temperature.
Buttercream and cream cheese frosting were my two go-to for frostings. The client chooses 4 flavors, Red Velvet, Vanilla, Chocolate, and Lemon cake.
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Which Cookies Mail The Best
Now that you know you can mail cookies through USPS, youre probably wondering which kinds hold up best in the mail.
Below youll find a list of the most mailable baked goods, as well as some you should avoid.
- Bar, drop, or dried fruit cookies
- Cookies with hard textures like biscotti, shortbread, and gingersnap
- Sandwich cookies
In terms of which baked goods to avoid mailing, avoid sending anything that requires refrigeration .
You should also stay away from mailing fragile cookies like madeleines or macaroons, as these will likely crumble no matter how well you package them.
When To Ship Cookies For Holiday Delivery
The postal system has been functioning at holiday levels since the pandemic began, and will undoubtedly ramp up as the days continue. Canada Post advises sending national packages by December 9 via Regular Parcel service and all the way up to December 21 for Priority. The safest bet is to send perishables sooner than later, and choose the fastest method that is financially sensible.
Canada Posts flat-rate boxes are an if it fits, it ships solution with a stress-free, set fee for packages under 5 kg. They are handled slightly faster than basic service.
All this said, dont fret. Even if its late, however many crumbs are in the box upon arrival, and no matter if nonpareils are in disarray, the gift will be welcomed with cheer. Although the holidays might look differently than pre-pandemic times, there is pleasure in sharing, the appreciation of the giving, and comfort in the enduring taste of tradition. Heres a couple of favourites to get started with.
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A Note About Food Safety
Remember that anything perishable or requiring refrigeration can spoil, especially if your package is shipped through warm climates. Avoid mailing anything with a buttercream or other dairy-based frosting. Ideally, food would be delivered overnight, but choose the quickest shipping time that you can afford or thats available. Take note of these USDA tips for safe handling, where to store and length of lifespan. Its also smart to pack a tip sheet with your food gift so the recipient knows how and when to enjoy.
Choose A Shipping Service
You must decide how you want to ship your baked goods. While ground services are less expensive, air delivery services help keep your perishable treats fresh, especially if you’re sending them several states away. You’ll need to weigh your packages because their weight affects shipping fees. Select overnight, next-day, or two-day air shipping to keep temperature-sensitive items edible.
Talk to different carriers customer service representatives and see which team you feel the best working with. The success of your bakerys e-commerce business depends on customers receiving their orders fast and intact. You need to have a good working relationship with your shipping company.
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How To Ship Cookies Without Breaking
Cookies are prone to crumbling and breaking because of their size and how theyâre made. From softer, thicker cookies to thin, crispy ones, no one likes discovering that their treats fell apart mid-transit.
Perfecting the science of shipping cookies without breaking takes some time and effort, but it can be done. Hereâs how to master it:
How Do You Keep Cookies Fresh For Shipping
There are a few things that can be done to keep cookies fresh for shipping. One is to use an airtight container or bag to store them in. Another is to pack them with some kind of insulation, like packing peanuts or bubble wrap. Finally, make sure they are well sealed so that they dont take on any extra moisture.
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Wrap Baked Goods To Create An Airtight Seal
It doesn’t matter how flawless those fondant flowers are if the cake itself is less than fresh. Seal in that just-baked freshness with plastic wrap. Use shrink wrap for sturdy goodies like Bundt cakes and pies, and wrap plastic around more delicate cakes by hand. Freezing cupcakes and intricate iced cakes can also help them to hold up in transit.
Place cupcakes in a holder with individual spaces and press a candy stick into each cupcake to prevent a potential impact from the lid. Wrap cookies individually in shrink bags or heat-sealed plastic for professional-looking presentation. Pack them snugly in a tin or other sturdy container.
Wrap cupcake holders, tins and other containers in plastic to make them airtight, or seal all edges with sturdy tape. This will help keep the freshness in and unwanted heat and moisture out.
Pro Tip: If youre shipping macarons, the meringue-based cookie with a soft sandwich filling, or similarly delicate treats, cut small squares of bubble wrap and add a layer of cushioning between each of the macarons when packing them inside your container. This extra step will not only preserve freshness but help prevent the fragile confections from smushing against one another in transit.
Choose The Best Refrigerant For Cold Or Frozen Items
Gel packs and dry ice are the best options for keeping your food cool in transit. In general, use dry ice for ice cream and other foods you want to keep frozen, and gel packs to keep food between 32 and 60 degrees F. Regular ice is not the best option as it is heavy and can potentially dampen the inside of the container as it melts. If you must ship with frozen water, make sure to use water-resistant packaging and seal it well. It’s also a good idea to precool your insulated container before you pack it up to get the most mileage out of your refrigerant.
An obvious advantage of dry ice is that it is, in fact, dry, while gel packs dampen as they thaw. Dry ice is the colder option, but it may not last as long as gel packs. In addition, dry ice is considered a hazardous material there are restrictions on shipping via air if you’re using more than 5.5 pounds of dry ice.
Always wear gloves when handling dry ice to avoid burns. Never wrap your dry ice, as the carbon dioxide that’s released can explode if it isn’t able to expand. Also, don’t use dry ice if you’re shipping live seafood.
No matter what you’re shipping, never let dry ice come into direct contact with your food. Get more tips on shipping with dry ice, and find out exactly how much you need in our handy guide to dry ice shipping.
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How To Pack Up Baked Goods For Shipping By Mail
Doubling up on packaging is essential. First, the box to hold the baking. Bakery boxes work, of course, however Tupperware or metal tins are preferable for airtight seals and reusable options. Choose appropriately sized containers to hold everything close. If there is headspace, fill with bubble wrap, balled up plastic wrap or parchment paper, so nothing tumbles if inverted. If you are concealing the interior contents with festive paper, make sure to include an open now tag so the recipient doesnt hesitate to unwrap.
Place the container inside a slightly larger shipping box. Stuff the surrounding gap with crumpled recyclable paper, scrap fabric, or an additional gifta scarf, gloves or rolled socks. When you think all is set, give the box a light shake, understanding the mailing process might not be as gentle. If nothing shifts with the movement, youre good to go.
Choosing And Packing The Shipping Box
Once your cookies and treats are snug in their air-tight containers its time to package them in the shipping box.
- Obviously, the size of the shipping box will depend on how much youre sending! The best rule of thumb is to choose a sturdy box that is big enough to hold the goodies with enough space to fill in with packing materials. Plan to have at least two inches of space all around your goodies that you can fill in with padding.
- First, place two inches of packing material in the bottom of the box. You can use crumbled up packing paper, packing popcorn, bubble wrap or other material thats suitable for shipping.
- If youre feeling extra cautious, you can wrap your cookie box in bubble wrap and secure it with tape before placing it in the box.
- Place your treat containers in the box and place packing material in between them and around them so they arent touching each other or the side of the box.
- Fill the empty spaces on the sides and fill the rest of the box with your packing material. You know youve done a good job if you cant hear any rattling when you shake the box.
- Secure the shipping box with heavy duty tape. Its a good idea to mark the box fragile and perishable. It might keep the shipping people from being too rough and it will also alert your recipient that they should open the box right away.
- Secure your shipping label on the box and your cookies are ready to ship!
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Consider Freezing Before Shipping
Hedeman is a big proponent of freezing, both as a way to protect the baked good by making it harder and more solid, and to help it stay fresh en route. He recommends enfolding the treat tightly in plastic wrap or a ziploc bag before freezing. For cookies, he says, you could even wrap them on a plate with plastic, and then freeze them in the arrangement youd like them to present in.
If going the frozen route, you dont need an insulated shipping container, says Hedeman just keep the cookies or baked goods in their plastic packaging and let them defrost as they travel. There might be some moisture due to the defrosting, but not so much that the package leaks, which would go against USPS rules. Still, just to be safe, Hedeman advises against using water-soluble packaging materials like biodegradable packing peanuts.
Label The Outside Of The Box
In addition to an address label, its smart to create both Fragile and Keep Upright labels. Whether youre shipping perishables, or breakables, the right label can help ensure carriers keep your packages upright and in a safe transport position. Because the last thing anyone wants is an upside down cake on their doorstep! Keep your cake safe from the moment you put it in the box with any one of our Fragile and Keep Upright-themed labels.
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Can I Send Baked Goods In The Mail
SHIPPING BAKED GOODS: Strong items that send by mail well whenever of year consist of: Cookies or bars if mailing soft cookies, include a slice of white bread into container prior to sealing. Quick breads ought to be covered two times in cling wrap and sealed inside a gallon-size plastic bag, or wrapped again in foil.
Guidelines For Shipping Baked Goods
It is critical to use the correct materials when shipping baked goods and follow the basic guidelines. parchment paper, aluminum foil, and plastic wrap are used to protect the food, which is then ziplocked and sealed with a sealant to provide extra security. Baking is a difficult task, but using the right materials and adhering to simple guidelines can make the process a lot easier.
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When Packing Keep Flavors Separated Bags And Containers Airtight And Everything Snug
Vitak packs her cookies in separate ziploc bags, often one big one for the majority of the cookies, and additional smaller bags for cookies with strong flavors. The biggest lesson Ive learned is that when you have several flavors in a bag for a few days, those flavors diffuse across all the cookies, she tells me. From her years of experience, shes learned to always separate lemon, coffee, ginger, mint, and almond-flavored cookies. She then squeezes as much air out of the ziploc bags as possible before sealing, places the bagged cookies in a shipping box, and surrounds the contents with bubble wrap or styrofoam packing peanuts.
Cookie tins are also an option, but they come with some limiting factors: namely, youre much more constrained in the number of cookies you can pack and the tin needs to be full to minimize movement, per Vitak.
Jannuzzis Cookies favors a similar packaging method: for each standard order, Rush packs a kraft paper bag typically one with a tin tie, although there are also ziploc varieties with a dozen cookies, seals the bag, and then slips it into a bubble wrap pouch, which then gets surrounded by a layer of tissue paper and tied off with bakers twine. Jannuzzis uses corrugated shipping boxes measured exactly to size from East Coast Packaging. Generic boxes are fine, too, says Rush just be sure to pad out the package with materials like tissue paper, kraft paper, inflated air pillows, newspapers, or even old rags and towels.
How To Ship Whole Brownies
When I ship brownies, I typically leave them uncut. I dont want to decide how big of a piece of brownie my customer or loved one wants. So, I leave them in the pan. But obviously Im not shipping my beloved brownie pan. Instead, I have a few disposable aluminum pans on hand.
To use this method, you will need a disposable aluminum pan. Bake your brownies as usual. When theyre done, remove them from the oven and let them cool entirely. Then, cover and seal the brownies tightly with plastic wrap or wax paper.
Seal again inside of a plastic freezer bag. This will allow for another layer of protection while your brownies are being shipped across the country. They can be sent just like this, or you can spruce it up with an adorable brownie box.
Lastly, place the brownies in a sturdy shipping box. A brand new box is ideal. Used boxes can have blemishes that affect the overall sturdiness of the box, which could lead to brownie damage. Avoid this by using a new box with plenty of packing material such as newspapers.
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