Equipment Part II

I know that I posted before about equipment but as we were making donuts the other morning I thought I'd share what we are working towards and why.

Mixers:  This is a 20 quart mixer.  I think I'd like a 30 quart but I haven't made a final decision.

My mixer is 5 quarts.  I can make 2 1/2 pounds of dough with it.  I have to make my dough in two batches to get enough to make 4 dozen donuts.  If I do the math, with a 20 quart mixer I could make 10 pounds of dough or enough to make 8 dozen donuts.  The 30 quart would get me 15 pounds of dough or 10 dozen donuts.  Now I know I need the 30 quart for sure.

Proofers: This proofer would hold between 10-12 trays of donuts.  My rubbermade tub holds one.  If each tray holds a dozen donuts I could proof my 10 dozen donuts all at one time.  Of course it does take some time to roll them out, but it would be much faster than the way I do it now.  It takes between an hour and an hour and a half to proof my 4 dozen donuts depending on how long they need to rise.

Fryer:  This fryer can fry 2 dozen donuts at a time.  My fryers, plural because I now have two to help with my frying time, can fry 6 donuts at a time.

The last time Bob and I made donuts it took us 3 hours.  Start to finish.  4 dozen donuts.  Obviously with the right equipment we could make many more donuts in 3 hours, but right now I don't know what I would do with them.   Here are some pictures.

We made twists, rings, bear claws, bismarcks, and bars.  I thought they turned out pretty well considering we have scaled down equipment.

There's another auction in Portland in a couple of weeks.  I'm excited to go and see if they have the equipment we need.

Donuts

We have been practicing donuts.  I think we have found the recipe to use.  It's light and cooks well.  I've had a few problems though. 

My proofer right now is a Rubbermaid tub with water in the bottom and a fish tank heater to warm it up and make condensation.  I know that's kind of hard to follow but the idea of a proofer is a warm, moist place for your donuts to rise.  The tub does the same thing, just not as well and it's not a controlled environment.  But it does help speed the process some.  

My fryer is a fryer you would find in any home.  Not one you would find in a bakery.  Right now we can fry two donuts at a time.  I made 4 dozen this morning.  It takes a while. 

There are other glitches we are working through but the proofer and fryer issue are a real challenge.  But, the donuts tasted good, really good.  So even with the challenges, we made good tasting donuts.  We will get there and some day look back and laugh at the Rubbermaid tub proofer and the 2 donut capacity fryer.

Equipment

Saturday we went to a restaurant equipment auction.  The idea was we would go and watch and see how it works so when we are ready to buy equipment, we'll know what to expect. 

They had a donut fryer, a proofer and several mixers along with lots and lots of other equipment, dishes, tables and so on.  It was pretty exciting to see the equipment I will be using up close.  The prices listed on the items was scary. 

Then the auction started.  I didn't realize how much below the listed price the auctioneer started the bidding.  When it came to the fryer, I bid.  If I had been really ready to buy I probably would have won.  But I wasn't so it went to someone else.

When we got to the proofer, Bob and I had more of a plan.  He did the bidding and once again we were so close, but we had a limit and once the price went over the limit, we quit bidding.

It was fun even if we didn't end up buying anything.  But next time we go, we will have a plan and money (a really key part).  I think that we might be able to get a proofer, mixer and fryer for between $2,000 and $2,500.  It's a lot of money for sure, but much less than what I thought it would cost.  I figured if we could find everything for $7,000 I'd be lucky.

One Year Ago Last Week

It was one year ago last week that Bob and I made our first cake.  Well our first cake that we made for someone else.  As I look at the pictures I'm surprised how well some of the items turned out.  We didn't have any equipment to work with really.  There are lots of things I don't really like, but it was our first cake.

Here we were on Friday, delivering a cake to the same birthday boy one year later.  Oh how much we have learned.  I've learned that the type of cake you bake makes a huge difference.  I've learned that Corkey dogs and people are still hard to make. I've learned that the right tools help out a lot, but they don't solve every issue.  And most important I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.

(I'm also including some pictures of a cake and cupcakes we made for a going away party.  I hadn't had time to post them before). 

Cinnamon Rolls

Last weekend I made cinnamon rolls for a friend at work.  They were the best I had made.  I'm not talking about taste but the way the dough turned out and the size and shape.  She did say they tasted good though which is important.

This weekend we went to the Oregon Coast where my Sister and Brother in-law were staying.  I decided to make cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  I didn't take my Kitchen aid but I was able to still make a pretty good dough the old fashioned way.  They turned out the way I wanted again and where a big hit.  So much so, I was asked to make them again this morning before we left. 

The pictures aren't the best but you can see the size.  These have been eaten on a bit but you get the idea.

So I need your help.  How much do you pay for Cinnamon Rolls when you buy them?  I have a hard time with pricing.  I want it to be priced fair, but I still have to be profitable.  Any input would be great.

New Favorite

I made some cupcakes this weekend. 

(I know it's been a while.  This new healthy eating plan does not include sweets so it's hard to bake when you know you can't eat any of it.)

Anyway, I made red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  Oh they were so good.  I only ate one so I did OK, but I wanted more.  Bob found these cupcake papers that are my new favorites.  They are really tall so not only is the cupcake covered by the paper, but the frosting as well.  It allows you to put so much more frosting on your cupcakes.  Which I did. 

I think they were a big hit since there are none left out of the 36 I made.

PS:  I found a picture of my cupcakes - here it is...

Baby Shower Cupcakes

The latest project was cupcakes for a baby shower.  Not too bad really except that I was out of town for three days last week so I had no time to work on the fondant decorations I planned to put on top.  Made for a very late night when I got home.

I decided on brown sugar pound cake for the cupcakes and the frosting is brown sugar cream cheese.  I've decided any cream cheese frosting is my favorite.  They tasted great together.

I made two dozen cupcakes.  Twelve had the cute little foot prints on them.  Thanks to Bob these got done and looked great.

These were the last twelve.  I really enjoyed making them.  I had hoped to make a patchwork blanket but there just wasn't enough time so they got solid blankets.