Ring out the old, Ring in the New…2012 Our Year in Review!

It doesn’t seem possible that another year has passed!  2012 has come and gone and thankfully it was another year full of goodness for Baked Dessert Cafe & Gallery and the little historic town of Berlin, Maryland.  This was the first year that we chose to close shop at the bakery during the celebration so that our focus could simply be on enjoying the evening with our family and friends. Only on its third year, the Berlin Ball Drop has become quite the tradition.  We were amongst the thousands of young and old, locals and visitors who chose to spill into the streets of Berlin watching the ball drop at Broad and Main Street.

Many new customers, along with our loyal seasonal and  local supporters, crossed our threshold this year.  Most new customers found their way to us via Social Media outlets; Yelp and TripAdvisor our new best friends.  In April we celebrated our 2nd year in business and in July our first full year in our new and improved space.

We acquired our liquor license in May which brought new and improved meaning to getting “BAKED” at the beach and added a convenience to our customers looking to purchase great wines and craft brew. New recipes were tried, some big winners, some not.  Our signature desserts the Peach Dumpling, Cupcake Bread Pudding and Cupcake Bombs still the consistent sell outs.  We added new, deliciously Gluten Free and Vegan desserts, meals and bread mix for our customers following those specific diets and we more than doubled our wholesale business.

We received several significant awards this year as well.   The two we are most proud of are the Worcester County Green Business Award and the Berlin Chamber of Commerce Philanthropy Award.  Showing some love to Mother Earth and one another is of the utmost importance to both Shelly and I.   We feel blessed to have been able to donate thousands of dollars to various local charities and thanks to Worcester Youth and Family, we were also able to adopt local families in need during the holidays.

Looking ahead, this New Year will include a trip to the Food and Wine Festival in Charleston in late February, early March and a trip to Spain.  We are so excited to bring back some new and exciting recipes and wine from those journies.  We’ll be packaging our Gluten Free Cake Mix for sale and adding new apparel to our line up.  We are looking forward to continued collaboration with our neighboring businesses to include new and improved service to our customers and

get “BAKED”!

I, of course, will continue to try to keep up with technology.  There’s so much more to come!

2013 will bring new challenges and triumphs I’m sure, but we are ready for both.  We’ve celebrated so much this year;  non of it possible without the love and support of our family, friends, loyal customers and business community.  Thank you all!  We look forward to serving you and our community and we wish everyone a New Year filled with Peace, Love, Laughter, Great Health and Great Eats!

My “Feed Your Sweet Tooth Diet” Week #2

I'm feeding my Sweet Tooth!

Day 8…

Weighed in today at 152lbs.  Whoohoo, 1.5 lbs lost!  I know that might not sound like much, but I’m taking it.  Also, took my measurements and although the waist and hips didn’t budge, my bust area is down .5 inches.  Somebody please tell me why woman usually lose weight in their boobs first?

I walked the dog this morning as usual.   Went to the gym before work and exercised my lower half plus abs.  I’m going to go back to the gym before dinner and take the Pilates class that I started last week.  This class is actually relaxing even though you are getting a great “core” workout.  I almost went straight home after work, tempted to sit on the couch and kick off my shoes, but I didn’t.  I’m glad that I pushed myself through the door and onto my mat and I feel better for having done it.

For breakfast this morning I enjoyed our Gluten Free Low Sugar homemade Granola.  I warmed it up with milk for a hot breakfast.  This really could count as a dessert because it was so delicious.  Granola is so easy to make  yourself and when you do, you can add anything you want to make it yummy.  Today’s granola had walnuts with dried cranberries.  It’s also full of fiber, protein and antioxidants.  Healthy can taste good!

I enjoyed my dessert today after lunch.  Our Cupcake Bombs are Valrhona chocolate cake mixed with our cream cheese buttercream frosting, rolled and topped with Calabaut chocolate ganache.  I warmed it up and it was so good I really wanted to eat another.  Resisting this temptation was easier to do once I reminded myself that I could have another one tomorrow if I wanted.

I managed to eat dinner prior to 7:00pm tonight and enjoyed a glass of wine with it.  This eating slowly and mindfully thing is starting to make my meals more enjoyable and me more relaxed.

Day 9…

It was pouring rain this morning so the pooch walk was short.  I also felt a little under the weather today.  Maybe that’s because it’s so dreary outside.  Anyway, tonight I have my spinning class, which usually is a butt kicker, so no worries.

Breakfast was uneventful.  I am not preparing any special meals or snacks.  I am eating whatever I have and/or feel like.  I am making sure that I drink at least 8 ounces of water before I do eat.  This is such a simple weight loss strategy, one that I have heard about before, but for some reason never tried.   This does seem to be working.  Between the water and eating slowly, I felt so full I only ate half of my omelet.

I ate some turkey breast today for my snack and enjoyed a Cannoli today for my dessert.  We fill them fresh in the bakery so that they aren’t soggy and it was divine.  I love the fact that I am enjoying dessert without guilt for the first time in decades.

Tonight I ate dinner before going to my spinning class.  I almost didn’t go at all.   My sister, who normally goes to this class with me, couldn’t this evening.  I started to make some excuses, tried to think of an exercise I could just do at home and then I stopped myself.  This is exactly why I do better when I have an exercise buddy.  I did manage to change my internal conversation and decided to get in my car and drive to the gym.  Once there, I took the class and had an amazing workout.

Day 10…

Started my morning as usual.  Headed to the gym before work and exercised my chest, back and abs with weights.

I’ve been trying to get my dad, who now has Diabetes, to join our gym.  I’m certain that if he moves more, he’ll lose some weight and in turn he’ll have more control over his blood sugar.   No one in my family thought that he would, but I bought him 2 training sessions for Christmas hoping that it might be just the catalyst he needed.

I understand that sometimes going into a gym for the first time can be intimidating particularly when you’re older.  So, I ask him he wanted to come in and talk to the trainer on a morning that I would be there.  He did and he set up his two training sessions.   I didn’t know if he would continue past that.

I was at work today when my dad came in and told me that he joined our gym for the year.  You can’t imagine how happy this makes me.   He is the finest person I know and I want him around for a really long time.  Maybe he’ll even join the “Biggest Loser” challenge.  We can motivate each other.

Oh yah, I ate my dessert today with breakfast.  I know that sounds crazy, but not when you own a bakery.   I enjoyed our Fudge Brownie with my coffee.  I just couldn’t resist that smell of chocolate.  Lunch and dinner was uneventful.  I am getting better about planning to eat before 7:00pm.

Day 11…

This morning I rediscovered Chia Seeds!  I’ve had them before in coconut bars that I’ve purchased from my local organic store, but I just learned how to incorporate them into my everyday meals.

The ancient Aztec and Mayan people revered Chia Seeds as vital to their nourishment and it’s a know wonder.  These gluten-free seeds are packed with Omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, protein and fiber.  You can enjoy them in juice, yogurt, cereal, and baked goods.  Once soaked in a liquid for 10-15 minutes they make a gel that you can add to almost anything.  They’re fantastic and they even help you to feel full.

I soaked mine this morning and added them to some Pomegranate juice, which I enjoyed after my breakfast.  Wow, I just realized that I ate my breakfast while on the computer and that’s a no-no.  Anyway, if you’ve never tried them, stop by your local organic store and pick up a bag.

I enjoyed my dessert after my lunch today.  I am finding that this is a perfect time to feed my sweet tooth.  I had a serving of our Cupcake Bread Pudding.  It’s just like bread pudding except that instead of using bread we use our cupcakes.  This confection did “hit the spot”, but I should have only eaten half of the serving because after eating the whole thing I felt too full.

I ate my dinner tonight pretty early, before my spinning class.  I thought I might be hungry later on, but surprisingly I was very content for the rest of the evening.  My husband came home from a business trip and while he enjoyed a glass of wine, I enjoyed a dirty martini.

Day 12…

Exercise was pretty uneventful today.  I made my way to the gym and performed resistance training on my shoulders, biceps, triceps and abs.  Looking back on the workout, I could have pressed myself a little harder.

I also didn’t do so well with my water consumption today.  I drank a lot of water, but forgot to drink it before both breakfast and lunch.  I was really busy at work and also didn’t eat as mindfully as I want to.

We ate dinner out and I used chopsticks, which slowed me down thankfully because I was really hungry and otherwise might have eaten too fast.  My dessert tonight was a piece of my niece’s birthday cake.  I honestly felt a bit guilty eating my dessert late and in all didn’t feel great about the day.  I’m trying not to dwell on this and instead I’m refocusing my energy on tomorrow.

Day 13…

Today was my day of rest, well as far as exercise goes.  I did walk the dog, but it was pouring rain so we weren’t out for long.  Added my chia seeds in juice to my morning routine and wasn’t even really hungry for breakfast or lunch.

We had company come over for dinner and I made a Peach Blueberry Cobbler with vanilla whipped cream.  I had every intension of enjoying it for dessert, but I had also enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine during dinner so I decided that the wine was probably enough dessert for me, plus I really didn’t want it.

I am a little nervous about my weigh in this week and I don’t know exactly why.   I am trying to remember that this is a 6-week journey and that some weeks are going to be better than others.  I really don’t want to set myself up for disappointment.  Rather, I want to remain positive and focused on the positive changes that I have already made.

Day 14…

Chia seeds again this morning in my juice and after drinking it I was full so I waved off breakfast, which was a mistake.  By the time lunch rolled around I was pretty hungry.  I drank my water, but ate faster than I have been and I think I over ate as a result.  I did enjoy the leftover Peach Blueberry Cobbler from the night before though.

This morning my daughter and I worked out to a free on demand video on cable.  We did 30 minutes of Power Yoga and let me tell you it was everything but relaxing.  I think I’ll add this to my exercise routine on a regular basis.  Today I also added an additional 30 minutes of walk/running for some extra cardio.  I’m trying to jog on soft surfaces so that it’s a little bit easier on my joints.  The park close to the bakery has a soft surface path and the neighborhood we live in has several so I have plenty of options.

The playoffs were on today and after watching the Raven’s heartbreaking loss I would be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m craving some chocolate.  I will drown my sorrows with water instead.

Feed Your Sweet Tooth Diet…Week #1 Lost 1.5 lbs.!

my "Feed Your Sweet Tooth Diet"

My Rules…

the do’s

Exercise at least 6 days per week for at least 30 minutes

Drink 64 oz. of water daily including at least 8oz before each meal

Eat mindfully, putting the utensil down between bites

Eat a serving of Dessert Daily

the don’ts

Don’t eat past 7:00pm,

Don’t count calories

Don’t prepare special meals or take any weight loss supplement

Day 1…

Weighed in today at 153.5 lbs. to my delight because I actually thought that I was around 160.  Took my measurements, wasn’t so delighted there with 37″, 31″, 42″.  Step aside JayLo, baby’s got back!  That middle number is what bothers me most.  I’ve always been curvy, but that middle number is going to change.

Today I added walking/running with my dog for 15 minutes, cycling for 20 minutes at intervals on level 3 before work and I also added a Pilates class with my daughters before dinner.  Breaking it up seemed to work well.

Drank a lot of water today.  Tried to add a glass prior to each meal.   The hardest thing today was to eat slowly and mindfully.  I guess I have gotten into a bad habit of eating too fast.  I’m sure this is carried over from the days when I had small children and every time I sat down to eat, all hell broke loose.  This habit didn’t develop overnight so I can’t expect that I will correct it in one day.

My dessert today was a zucchini muffin and I enjoyed it with my breakfast.  Surprisingly I didn’t really want anything else sweet all day and that’s unusual.

Day 2…

Walked the dog this morning and hit the gym before work.  I did some resistance training there, chest and back.  Resistance training/weight lifting is so great for women in particular.  It helps us build stronger bones which is really important considering that we are more prone to suffer from osteoporosis.  You don’t even have to belong to a gym or have any fancy equipment.  Push ups and squats are two great exercises and work most of the muscles in the upper and lower body using simply your own body weight.

I drank plenty of water and some green tea today.  I remembered to eat mindfully, but that was still difficult.  Eating slowly almost makes me nervous.  What’s that all about?  I did eat after 7:00pm.  I had a meeting that ran late and I was starving.  Although, I must admit that eating slowly did make me feel full sooner than usual.

My dessert today was our Kahlua Soaked Chocolate Cake and I enjoyed it after my bowl of chili for lunch.  It was delicious and I really savored it.  Again, shockingly I did not crave anything sweet later in the day and believe me I had plenty of opportunity.  I might be on to something.

Day 3…

Walked/ran with the dog again this morning.  This is actually a great way to start my day.   Drank my fair share of H20.  I am going to fill a pitcher each day so that I can measure what I drink.  I read somewhere that most often when you think you’re hungry, your body is actually thirsty.  I also started to eat my lunch while working on the computer and quickly decided that this was not mindful eating, so I turned it off.  I did have a moment today after lunch that I might have normally eaten something just because I was stressed.  I paid close attention to that feeling and decided instead to drink a large glass of water.

My dessert today was another slice of Kahlua cake.  I must say that this confection is one of our very best.  Although after eating the slice I realized that I could have actually been satisfied with probably half of the portion.  Again no other cravings for sweets today.  Truthfully I didn’t really crave the cake, but have decided for this experiment to make sure that I eat something sweet everyday.  Maybe tomorrow I’ll stick to a smaller portion if I’m not really “jonesin” for something sweet.  FYI, did you know that the word “jonesin” in the urban dictionary means an intense craving for a drug?

Ran/walked/skipped with my daughter for about 2 miles this afternoon.  I think it was her idea to skip and it was so much fun.  It reminded me of being a kid.  For some reason the song “zip a dee doo dah” from the Disney movie Song of the South came immediately to mind.  Anyway, the intervals had our heart rates going up and down which I’ve read  is supposed to be the best type of cardio training.

Dinner tonight was uneventful.  I did enjoy a glass of wine which I might consider to be a “dessert” in the future.  We’ll see what my numbers show the next week.

Day 4…

This morning I simply walked the dog.  I knew I was going to the gym to do my resistance training, shoulders, biceps,  triceps and abs and I was taking a spinning class in the evening and that seemed like plenty.

I had some trouble today remembering to drink my water before my meal.  I was really busy at work and maybe that threw me off.  Also the no eating after 7:00pm is proving to be more difficult than any of the other rules.  Tonight I ate at 7:30.  I’m going to have to plan better.

My dessert today was 3 smaller shortbread cookies which was perfect.  I had tried a new recipe and had to taste test them anyway.  I really enjoyed them, but didn’t crave anything else sweet for the rest of the day.

Day 5…

My cardio today was on the treadmill because it was cold and windy outside.  I did a walk/run for about 30 minutes, again the combination of walking and running at intervals had my heart rate up and down.  I ate my dessert at breakfast this morning because I had to taste test our Ginger Refrigerator Cake.  Lunch was Steak Salad, uneventful.

Dinner was a total disaster.  We were getting ready for an arts reception and I didn’t preplan a dinner so I had some cheese with crackers and meatballs with tortellini.  It wasn’t ideal, it wasn’t mindful eating or even remotely enjoyable, but I’m not going to beat myself up about it.   I’ll try and plan better in the future.  Drank socially this evening.  Lemon drops were the drink of the evening, a lemon wedge sprinkled with raw sugar and a shot of vodka.  You bite the lemon, drink the shot and bite the lemon.  Supposedly, vodka has one of the lowest calorie counts plus, this drink is very tasty.

Day 6…

Today was my “day of rest” as far as exercising goes.  I did walk the dog, but at a relaxing pace.  Ate our Organic Celery Salad for breakfast today and it was filling and delicious.  I didn’t do so well with my water consumption today.  I didn’t fill my pitcher at work and wasn’t thinking about it.

I was hungry at lunch today, but remembered to put my sandwich down between bites and felt full before I even finished, so I only really ate half.  My dessert today was an Ice Cream Sundae.  My nephews were in the bakery today and I taught them how to make real Whipped Cream and Hot Fudge Sauce.  Together we enjoyed the “fruits of their labor”.  We had so much fun and it was delicious to boot!

We had reservations tonight for dinner so once again I ate after 7:00pm.  This rule has proven to be the most difficult and here I thought my sweet cravings were going to be the toughest obstacle .  I resisted the urge to order an appetizer and focused on savoring my meal and the company that we shared.  We had a lovely evening!

Day 7…

I ran outside this morning for 30 minutes again alternating between walking and running.  My brother-in-law once told me that when you first start to add running to your exercise regimen, you should either walk or slow down when you’re feeling fatigued and once you recover you can pick up your pace again.  So this has been my approach.

The playoffs were on today so I probably ate a little more at lunch than I have this past week.  I am drinking a lot of water today to try and balance the urge to eat all the “tail gaty” snacks and it seems to be working.

My dessert today was my mother’s Baked Custard.  It’s like eating a cross between creme brulee’ and flan.  She used to make this all of the time when we were children and it really is one of my “comfort foods”.  Surprisingly it isn’t high in sugar and not that bad on the fat count.  It’s purely delicious.

I made sure that I didn’t eat anything tonight past 7:00pm.  Weigh ins are tomorrow morning.  Even if I didn’t lose any weight this week, I do feel better.  I’m actually enjoying the exercises that I’ve added to my normal routine and the permission that I’ve given myself to eat dessert seems to have set me free.

Can my “Feed Your Sweet Tooth Diet” work?

Feeding My Sweet Tooth

Can I feed my Sweet Tooth daily and still loose a little weight?

My sister Shelly and I own an all natural bakery in Berlin, Maryland.  There’s no denying that we love sweets and  in our business, we want you to love Sweets too.

We came by our “Sweet Tooth” naturally when our Dad  kindly passed that gene on to us.  Actually my Dad has the biggest “Sweet Tooth”of anyone I have ever met.  I still have vivid childhood memories of him dieting and performing various methods of sweet deprivation. His most favorite indulgence is ice cream.  We all still laugh when we talk about the time he was trying to loose a little weight and my mother thought that he was doing so well.  She was proud that he had “tamed his tooth” until one day she had to drive his car to work.  For what ever reason, she had to slam on her brakes and an empty container of Breyers Ice Cream rolled out from under the seat.  He was “busted”!   Reflecting on this story reminded me that my father was “fit as a fiddle” when he was the most active despite what he ate.  He played baseball and was an avid runner.  The “wheels didn’t fall off” until he had knee issues and became less active.  That’s when he began riding the “diet roller coaster”.

I try to work out regularly, but honestly I haven’t made it a priority and often don’t push myself as hard as I should when I do.  I don’t usually buy into the whole New Years resolution thing.  I try to remember that I have the opportunity to make positive changes every day, but I’m turning 50 in March and I really want to be “fit and 50”.  That in mind, I have decided to enter the 6 week “Biggest Loser” challenge at my gym which begins today with the “dreaded” weigh in.  There is an entry fee and prize money for the winner, but I am more motivated by the accountability of this whole thing, particularly now that it’s public knowledge.  I did ask both my husband and Shelly to join me, but they both declined.  I’m going to have to go it alone.

This will be an experiment of sorts.  I hope to prove to myself, once and for all, that deprivation isn’t “my” key to weight loss and fitness.   I don’t know about other tooths, but my Sweet Tooth has a mind of it’s own and it expects to be cared for.  In the past, whenever I have deprived my Sweet Tooth, my “Tooth” has retaliated and it hasn’t been pretty.  So instead of starving “it” or myself, I’m simply going to move more, make small changes like drinking more water, eating slowing and mindfully, keeping a log of my meals, activities and progress,  all while still indulging in my daily dose of sweets.

If you would like to join me on this quest, I would love to have you along.  If you have any helpful tips you would like to share, they are most welcome.  Follow my progress with weekly updates via our blog and on   the bakery’s facebook page  and see if the “Feed Your Sweet Tooth Diet” works!  It could go either way.