It is June already!
In Toronto we had a snowy, stormy winter that reminded me of Saskatchewan. Now the spring has been cold too so that the arrival of June felt shocking when it is still pretty cool outside.
The first week of the month is the post I answer frequently asked questions received by the catering and social media team, and there are some good ones this month.
1. When will PGB open another store outside of Toronto?
Sometime in 2020. We are very interested in having stores in Vaughan, Mississauga and Kitchener-Waterloo and we are currently thinking about locations in those cities (and the funds to build them. LOL.)
2. Why can’t you make a cupcake that is both gluten free and vegan, not just a GF one and a V one?
We want to do this – and we think we can! Head Baker Heather and Assistant HB Alec are ON this, as well as a V ‘buttercream’ so that we can start to offer Vegan Designer Cakes. People who must or want to avoid eggs and dairy should still be able to have a Candy Land Cake and our other cool Designer Cakes.
3. When does PGB change its menu?
We do it a lot but because we only launch an item when it has been thoroughly tested, professionally photographed and added to our online ordering, it may not appear that way – it is sort of a slow process but over 8 years has added up to significant change:
• Last year we said good-bye to Chocolate Peppermint and welcomed Salted Caramel
• This year we parted ways with Chocolate Peanut Butter and Banana PB to make way for Funfetti and Oreo
• In 2017 we revamped our cakes menu to create a Designer Cakes menu of buttercream cakes and changed up the Homestyle Cakes menu to add more photo-topped cakes and 2 sizes (9” and 8×12, to the existing 6”)
• Right now we are working on incredibly cute Little Cakes (4 inches…in cute custom polka dotted boxes!) in both Homestyle and Designer versions…these will be coming soon, maybe even this month.
• Over the years we have always had around 40 Treats of the Week cycling through so since 2011 we’ve retired about 15, bringing in 15 new ones. The ones that leave the menu (Bubble Gum – just bad- likely my idea; Chocolate Orange – was delicious but not inspiring), simply aren’t that popular, and the new ones come from all sorts of places of inspiration, like magazines, Pinterest, online generally, desserts we’ve had, cookies and chocolate bars we like, and so on. July is when we usually do most of the Treats development since it is a slower month at PGB, and this July we are going to be working on some Treats that respond to our customers’ requests for seasonally decorated cupcakes such as ones for Canada Day, Halloween, Christmas AND THE RAPTORS.
If you have any questions for me or about PGB, please be sure to email me at jean@prairiegirlbakery.com or reach us through Instagram or Facebook or email orders@prairiegirlbakery.com. We love to hear from our customers from whom all of our best ideas and innovations come.
Jean
