Fancy Up Your Bake Sale

The new school year is here and with it the promise of bake sales. Sadly it'll be the same old products - cupcakes with blobs of store bought icing. Slice and bake cookies. Maybe a batch of scratch chocolate chip cookies. Perhaps it's time to fancy it up. Make elegant but easy treats that will be absolute hits and bring in more money for your cause.

Add a bit of France to your bake  sale with a  variation  of Gateau breton .This is a buttery tart made with buckwheat with the filling of  dried prunes and apricots. Melissa Clark made this , and gave the recipe in her A Good Appetite column in Wednesday's New York Times Food section.It is a tad labor intensive , because the prunes and apricots have to be cooked in rum before spreading on the dough. Still' it's about the same amount of work as a scratch cake.Also if the prunes and apricots are not to your liking, then try a hazelnut filling. If hazelnuts are hard to find, then try pecans.Another crowd pleaser is the French yogurt cake, This scratch cake looks and has the same dense crumb as a pound cake. It's zinged up with Greek yogurt and finely grated lemon zest. It can be sold in slices or make four or five loaves and sell them.Of course macarons are still hot and will definitely be a big draw to any bake sale.It's a flourless recipe made with a combination of almond meal and confectioner's sugar. One popular combination is a vanilla macaron with a chocolate ganache filling.

Italian treats are another idea. Biscotti is a well known favorite (and a chance to serve cappuccino) and relatively easy to make. It's a twice baked cookie with a simple flour and butter based dough. What is great about them is that the recipe can be varied.Add a cup and a half of cocoa powder for chocolate biscotti. Also nuts can be used to vary the flavors. To give them more oomph, dip the ends in a variety of chocolate  white, milk and dark . Crostoli, those deep fried ribbons of dough will definitely be best sellers at any bake sale. They are deep fried  dough, flavored with vanilla and lemon juice. You could sub in freshly squeezed orange juice to vary it. Most recipes usually call for them to be fried in peanut oil, however due to the large number of peanut allergies, use vegetable oil instead. As far as what to drink with these gourmet goodies,think cappuccino and espresso (although have regular coffee and tea for customers), Also have a variety of teas, from Earl Grey to peppermint and jasmine. If someone has  a Keurag machine and  there's an outlet, then use it to offer a wider variety of beverages.

Zing up your bake sale with fancier cakes and cookies. They'll not only be top sellers but will bring in much more cash than a regular bake sale. Make it fancy - and you'll reap the rewards.