Locally grown ingredients are more sustainable for our planet. Gingerlily is committed to buying all of our fresh produce from local growers. Our approach supports local family farms, results in fresher ingredients for you, and eliminates wasted resources associated with “well traveled” food.

Responsible Packaging
Fresh baked goods require some packaging to get them to your home. We’ve chosen carefully from the following vendors:

BRP Box Shop for natural brown boxes

Eco Products for Sugarcane Clamshells

Treecycle for natural brown bags and biodegradable soy wax bakery tissue.

Our natural brown boxes are uncoated and no chemicals are used to change their appearance. This natural paperboard uses typically 25%-30% less fiber than other material boxes. Furthermore, the boxes are made from SFI (Sustainable Forestry Initiative) lumber, thus the material is collected and reforested using environmentally friendly practices.

Efficient Production/Distribution
Our commercial kitchen space is rented from Sea Rocket Bistro, in North Park, CA. Sea Rocket Bistro is a unique farm-to-table restaurant focused on providing local and sustainable food, and specializing in seafood. This wonderful casual restaurant provides eclectic, locally grown and harvested food to their happy patrons. We’re pleased to be able to share resources with them so that we can more efficiently bring Gingerlily treats to you, our patrons.

From our solar heated hand washing station to the choice of our Yaris for selling at Farmer’s Markets, we’ve tried at every turn to be environmentally responsible and limit our use of resources.

Gingerlily Bakery began modest operations in May 2009 after months of planning, years of distractions, and some procrastination. Before starting Gingerlily Bakery, Mary dabbled off and on in the food business since 1995. When she was not honing her corporate skills as an HR Business Partner, she worked, among other roles, as a Pastry Chef for several fine-dining restaurants, including Café Las Bellas Artes (Elmhurst, IL), The Four Seasons (Chicago), and The Columbine (Conifer, CO).

Mary has designed and developed numerous new successful dessert items, and has produced high-volume pastries and desserts for restaurant and catered events. She has also created wedding cakes and specialty desserts (cakes, tarts, pies, roulades) to order. Mary has varied and deep experience with a wide variety of dessert types and ingredients. Although always interested in food and its preparation, Mary began professional work in the area and deepened her passion for food after earning her Culinary Arts degree from the Art Institute of Colorado in 1995. She started Gingerlily Bakery based on her vision of providing affordable versions of familiar and loved desserts that are unrivaled in quality and taste. Mary has carefully developed and refined all Gingerlily recipes and prepares all items for sale on continuing basis.

Wade assists Mary with various aspects of the business including strategy and business management. He plays an active role in sales and addresses mundane issues from bookkeeping and purchasing to logistics (someone had to figure out a way to load a canopy, 3 tables, chairs, a hand washing station, packaging, and several coolers loaded with treats into a Yaris). Wade is new to the food business, but has practiced eating his whole life.

Family members (and close friends when available) have helped to make Gingerlily successful by participating in countless blind taste tests. It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it. Our family and friends have also provided unlimited, and much appreciated, encouragement. Finally, Bob has helped beyond the call, designing and assembling our website for us.

Food Philosophy

The simple act of eating is one of the greatest experiences human beings share. Good food brings us both comfort and nourishment needed to sustain us. Yet very often in our busy culture, eating is an afterthought and food choice is accidental. Virtually no time or effort is allotted to choosing and preparing good food. Nevertheless, making even small or occasional improvements to our eating rituals can bring us joy and improve our life. Having a favorite dinner, or eating a special dessert or favorite snack makes us happy; sharing the experience with those we love makes it even better. Gingerlily Bakery was created to bring novel food pleasure and comfort to people. We hope, in our small way, to help make our patrons happy. We work hard to try to do so.

Food quality is about taste, texture, and balance, not appearance. While we think our tarts are beautiful and our cupcakes are “cute”, our focus is solely on food quality and taste. We never alter an optimal preparation or add any substance to enhance the appearance of our treats. Likewise, we use no preservatives or additives intended to improve the appearance or “shelf life” of our products. We sell freshly baked treats that are intended for consumption soon after purchase. We have conducted countless blind taste tests and can answer any questions you might have about the longevity of our food. Generally, sealed cupcakes are delicious for 2-3 days and brownies for 4-5. Our tarts are highly perishable, and should be eaten the day of their purchase, although they often hold up well and have both delicious flavor and texture on the second day.

Fresh natural ingredients taste better. As we have moved further away from our own food preparation, towards packaged convenience food and prepared fast food, we’ve lost our understanding of the importance of fresh and natural ingredients. Gingerlily Bakery uses fresh natural ingredients in all of its preparations, and you will taste the difference.

Shortcuts and compromises made to save pennies on ingredients undermine our contract. Balancing food quality and affordability is plainly difficult; often the two goals are completely contrary. We’ve worked hard to distinguish our baked goods, making them with very high quality ingredients and working hard to optimize our recipes and preparation. Yet we also believe that good food should be affordable, and Gingerlily is committed to offering good value, as well as a range of product prices, so that all customers can enjoy a delicious treat. In addition to the products shown on our site that we believe represent an excellent value, if you visit us at markets, you will see we always offer fresh delicious cookies and introduce other small treats from time to time.

Moderation when eating sweet baked goods is important. We’re not delusional; we do not want our products to contribute to obesity or other health problems. We’ve taken great care to design and prepare desserts and treats that we believe, eaten in moderation, can bring comfort and joy to you. However, our foods should not constitute your entire dinner, nor your child’s dinner; rather, our treats should be enjoyed as part of a balanced, nourishing diet. Save our treats and enjoy them for dessert.