A few weeks ago, a self-described foodie called into NPR’s The Splendid Table with a dilemma: She’d tasted a Walmart birthday cake at an office party recently, and while she is typically a fan of home-baked cakes, she loved it and was now struggling to recreate the flavor.
While we’re absolutely flattered, we have to keep our delicious recipe a secret. Still, the mention made me think. There are many other scrumptious surprises in our fresh bakery, so we should share a few that our customers may not know.
1. How do we ensure that all of our cakes give that same wow factor? It’s one of the reasons I have an amazing job: We taste them over and over. Seriously – our products go through several taste panels to ensure quality. We ask detailed questions, too, about attributes. Is it moist? Is it soft and fluffy enough?
2. We’re not only a destination for standard sheet cakes – we’ve also upped our game with premium dessert cakes. For my sister’s birthday this year, she wanted something beyond our current assortment offering. She specifically asked for decadent and gourmet chocolate cake. This has inspired us to expand our assortment. We are making specialty cakes even better, increasing them to three layers versus two and including indulgent ingredients like rich chocolate cream cheese and chocolate ganache. These desserts are something you can be proud to share with family and friends.
3. If you’re more of a pie fan, take note: Our pumpkin pie won the blue ribbon for the American Pie Council’s National Pie Championships. That means out of all commercial entries, Walmart’s pie was selected as No. 1. So not only do we think they’re amazing – official bakery judges do, too.
4. Enjoy apple instead? Then you should know that our family-size apple pie contains over 70% fruit, which is 40% more than the average. It’s two and a half pounds of pure awesomeness, and it’s made with excellent fresh orchard apples. In fact, our supplier maintains 130,000 apple trees each year to support this homestyle double-crust favorite.
5. As a mom of two, I realize how memorable first birthday parties are for the family. We are making it even easier, by offering a free smash cake with a cake purchase of at least $15. Let’s make the first party amazing!
I admit it, my job is pretty sweet! I get to taste and buy fresh bakery merchandise for Walmart stores all over the country. My favorite part, though, is what the products represent: happy times in our customers’ lives that I indirectly get to be a part of.
