8 Rules We Bake By

We don’t do manifestos here at Lola’s. Still, we’d like you to know what we believe in.

Long before we had a bakery, we started selling our cookies and scones from a stall at the Leesburg Farmers’ Market. Why there? Because the market is best place to buy “real food” — and real food is what we offer at Lola’s.

We still sell at the Leesburg market. We shop there, too. And our bakers follow the same 8 rules we’ve followed since 2002:

• Everything 100% from scratch
• Real butter
• Local produce when it’s in season
• The very best chocolate
• Top-quality ingredients
• No artificial flavors
• No artificial sweeteners
• No preservatives

Pretty simple, right? So why don’t all bakeries say this?

“Wait,” you say. “How about those trendy cupcakeries? They say ‘baked fresh daily,’ right?”

Maybe, but do they say “100% from scratch”? Look into their kitchens — if they’ll even let you — and you’ll find:

• Cupcakes started from a mix
• “Flavoring,” not real ingredients
• Butter substitutes (like trans-fatty oils)
• Workers, not bakers

Cheaper? Sure, if that’s all that matters. The same thing? Not hardly.

Since we opened our bakery, we’ve done all our baking in plain sight. And we’ve been praised by everyone from Washingtonian magazine to TV’s Rachael Ray. We’ve been filmed as a local tourist attraction; our treats have been called “a national phenomenon.”

Why? Because we’re baking a type of food that’s easy to understand — but hard to find.