When we tell people Mind Your Biscuits Bakeshop is a cottage bakery, the reactions usually fall into two camps:
- “Oh my gosh, that sounds adorable! Do you sell sourdough?”
- “…Wait, what even is a cottage bakery? Is that like…legal?”
Thanks to Georgia cottage food laws, the answer is yes.
Cottage bakeries are one of those things that people love once they discover them—but until then, there’s a whole lot of head scratching. If you’ve ever wondered what goes on behind the kitchen door of a neighborhood bakery like ours, this post is for you. We’re pulling back the curtain to answer your questions, share resources, and give you the inside scoop on cottage bakeries. Consider this your crash course, just in time for our fall menu launch.
What Is a Cottage Bakery, Really?
At its simplest, a cottage bakery is a bakery run from someone’s home kitchen under cottage food laws. Think of it like a farm stand, but instead of produce, it’s cookies, sourdough, or scones.
These laws exist to give small food entrepreneurs the chance to build a customer base and share homemade products with their community—without the huge overhead of a commercial storefront. In Georgia, the program is overseen by the Department of Agriculture, which sets the rules and regulations for what we can and can’t sell. These rules are part of the Georgia cottage food laws, which outline what products we’re allowed to make and how we can safely sell them.
So no, we’re not hiding in the shadows, handing out contraband snickerdoodles. Cottage bakeries are recognized, regulated, and celebrated across the U.S.
“Are You Legal?” (And Other FAQs We Hear All the Time)
Short answer: yes. Longer answer: here’s what legality looks like for us in Georgia.
- Registration & Oversight. Cottage bakers are required to register with the state, and our business is fully compliant with Georgia’s Department of Agriculture rules.
- Ingredient Transparency. Every product you buy comes labeled with strict standards and a full ingredient list—so you’ll always know exactly what’s in your bread or cookies.
- Training & Certification. Georgia cottage food laws require us to hold a food handler’s certificate. And while the state sets the standards, Alex enforces them—our kitchen is so clean you could eat off the counters (though we’d prefer you eat the cookies instead).
- Food Safety Boundaries. We can’t sell anything that requires refrigeration (so no cheesecakes or custards), and we follow strict rules about packaging and handling.
- Going Above & Beyond. In addition to what’s required, we also hold a City of Roswell business license, maintain insurance, and have worked with the Department of Health to inspect our septic and water supply systems.
So when you bite into our chocolate chip cookies, you’re not just getting something homemade—you’re getting something safe, licensed, and fully above-board.
Why We Chose This Model
When we dreamed up Mind Your Biscuits Bakeshop, we didn’t picture a gleaming storefront or a massive wholesale operation. We pictured community. Family. Recipes that feel like they came from your grandma’s kitchen (because some of them literally did).
Operating as a cottage bakery gives us the freedom to:
- Bake small-batch. We make what we love, and we make it fresh.
- Stay connected. We know many of our customers by name—you’re not just a ticket number in line.
- Be flexible. Our rhythm fits our family’s life, which means Alex can run her Cookie Cart while I manage porch pickups and markets.
It’s not about scaling fast. It’s about baking well.
What We Make
At Mind Your Biscuits Bakeshop our menu rotates with the seasons, but here’s a taste of what we specialize in:
- Sourdough bread and beyond. From classic and cinnamon chip loaves to rosemary roasted garlic, we also make sourdough English muffins, bagels, and even pizza crust.
- Cookies. Thick, chewy, and nostalgic—our oatmeal raisin recipe has been in the family for four generations.
- Scones. Buttery, lightly sweet, perfect with coffee.
- Pancake mixes. Old-fashioned buttermilk, confetti party, and chocolate chip cookie pancake mix for easy, fun mornings.
- Seasonal jams. Made with local produce—think blackberry or bourbon peach.
We don’t do preservatives or dyes—just high-quality, often local ingredients baked with care.
How to Order
This is probably the second most common question after “are you legal?” Ordering from a cottage bakery isn’t quite like walking into a store whenever you’re craving a cookie. Here’s how it works with us:
- Weekly online drops + Porch pickups. Our menu goes live on Hot Plate, where you can preorder your favorites and then swing by our Roswell porch to grab your bag of goodness.
- Cookie Cart. Alex runs her stand a couple weekends a month, seasonally. It’s a little bit of entrepreneurship and a whole lot of fun.
- Farmers markets. You’ll see us at 1–2 markets a month.
It’s simple: order, we bake, you pick up.
Why Buy From a Cottage Bakery?
There’s a reason people keep coming back once they find us:
- The freshness. Your sourdough was pulled from the oven hours before you pick it up.
- The quality. Ingredients you can pronounce—like organic butter, local eggs, unbleached flour.
- The connection. You know the people behind the product. You’ve probably seen Alex handing out cookies with a grin.
- Supporting a young entrepreneur. Alex’s Cookie Cart is more than adorable—it’s hands-on experience in building a business.
- The mission. Part of our proceeds go back to local charities—because food should feed more than just your stomach.
- The health factor. Without preservatives or artificial dyes, our products are as wholesome as they are delicious.
Big-box stores can’t compete with that kind of care.
Thinking of Starting One Yourself?
We get messages all the time: “How did you start? Where do I even begin?”
If you’re curious about starting a cottage bakery, and want to learn more about Georgia Cottage Food Laws, here are some of the resources we leaned on (and still do):
- Georgia Department of Agriculture Cottage Food Program. The official rules and application process.
- Forrager.com. A community hub for cottage food entrepreneurs nationwide.
- The Pink Crumbb. Our absolute favorite resource and one-stop shop for aspiring cottage bakers. Her monthly membership is affordable and incredibly comprehensive.
- Join local Facebook groups. Connecting with other bakers is invaluable (we recommend joining Cottage Geeks). Most states have local groups as well. We love Cottage Food Georgia.
Our best advice? Bake what you love. Start small. Know your local rules. Don’t be afraid to learn as you go.
Looking Ahead: Fall Flavors Are Coming
Now that you know exactly what a cottage bakery is (and isn’t), here’s the fun part: our fall launch is just around the corner. Think cozy spices, warm loaves, and cookies that taste like autumn afternoons.
If you’ve been curious about trying a cottage bakery, now’s the perfect time to see what the buzz is about.
Final Bite
A cottage bakery might not look like the bakery you grew up with, but that’s exactly the point. It’s personal. It’s rooted in tradition. And it’s food that brings people together—one cookie, one loaf, one scone at a time.
We can’t wait to share our next season with you.
👉 Want first dibs on our fall menu? Sign up for Hot Plate Alerts to get a text when new items drop. Orders go fast, and we’d love for you to be at the front of the line.
And while you’re at it, don’t forget to follow us on social and join our mailing list—you’ll get first dibs, behind-the-scenes peeks, and a front row seat to our cottage bakery journey.
