Can I sell cheesecake from home?

It depends on your state, because cheesecake needs refrigeration. Kansas requires a food establishment license to sell it and New Mexico keeps it out of home kitchens, while Texas allows it after you register with DSHS and add the date made and a safe handling statement. Check your state before you take orders.

Do I need keep refrigerated on the label?

Some states require a line like it. Texas wants its safe handling statement, and South Dakota asks for a keep refrigerated or frozen line on the cold foods it allows. Where it is not required, it still tells buyers what to do.

Do I list the ingredients of the graham crumbs?

Yes. Store-bought crumbs are an ingredient made of ingredients, so their list goes in parentheses after them. Our library matches the crumbs to USDA data; to print their full list, add them as your own ingredient from the box.

Is there a free cheesecake label template?

Yes, empty Nutrition Facts and ingredient panels download free as fillable PDF, Word, SVG and PNG. Want the numbers worked out? Open the New York cheesecake in the free preview; print files are $29 per label.

Cheesecake Label

Cheesecake labels carry the cake's name, its baked weight, a combined crust and filling ingredient list, a Contains line for milk, egg and usually wheat, your name and address and, unless you are exempt, Nutrition Facts. FDA counts cheesecake as a heavyweight cake at 125 g a serving, so our 9 inch cake is labeled per 1/12 cheesecake. Check your state as well: cheesecake needs the fridge, and that changes the home kitchen rules.

Start with this recipe Cottage bakery label rules

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$29 per label
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Cheesecake label on a white box with a whole New York cheesecake: a front sticker with a keep refrigerated line and a Nutrition Facts panel with 490 calories per 1/12 cheesecake

Checklist

What has to be on a cheesecake label

On the lid or a sticker on the box. The numbers match the New York cheesecake.

Front label

KEEP REFRIGERATEDNew YorkCheesecake

NET WT 55 OZ (3 LB 7 OZ) 1560g

Back label

Nutrition Facts

12 servings per container

Serving size1/12 cheesecake (130g)

Calories490

Total Fat 37g47%

Saturated Fat 21g105%

Trans Fat 1g

Cholesterol 160mg53%

Sodium 330mg14%

Total Carb. 35g13%

Dietary Fiber 0g0%

Total Sugars 27g

Incl. Added Sugars 23g46%

Protein 8g

Vitamin D 0.3mcg0%

Calcium 100mg8%

Iron 0.9mg6%

Potassium 160mg4%

INGREDIENTS: Cream cheese (pasteurized milk and cream, salt, carob bean gum), sugar, eggs, graham cracker crumbs (enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), whole wheat flour, sugar, soybean oil, honey, baking soda, salt, soy lecithin), sour cream (cultured cream), butter (cream), lemon juice, vanilla extract (vanilla bean extractives in water, alcohol).

Allergens: Contains milk, egg, wheat, soy.

Made by Hudson Street CheesecakesAlbany, NY 12207

1
Name21 CFR 101.3
"New York cheesecake", "Strawberry swirl cheesecake", "Mini lemon cheesecakes". Name a topping or swirl that is part of what you sell.
2
Net weight21 CFR 101.7
Weigh it baked and chilled. From 1 lb up, ounces first with pounds in parentheses, then grams.
3
Nutrition Facts21 CFR 101.9
Per fraction for a whole cake; per slice or per mini when they are packed one by one.
4
Ingredient list21 CFR 101.4
Crust and filling in one list by weight, so cream cheese usually leads. Store-bought graham crumbs show their own list in parentheses.
5
Allergen statementFALCPA
Cream cheese and eggs mean milk and egg. A graham or cookie crust adds wheat; a nut crust names the nut.
6
Name and address21 CFR 101.5
Your bakery name with city, state and ZIP. Cottage food rules can add a statement and a date.

Cheesecake rules

Things that are different for cheesecake

125 gCheesecake is a heavyweight cakeFDA's reference table names cheese cake in the heavyweight class, for cakes of 10 g or more per cubic inch, with a 125 g reference amount. A frosted layer cake raised with baking powder sits lower, at 80 g.21 CFR 101.12(b), Table 2

1/12A whole cake takes the nearest fractionOur 55 oz (1,560 g) cake divided by 12 gives 130 g, the allowed fraction nearest to 125 g. A smaller 6 inch cake may land on 1/6 or 1/8 instead. Weigh the whole cake and pick the fraction closest to 125 g.21 CFR 101.9(b)(2)(ii)

2 minisMini cheesecakes are countedA mini of 62.5 g or less is no more than half the reference amount, so the serving is the count closest to 125 g: 2 minis for 60 g minis. A mini sold alone in its own cup is one serving, and so is a slice under 250 g packed on its own.21 CFR 101.9(b)(2)(i)(A), (b)(6)

FridgeA food that needs temperature controlKansas names cheesecake among non-exempt foods, which need temperature control for safety, and their sale is prohibited without a food establishment license. New Mexico's homemade food FAQ puts cheesecake on its list of foods barred from home kitchens.Kansas Department of Agriculture; NMED Homemade Food Act FAQKansas Cottage Food Label Requirements →

TexasTexas allows it, with a safe handling lineTexas lets cottage food operators sell foods that need time and temperature control once they register with DSHS. Two things follow for a cheesecake: the made-on date goes on the label, and either the label or the sales receipt shows this exact statement, no smaller than 12 point: "SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: To prevent illness from bacteria, keep this food refrigerated or frozen until the food is prepared for consumption."Texas DSHS: Texas Cottage Food ProductionTexas Cottage Food Label Requirements →

Sizes

Cheesecake boxes and the label that fits

From a single slice to a whole 9 inch cake. Pick your package and switch label styles in the tool.

Cheesecake boxes and the label that fits
Package	Typical label area	Style that usually fits
Mini cheesecake cup	1.5 × 2 in	Small package (linear)
Single slice clamshell	2 × 3 in	Tabular (wide), 1 serving
6 in cake box	3 × 4 in	Standard (vertical)
9 in cake box	3½ × 5 in	Standard (vertical)Sample

Sample recipe included

Start from a New York cheesecake that's already filled in

Graham crust and cream cheese filling in one recipe, with the sugar for both on one line. Bake, chill and weigh: we entered 55 oz (1,560 g), and 1/12 of that is the 130 g serving.

Start with this recipe

Start from a New York cheesecake that's already filled in
Ingredient	Amount	Unit
Graham cracker crumbs✓ USDA match	1 1/2	cups
Sugar✓ USDA match	1 1/4	cups
Unsalted butter✓ USDA match	6	tbsp
Cream cheese✓ USDA match	32	oz
Sour cream✓ USDA match	1/2	cup
Eggs✓ USDA match	4	large
Vanilla extract✓ USDA match	2	tsp
Lemon juice✓ USDA match	1	tbsp

Makes one 9 in cheesecake (55 oz baked and chilled)Serving 1/12 cheesecake (130 g); reference amount 125 g

Questions