Walking burns calories that need to be replenished. Sometimes we're tempted to satisfy both that requirement and our sweet tooth. The good news is that you can use this excuse to have a bake sale!

Bake sales are a time-honored tradition to capitalize on one's domestic talents. By setting up a table of cupcakes, pies, cookies, and muffins, you can offer your friends and colleagues an opportunity to sate their cravings while supporting your fundraising. Good places to hold bake sales are in your workplace's break room, at your church or synagogue, or at your child's school — all with permission, of course. You can even combine the event with your yard sale fundraiser so that shoppers have something to munch on while they thoughtfully peruse your antiques.

Baked goods can be sold by individual pieces, or they can be bundled, such as three cookies in a plastic bag. Typical sale prices are $1/item, but anecdotal evidence suggests your fundraising may be more fruitful if you allow the customer to make a good-will donation of their choosing.

To encourage those sales, try to make the menu diverse and unique — it may be easy to grab something at the donut shop, but your customers will appreciate knowing that what they're buying from you can't be found anywhere else. (This is especially true of atypical or ethnic foods, such as marzipan, pista sandesh, or savoiardi.) Print a small list of ingredients to place with each item, so that those with dietary restrictions or allergies will know what's safe to eat. If you need inspiration of what to bake, I recommend Allrecipes.com's exhaustive dessert collection. If the baked goods are your own creation, bring copies of the recipes and offer to sell them for an additional donation!

Let us know your success stories, or share your favorite recipes here!

Ken joined the MS Challenge Walk in 2005, more than a decade after his mother was diagnosed. After walking for three years and 150 miles, he switched to the support crew and now rides his bicycle along the trail, providing whatever encouragement (and snacks!) he can to the 600 walkers. He is also an alumnus of the event's steering committee and is this site's webmaster.