For the love of baking
When taking a break from baking, Sarah Carlson and her family enjoy all things outdoors. Pictured above (left to right) are Welles, Jake, Sarah, Quinn and Deckers enjoying a beautiful park on the DU campus.
Sarah Carlson has been baking cookies for the people she loves her entire life. As a young girl she spent hours in the kitchen alongside her mother, Marge, and grandmother Elga. What first began as a simple and small-drop family chocolate chip cookie recipe grew into a business to spread joy to all.
One of eight children, Sarah grew up in a small town in Roseburg, Oregon with three older brothers, two older sisters and two younger sisters. Baking in her family kitchen was a way to share happiness by feeding those she loved, bringing people together and celebrating successes and milestones.
The family cookies were always such a favorite that the idea of selling her cookies had crossed Sarah’s mind over the years. In 2023, she took a leap of faith and opened her own home bakery, Quinnie’s Cookies, named after her oldest daughter Quinn.
The tried-and-true family recipes expanded with Sarah’s unique twist of flavors and wholesome ingredients she wanted her children to eat. The company logo represents her three children.
Before Quinnie’s, Sarah worked in media advertising for ESPN, Discovery, Google and Verizon. While living in New York, a mutual friend connected her and her future husband, Jake, who lived in Los Angeles. Sarah and Jake married and settled in California and had three children – their daughter, Quinn and sons Decker and Welles.
It was extended family that drew the Carlsons to Colorado in 2020. When they are not skiing the slopes of Breckenridge or Vail, or enjoying family movie night, they are visiting family members in Lakewood or Cherry Creek. The small town feel of the Noble Ridge neighborhood reminds Sarah of her roots in Oregon, as well as their close-knit community in Los Angeles.
Moving to altitude, Sarah has had to find balance in not only her baking temperature but balancing a life at home with a new business while raising her family. She wakes early for morning baking and order preparation, spends time exploring the community with her sons during the day and enjoys family time in the evenings. Her vision is to open a store front, providing a community space where kids can play and neighbors can interact.
“I am grateful for the support from the residents of the community. God has a plan and has already opened many doors,” said Sarah. “I look forward to see what is in store for the new year.”
For more information, visit www.quinniescookies.com.
By Julie Matuszewski; photos courtesy of Sarah Carlson
