How to report my income from my California Cottage Food Operator business?bake from home and sell directly to restaurants & customers, no sales is taken

[jbahmardi]

I have a regular day job (get W2) and a part time job as a Cottage Food Operator in CA where I bake sweets from my home kitchen and sell directly to restaurants and individual customers, I charge no sales tax and I have no employees, also my city does not require me to purchase business license but I'm permitted by the county health department to run the baking from home under my Cottage Food Operator permit. I file my taxes as a married couple yearly. I use office space and the kitchen to run my business. Turbo Tax program suggested to use form C and I do not see where to enter the kitchen and storage area of my home but I see Office Expense. It will be helpful to know which parts of C form to enter my info. I have these costs
- Initial cost of starting the business (permit fees, insurance, training, etc.)
- Bought a commercial oven and 2 extra refrigerators and kitchen table and shelves rack.
- Use car for delivery and get supplies
- Buy ingredients & supplies for my product
- Use cell phone, internet access, website fees.

[ScruffyCurmudgeon]

If you have not filed before with your income including your business in baking, you may want to consider some professional advice.

However, if you want to get going in TurboTax, and since you have not done this before, you are in the right software desktop version.

When you have the program open with whatever you have so far entered, 

1. See image #1 and click on BUSINESS.
2. Then choose either to allow the program to walk you through or else pick specific topics - may be best to allow program to do it this first time
3. Report your type of business when asked and the details in the Profile.
4. Then, see image #2 - the list of areas that you may have to cover to enter your business details.  For example, although you do not use an office in your home, you do conduct business in your home - the kitchen and storage area.  Either Click "View All" to run through all areas of Business expenses or else: 
1. So scroll down to "Business Expenses"
2. Start/Click "Home Office Expense"
   NOTE:  If the areas are not used exclusively for your business, then there may be question about reporting the general expenses related to those areas as business expenses.  Specific expenses relating to the business are, of course, deductible.
5. Also Start/Click the "Business Vehicle Expense" to enter your transportation expenses.
6. "Other Business Expenses" covers a wide range of expenses including telephone costs, permits and legal expense, for example

You are in fact running a business - and you are considered a "Sole Proprietor" so your tax filing will generate both a Schedule C and a Schedule SE as a result of all your entries.