| Steve Swanbeck turns 'Jersey Girl' passion into a tasty business
Steve Swanbeck of Chester Township does not have a romantic story about how he named his Jersey Girl Chocolate Bars, which debuted last December and are now sold in 120 venues in five counties. "I was in bed with a bad back last winter trying to figure out what to do next with my life," said the 56-year-old former newspaperman, marketer and author. "I was on plenty of pain medication. That's when it came to me: Jersey Girl Chocolate." The bars sell in three flavors -- select dark chocolate (wrapped in silver), rich milk chocolate (gold) and smooth peanut butter creamy milk chocolate (brown). At $2 and 340 calories each -- the peanut bar is 480 -- the chocolates are catching on. Particularly, Swanbeck says, with female shopkeepers who find them fun. Alexandra Goodman and her sister, Amy Caruso, sell lots at Statements, their trendy apparel and gift shop in Madison.
Wicked feeling
PERFECTION in every bite is the enticing promise at Monbulk specialty patisserie Wickedly Delicious Patisserie Cafe.
As if the name by itself were not sufficient to lure the most dedicated gourmet pastry devotee, then one bite of the wickedly delicious cakes, pastries, gourmet savoury products, chocolate creations and desserts will be all it takes.
This delicious fare, accompanied by superb coffee, is made on the premises by Helena Panasewycz, the award-winning pastry chef and owner of Wickedly Delicious.
Helena, who completed her apprenticeship at a prestigious establishment in the Yarra Valley, has been a bright star in the pastry industry for 14 years during which time she has travelled overseas and throughout Australia to gain experience.
Helena was awarded the gold medal pastry award in Workskills in 1998 and competed in the highly esteemed Bakeskills competition.
People love those small potatoes
Running a profitable and diversified farm business is obviously important to Andy Haarsma, but the real icing on the cake is staying connected with various sectors of the whole agriculture products chain, including consumers. The Haarsma family operation at Spruce Grove, Alta., derives great satisfaction from producing products with a specific end use or that fit a particular market niche. "What I really like is getting feedback from the end user," Haarsma says. He wants to make sure the product he delivers is right for the processor or consumer. If improvements are necessary, he wants to know about them. "I like to know we are producing a quality product that people need and appreciate," he says. "To some extent we all need to be needed." Haarsma works along with his brother Dave and father Gary in ventures that range from contract and identity preserved (IP) wheat and canola production, to an expanding gourmet potato business.
Fast, flavorful and pretty; At-home cooks craving dishes that are ...
The calendar might say spring, but it's already Thanksgiving in the surprisingly small test kitchen for Everyday Food magazine.
The room smells of pumpkin and onions, and a half-dozen aproned cooks are gathered around the kitchen island, forks in hand, sampling a potato gratin, the latest entry for the November 2007 issue.
Sure, it tastes good - any test kitchen's goal. But this is what the group gathered there in New York asks associate food editor Charlyne Mattox: How much effort did it take?
"How long does this take to cook?" "What if the cheese just went on top? Or not at all?" "Does it need to be that dense?"
This is the ethos behind Martha Stewart's by-all-counts successful Everyday Food magazine and its new best-of cookbook, "Great Food Fast": Use just a few ingredients, but make sure they're fresh and healthy.
'Japanese Cooking' is still the master
When "Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art" first came out 25 years ago, sushi was exotic, teriyaki was the sauce, and miso soup was for the macrobiotic crowd. No one who frequented the few Japanese restaurants in American cities could have predicted what would happen in just over two decades. The late Shizuo Tsuji mastered Japanese cuisine, then French. He started the Tsuji Culinary Institute in Osaka in 1960 to train chefs, and it remains one of the well-respected cooking schools in Japan. He wrote this encyclopedic book to share the "essence and spirit" of his native cuisine. In this 25th anniversary edition, the content is the same as the original. There is a foreword by the late food writer M.F.K. Fisher and a preface by Tsuji, both of which are from the first volume, as well as a new foreword by Gourmet magazine's Ruth Reichl, and a preface by Tsuji's son, Yoshiki.
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