Our first bite of this honey-soaked cake was warmly spiced, super moist, soft, and sweet – everything a honey cake should be. It makes a fantastic dessert sliced thick and served with a warm cup of black tea. If you happen to be celebrating Rosh Hashanah, this traditional, delicate cake will help you get off to an exceptionally sweet year. Or you might just want to sink your teeth into Claire’s very chewy, not-too-sweet, fudgy brownies – the product that started it all. The Exceptional Brownie is offering Free Shipping on all orders $30 and over All Week! Read below to learn more about the woman behind it all.

1. Hi Claire. Rosh Hashanah (or The Jewish New Year) is from Sept 8-10. What is the significance of the honey cake?
Honey certainly dominates during Rosh Hashanah. Therefore, honey cakes are the traditional cake for the Jewish New Year, as is anything that has apples and honey.  Both signify a hope for a sweet new year. After the blessing over the wine and the bread (challah) are recited for the Rosh Hashanah main meal, it is customary to take an apple (symbolizing the new fruit of the season) dipped in honey and offer a prayer asking for a a good and sweet New Year.

2. What were you doing before you decided to start The Exceptional Brownie?
I was the owner of my own marketing communications firm with fortune 500 clients. I always enjoyed being my own boss, and the benefits of being an entrepreuneur. (Prior to that, I was the head of an advertising manager in NYC.) The creative passion I had plus the business acumen I developed was the foundation for my new business, The Exceptional Dessert LLC.

3. Your products are certified kosher. What exactly certifies something as kosher?
Kosher foods are those that conform to the rules of Jewish dietary laws. Certified kosher means all ingredients are kosher, even the flour and baking powder and salt, have to be certified kosher. Plus, the bakery is under the supervision of a special Rabbi who ensures the ingredients are kosher and does not permit any meat products or non-kosher products on the premises.

4. I see that you won the “People’s Choice Award” in COPIA’s Best Darn Brownie Contest in Napa, CA. Which brownie won that contest?
Our Double Chocolate Brownie won that competition as that was our original Brownie. After I won the competition, I was inspired further and created the other flavors such as Espresso, Peanutty Swirl, Berry Nutty, etc.

5. How would you describe your products?
Our Exceptional Brownies are all natural, chewy and intensely chocolate. We purposely make sure our brownies are not too sweet so you can taste the premium chocolate and other flavors and ingredients. Our honey cake is moist, sweet and lightly spiced.

6. What was your most memorable food experience?
Watching my grandmother bake left an amazing impression on me and I enjoyed her ability to NOT follow a recipe, but to create by the “feel” of the dough and the “look” of the dough. From the second she got up, she was in the kitchen creating new baked goodies and never wrote the recipe down. That’s why I spent many hours with her writing down everything she was doing, and while she threw in a “handful” of flour, I would try to measure what a “handful” was so we would be able to replicate her recipes years later.

Good Old Fashioned Mustard

At Foodzie, we're all about discovering good tasting, real food. Sometimes it's an unusual, fun new combination of flavors like Bacon Peanut Brittles, Cabernet Wine Flour, or Maple Honey Caramels.  Other times it's no frills, simple good food. Up The Creek Mustard isn't fancy, just a darn good mustard produced in the small town of Montgomery, West Virginia by owner, Fred Lockard. He jazzes up his humble yellow mustard (perfect slathered on wings, for simple chicken wings) with the addition of sweet onions and local West Virginia banana peppers from a nearby farm. He also makes a mean Hot Dog Sauce which doubles as an all natural 'Sloppy Joe' sauce. Fred is a long-time resident of Montgomery, West Virginia where things move a little slower. He retired from his job at Dupont and fell into his family's mustard business. Before you dig into his mustards & sauces, take a minute to meet Fred from Up The Creek Mustards!

1. What were you doing before you started making mustard?
I was a Chemical Plant Operator at Dupont for 29 years. I also remodeled and sold houses way before I knew they had a fancy name called ‘flipping’.

2. How did you decide to start making mustard?
Well my wife’s cousin started the business 15 yrs ago. After I retired from Dupont, they approached me because I had previous business experience. So my wife and I bought the business. It’s definitely a family operation. My wife and I are the only official full-timers. But we have about  6-7 family members who help us out. We just got 25 bushels of hungarian hot wax peppers that we use in the mustard. They are peppers from a local farm, Crisfield Farms – Rhone County. So we’ll get the family to help with that.

3. Which job is harder – making mustard or working at a chemical plant?
Depends on whether its January or not. When you are a Chemical Operator and you have a valve that isn’t working you still gotta go check it out and fix it. No matter how cold it is or what the weather may be. The thing I like about Up The Creek is I am my own boss. I can still see my family and go watch my grandchildren’s baseball games which was sometimes hard to do with 12 hour shifts at Dupont. But I like both jobs for different reasons.

4. What are three words that describe your product?
quick, great, unique

5. What is the best thing about living/working in West Virginia?
I think it is the honesty of the people. I have lived in this town for 40 years and I don’t have to lock up anything. It’s a very relaxed, easy-going place with beautiful scenery.

Welcome to the Napa Farmhouse

When you think of a farmhouse in the Napa Valley what comes to mind? Maybe a front porch with a view of the vineyards covering the hills. Or maybe you can almost smell the citrus trees, green grass and fresh air. Maybe all you can really think about is a nice glass of Napa Cabernet? Either way, certain words can create an image or emotion that you associate with them. Food should also encourage these emotions. Life can get hectic, but the simple act of slowing down and really tasting and celebrating the food you’ve prepared is important.

Owner Diane Padoven left the corporate world as a senior executive in retail to get back to basics and make eco-friendly, natural products from the bounty of the fruit trees on her Napa, CA property. She uses her sustainably grown produce to create products such as Persimmon Jam, Fig & Grand Marnier Jam and Aglio Olio Peperoncino Seasoning made from fresh dried herbs and spices. All other ingredients are locally sourced. She’s got a lot more products bursting with fresh flavor that are great to have your in your pantry arsenal. Maybe we can’t all live in a Napa Farmhouse, but Diane wants to make sure we can eat like we do! Stock up on all of Napa Farmhouse 1885’s products at 30% OFF All Week (with a $30 min order)!

1. Hey Diane. How did you come up with the name Napa Farmhouse 1885 for your business?
The short answer is that when my husband & I chucked corporate life and moved to Napa a few years ago we bought a small victorian farmhouse that was built in 1885. My entire life changed when we came to Napa and I wanted to tell that story.

2. What were you doing before you started Napa Farmhouse 1885?
I was a senior executive in the retail/apparel business…most recently at Levi’s where i spent 8 years.  After ½ a lifetime in the corporate world, I decided I wanted to start my own company…one which would leave me time for family, friends, cooking, gardening, writing, entertaining…and running a company my way.

3. What kind of fruit do you grow and how do you use them in your products?
We grow all the fresh fruit used in our products…we have persimmon, fig, meyer lemon, lime, orange and pomegranate trees. We are not certified organic but follow sustainably grown principles. We aren’t a full fledged farm…just a small farmhouse with fruit trees, herbs, flowers and vegetables. In Napa it is kind of like “plant it and it will grow” and I started making the food because I needed to figure out ways to use up the bounty! As the story tends to go, I gave away tons to family and friends…still had more…so…”farmhouse food” was born..

4. What are three adjectives that describe your products?
eco-friendly, organic/sustainably grown, local

5. What are some great uses for your products?
Our food items are delicious on their own…and also work really well as shortcuts to great tasting meals. Some examples are our jam used as a glaze for poultry or fish, or an ingredient in vinaigrettes. The sweet ones are nice spread between cookies or cake, our seasonings and rubs are also used in salads, vegetables and appetizers. The list goes on and on. I use many of our products in recipes which are posted on my blog.

Coffee Worth Singing For

There are some things in life that people go straight up crazy for – music and coffee being some of them. Plug in your headphones, crank up the tunes and the right rift, hook or melody can send you into that ‘happy place.’ For all you coffee junkies, spouting off your special order at your local coffee joint is kinda like singing the words to your favorite song. When you grab that perfectly crafted cup and take that first sip – you feel it in your soul. Aaron Carlson at Little Amps Coffee Roasters knows a thing or two about coffee and music. After many a morning drinking sub-par coffee on their tour bus while playing in his band Nethers, Aaron and his bandmates decided they could do it better. And in true rockstar fashion, they tricked out a toaster oven and started roasting some seriously rockin coffee. They were surprised to find how intense, flavorful, and fresh coffee could taste in comparison to the roasty burned taste sold at the big coffee stores. You too can try some of their ‘tuned & tested’ coffee for 25% OFF & Free Ground Shipping (With 2 days) Today Only! Try the sweet yet nutty Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Oromia, the All-Peaberry Tanzanian Ruvuma with notes of caramel and blackberry or the smooth yet complex, Bugisu Region. To learn more about the man behind Little Amps Coffee Roasters, read our Q&A with Aaron Carlson.

1. So your company’s name ‘Little Amps’ originated from your time playing in a band. What’s cooler – running a micro-roastery or playing in a band?
Hmmm, tough question; I thought these were going to be softballs! Basically, I traded smoky bars for a smoky warehouse. It’s certainly different kind of creative outlet, but it’s no less satisfying. I still get to rock out with pals, and that’s awesome, but I do miss sleeping in the van and playing in stranger’s living rooms.

2. What kind of band did you play in? Any standout hits?
I played guitar in a drone-folk band called Nethers and had we had a microscopic hit called “O The Deed.” I used to get checks from ASCAP every quarter for airplay, and they were for like $1.57. We still have a Myspace page!

3. Ok back to the coffee – what kind of beans do you use and why?
Our green bean guy prepares samples of stuff that he loves, and then we have a little cupping here of those samples, and pick the best lots. We weight sweetness and flavor a bit more than some roasters. Right now, for example we have three Africans, but that’s just the way the cookie crumbled.

4. What are 3 adjectives that describe your coffee?
Tuned, Tested, Tweaked

5. What is the best way to taste coffee?
Orally, for sure. Really, we are partial to the French Press, as you can easily control all the brew parameters in any kitchen. It really beats any fancy machine hands down. We also suggest maybe less cream and sugar.

Unexpected Pairings

Creating great pairings takes food to the next level. If you get it right, the sum of two flavors is most certainly greater than the whole. A killer wine can completely take your meal to a new level. The right blend of coffee beans can send your taste buds (and energy) soaring. Sea salt and caramel are a beautiful marriage of well, salty & sweet. Bacon & chocolate? Some might argue that bacon is the perfect pairing to just about anything! When it comes to food, there are endless flavor combinations to play with. At least Clare and Matt at Quince & Apple think so when it comes to their artisan jams. With flavors like Strawberry Rosemary, Figs & Black Tea, Pear with Honey & Ginger, Orange Marmalade with Lemons and Shallot Confit with Red Wine, you’re sure to be thinking – ‘Wow, I wouldn’t have thought to put it together, but man this is good!’

Husband & wife owners Clare & Matt are a pretty unique pair as well. Matt is the man in the kitchen. He ran an organic food co-op, got his culinary degree and worked in high-end dining before moving into food production. Clare is the brains of the operation working on business strategy, order management and marketing. To run a food business, you certainly can’t have one without the other! They are offering Free Shipping on orders Today Only with a Minimum order of $23. To learn more about this food-loving pair and their artisan jams from Madison, WI read our Q&A with Clare.

1. Your business is a labor of love. You and your husband Matt run Quince & Apple. How do you guys balance the work?
We really do love our business. Matt always says, “My job is my hobby!” We sometimes stay late just for fun. Other times, because we have to – but that means we’re busy, so either way it’s rewarding. To balance Quince and Apple with our relationship, we try to be really clear about what our expectations are – who’s supposed to be doing what and when. It’s amazingly not easy at all! So that’s a real priority. We also try to be intentional about when we’re working and when it’s just us. Mostly, we try to have fun at work and bring work home when it’s fun to do.

2. You come up with really unique flavor combinations. Are there any that have failed?
We are in a constant process of development and each flavor undergoes rounds and rounds of scrutiny before it’s finished. I would say about every other flavor we work on doesn’t make it through the process. A lot of times the final recipe is totally different from our original idea. Sometimes we start and stop for months until we hit on something. So far our biggest challenge has been with tart cherries. Wisconsin produces some of the world’s best tart cherries, and we would love to put them in a preserve, but nothing fits! We’ve tried chocolate, cocoa nibs, cocoa, lemon, even star anise. I would bet we’ll keep coming back to it. Matt has to be really inspired by the flavor for it to work. Even if something seems like a great idea, sometimes we just can’t create it if we’re not passionate enough. In the case of the cherries, we haven’t hit on a concept we’re really moved by. We’ll see!

3. So you’re based in Madison, WI. What is the food scene like there?
Funny you should ask, because we spent the weekend in Chicago and were talking on the way home about the difference between the two cities. Chicago is a lot more scene-y than Madison. In Madison, people who work in food seem to all know each other and hang out at fun and fabulous events. In Chicago there are so many people and high expendable income, so it’s a lot bigger scene. Madison is so tiny in comparison! It’s almost like the whole city is the scene. There’s a very agrarian feeling to the region, because it’s just filled with small farms. We have the biggest producer-only Farmer’s Market in the country, and there’s a seven or eight year waiting list to sell there. It’s huge, and tons of our restaurants here use their produce in seasonal menus. Also, the state of Wisconsin is this huge supporter of small food businesses – they do everything possible to make it easy to work here, from giving out grants to offering helpful health inspectors to maintaining a state-run marketing board. I think that really helps. Basically, I love Wisconsin.

4. What are three adjectives that describe your products?
We say “small-batch preserves from the upper midwest” – which I think captures it pretty well. I also think there’s a boutique high-end feel to our products.

5. If you weren’t making jams as Quince & Apple what other job would you like to be doing?
Well, we’d definitely be running some sort of business! We love to get all involved in everything. Matt has always thrown around the idea of opening a cafe, and we also talk about other product lines. I’m interested in how organizations work and running them well, so I’d find something fun to dig my hands into.