Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS JANUARY 2017 www.gourmetnews.com SUPPLIER NEWS 1 5 McFaddy Candy Company Toffees Cure a Broken Heart mium ingredients and started experiment- ing with her mom's recipe. "I taught myself chocolate tempering," she says. "It was like Willy Wonka in my kitchen. It was really therapeutic and brought me through that tough time." Four or five months after the surgery, her toffee made its public debut. "I put on a tof- fee bar for an event for 400 people. I could barely walk, but I found a way to do it, and it was a huge success," she says. "That's how it all began." Four years later, McFaddy Candy Com- pany offers a range of toffees made with or- ganic cane sugar, top-quality chocolate and gourmet salts. Strawberry Kiss, for in- stance, pairs real strawberries with white chocolate over an almond toffee. Hi- malayan Dark pairs Peruvian dark choco- late with Himalayan salt, and Hawaiian Mac combines white Belgian chocolate and macadamia nuts with Hawaiian alaea red salt. "Hawaiian Mac is my all time favorite," Ellis says. "Salts pick out the flavors of the chocolates really well." Seasonal flavors in- clude Pecan Pie, Pumpkin Spice and Holi- day Stripes, which is made from both white and dark chocolate and organic candy canes. "We have one more flavor, Matcha Green Tea, the first in the world. In addi- tion, we do artisan toffee pops and cus- tom flavors with nat- ural sprinkles, such as hearts for Valentine's Day," adds Ellis. She shows off her toffee in glass jam jars that show off the candy's quality and color as well as sparkling on retailers' shelves. "Mom had the idea," Ellis says. "I was really happy to find out that glass preserves candy much better than any other material. It gives it a longer shelf life. But I really wanted people to be able to see it because of the colors." High-quality vinyl labels stay on the jar even through reuse. "I appreciate beautiful packaging," Ellis says. "I reuse them for salad dressing, and I see them in the refrigerator, and you get to see the color of the label. It's a little something extra – a little happiness." McFaddy's Candy is currently distrib- uted online and across southern Cali- fornia, branching out across the country as independent stores pick up the products. "We're also talking with major supermarket chains, and that will be coming in 2017," Ellis says. For further information, visit www.mc faddycandy.com or call 844.McFaddy. GN New Products from Pereg Natural Foods to Launch at Winter Fancy Food Show Pereg Natural Foods has a number of new products to launch at the Winter Fancy Food Show, including new blends and fla- vor infused varieties of freekeh, teff, farro and quinoa, among other all-natural prod- ucts. According to Gill Schneider, CEO, Pereg Natural Foods, "Baby quinoa is predicted to become the next 'new' ancient super food. Also known as Kañiwa, it is an excel- lent source of complete protein and amino acids, is exceptionally high in iron and is gluten-free. This grain cooks up with a crunchy texture, and offers a nutrient rich food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We are excited to bring consumers yet another healthy choice to serve to their family and friends." Dark reddish-brown in color and about half the size of a tiny quinoa seed, kañiwa cooks up quickly to resemble a smaller ver- sion of red quinoa. Unlike regular quinoa, kañiwa doesn't have saponins, the coating that gives quinoa a somewhat soapy, slightly bitter flavor if not rinsed properly. Kañiwa is actually easier to process due to the absence of saponins. Another advan- tage kañiwa has over quinoa is that it's an even better source of iron. Five-ounce boxes will retail for $3.57, and re-sealable 16-ounce bags for $5.50. Pereg's Freekeh is available in green roasted, ginger sesame and vegetable flavor blends. Freekeh is young, green wheat that is roasted over an open flame to give this grain a delicious slightly smoky flavor and chewy texture similar to bulgur. Freekeh is lower in fat than brown rice, higher in fiber than quinoa or brown rice, also a great source of calcium. It can be used in soups, casseroles or enjoyed seasoned up as a side dish; freekeh makes a great alternative to rice or couscous. A 5-ounce bag will retail for $3.99. Pereg's Teff porridges are available in brown or ivory varieties as well as mixed with nuts and berries or with chocolate. In addition to being gluten-free, Teff is higher in protein than wheat, is a great source of iron, calcium and amino acids. This ancient whole grain has a pleasantly sweet nutty flavor, and the small size makes it easy to digest. Whole teff can be toasted and used to add a little crunch to salads to muffins; boiled teff can be prepared with milk or water for a sweet porridge or spiced up for a side dish; raw teff can be ground into flour and baked into injera bread, a tradi- tional Ethiopian dish. A 5-ounce bag will retail for $3.99. Farro side dishes from Pereg are offered in plain, or blended with mushrooms or new roasted garlic flavor. Farro is a hardy ancient grain and is a variety of wheat sa- vored for its rich texture and mild flavor. It is a healthful grain that's an excellent source of fiber, protein, magnesium and iron. Farro is delicious seasoned up as a side dish as an alternative to rice or quinoa, tossed with some protein and vegetables in a hot or cold salad, or used in soups or stews. For an extra boost of flavor try boil- ing farro in vegetable broth instead of water. Five-ounce boxes will retail for $3.99. A 12-ounce canister of the Roasted Garlic flavor will retail for $5.99. GN BY LORRIE BAUMANN Katherine Ellis will certainly be neither the first nor the last to discover the healing power of a deftly constructed combination of butter, sugar and chocolate. Not every- one who makes that discovery, though, is inspired to start her own company to pur- vey the magic to the public. Ellis was suffering from both a broken heart and the aftereffects of back surgery when she decided that the cure for what ailed her was to start her own business. Her recuperation from the surgery gave her four months to think about how she wanted to do that, and with some advice – and a recipe – from her mother, she decided to try her hand at making candy. "My mom, who's in real estate, had been making this amazing toffee for years and had mentioned that it would be so great if one of her daughters started a company with her recipe," she says. "I thought if I was going to make a toffee, it had to be cre- ative." She ordered a big marble and some pre- Italian Foods Corp. Introduces La Piana Romantica Happy Apple Condiment Italian Foods Corporation is intro- ducing La Piana ® Romantica Happy Apple Condiment, a versatile apple cider vinegar-based product im- ported from the Emilia-Romagna re- gion near Modena, Italy, for the 2017 Winter Fancy Food Show, where it will be available for tasting in the Italian Foods Corp. booth. The new Happy Apple Condiment melds sweet and tart notes with a combination of apple cider vinegar and concentrated apple juice for a range of culinary applications, ac- cording to General Manager Francesca Lapiana-Krause. Pack- aged in tall, slender 8.4-ounce glass bottles, Happy Apple Condiment has a suggested retail price of $14.99. The new condiment may be used traditionally as a dressing for fruit or lettuce salads and slaws as well as a base for apple or stone fruit sauces or compotes for pork, and when slightly reduced, makes a savory glaze for poultry. The versatile Happy Apple Condiment also can be used as a sweet and savory topping for pancakes. In addition to the new condiment, Italian Foods' Romantica line includes Gran Reserva Balsamic Vinegar of Modena and Rosé Condi- ment. The La Piana line also includes Bronze, Silver and Gold Balsamic Vinegars of Modena. Italian Foods Corporation 888.516.7262 www.italianfoods.com Sparkling Cocktail Mixers Line from GuS Utmost Brands, Inc., maker of less-sweet GuS – Grown-up Sodas, introduces a new line of single-serving, sparkling cocktail mixers into the New York and New Eng- land markets, with national launch at the January, 2017 Winter Fancy Food Show in San Fran- cisco. Available in 7-ounce glass bottles with twist-off cap, the new non-alcoholic mixer line comes in four fla- vors: Mojito, Moscow Mule, Sparkling Cosmo and Tonic & Lime. They're conve- niently sized for one ready- to-drink sparkling cocktail – just add 1-1/2 to 2 ounces of liquor, or enjoy straight for an easy non-alcoholic cocktail. Each variety contains key lime juice, natural roots and extracts, and cane sugar with only 55 to 60 calories per bottle. There's no need for measuring syrup, adding soda or muddling or squeezing garnish. GuS mixers will retail for $2.75 to $3.00 per 7-ounce bottle. The mixer line joins the existing line of GuS Soda flavors avail- able in 12-ounce bot- tles: Extra Dry Ginger Ale, Dry Cola, Dry Root Beer, Dry Meyer Lemon, Star Ruby Grapefruit, Dry Valencia Orange, Dry Cranberry Lime, Dry Blackberry and Dry Pomegranate. As with all the GuS fla- vors, the new line contains no artificial fla- vors, colors or preservatives and is kosher, gluten free and non-GMO. Utmost Brands, Inc. www.drinkgus.com

• Cover