Combine caramel with Gosling’s Dark Rum, cream, whole butter, and a pinch of sea salt, and the results are a rich, transporting caramel to drizzle over ice cream or, better yet, lick right off the spoon. That’s what The Groovy Baker is all about.
Groovy’s owner, Chef Lisa, has a traditional pastry education and extensive professional experience. Her company combines her love of food, her passion for exploration, and with a discipline and technique that comes from training and experience.
I recently came across this large jar of caramel (I don’t get to write a phase like that often enough), along with beautiful cupcakes, brownies, and cookies, at the Fulton Stall Market. The Groovy Baker also makes lollipops in flavors like Watermelon Lime, Cherry Cordial, and Grapefruit Rosemary, which was featured in Real Simple Magazine’s 8 Sweet Bridal Shower Treats. Chef Lisa tirelessly sources for local and organic ingredients, as well as recyclable and biodegradable packages.
Visit with The Groovy Baker at the Fulton Stall Market, and check out her Etsy shop, which may be the happiest site on the internet.
This year’s third annual Prospect Heights Craft Fair featured an impressive collection of local and regional artisans. Proceeds from this fair go to support the arts at P.S. 9, “so every kid from our neighborhood public elementary school can take art and dance every week and participate in amazing programs like Brooklyn’s own Lava Acrobatic Program, Studio in a School and the Guggenheim Museum Learning Through Art,” according to their website. The arts are a critical part of a child’s education, and with budgets being cut all around, we cannot take art programs in schools for granted. So I was thrilled to support the efforts of the school and the parents to provide these experiences to their children.
Many of the participating vendors were parents of students, including Brooklyn Kernel, making delicious flavored popcorn. Other vendors that caught my eye included:
- Twitch and Whiskers – Lovely, whimsical jewelry made from found and recycled objects. She will also be at the Brooklyn Craft Central’s Shop the Arch on May 21!
- Bright Lights Little City – Fun and flowery accessories, lamps – and the beautiful bowl of origami stars (pictured)!
- Hecho en Brooklyn – Delicate and lovely handmade jewelry. Their swirl earring design is one of my favorites.
- DanaMade - Clever and fun jewelry designer making colorful, unique pieces from vintage findings, buttons and much me.
- Metropolis Soaps - Fantastic handmade soaps and scents with great pulp fiction branding. I got a refill of Aroma Obscura, and my husband loves her unusual charcoal soap that draws out the toxins.
- Empressive Cakes - Wow! Their orange creamsicle cupcake was out of this world. The cake was dense and rich, and the frosting was the perfect texture. Really really delicious.
- Hazel Village – These handmade stuffed birdies, racoons, frogs and more are lovely and sweet and have a style all their own. You can even get different outfits for them.
- Rain Lily – Proprietor Katy Mahoney is dedicated to supporting artisans around the world via fair trade. She imports beautiful, fine jewelry, scarves, dolls, and more made from wonderful materials. The shwe shwe dolls in the photo below are handmade in South Africa based on children’s drawings.
The Prospect Heights Craft Fair is an annual event, so if you missed it this year, you’ll have to wait until next spring to enjoy it! But don’t worry – I’ll remind you next time!
These days James and I rarely have weekend days together, with me off at the markets and his working 24/7 as entrepreneur. So we decided to skip it all on Saturday to go out for lunch together…at the markets. We started at the Hester Street Fair, where we took the famous words of Jacques Torres to heart when he advises, “Eat dessert first.” You’ll hear all about our “sugar fest” this week, but it all started with cupcakes at a birthday party.
Yup – now you can have your friends come celebrate your birthday at the Hester Street Fair. (Make a note, family!) This past Saturday, Sway from MTV had a party under a tent filled with balloons and cupcakes. The cupcakes were provided by Savannah’s Cupcakes from talented baker and business owner Millie Peartree. We had a banana cupcake with a perfectly smooth and none-too-sweet cream cheese frosting. Next we had a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting, which was classic, moist and delicious. And then there was the super rich and mouthwatering Red Velvet Cupcake. There’s a soft place in my heart for anyone who can make a moist Red Velvet cake, and Millie Peartree has a seat of honor.
I’m not sure when we’ll see Millie back at the market, but you can see her full, luscious menu and place orders online. We’ll definitely be seeing more of her though – I’ll keep you posted about her promo in Rachel Ray’s Chat & Chew section in the fall!
P.S. Happy Birthday, Sway! Major thanks and kudos for promoting this wonderful business at the market!
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