Our offerings at this fair are -

Flavored Marshmallows:

• Vanilla, Chocolate, Pandan and Strawberry

Brownies

• Dark Chocolate and Gingerbread-Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl

Cheesecakes

• Lemon Curd and Pumpkin

Cupcakes in a Jar

• Red velvet with cream cheese frosting
  
• Pear and ginger cupcake with cardamom buttercream

Biscotti

• Cardamom-Pistachio and Chocolate Chip

See you there! Do remember day savings begins on the same day.

We woke up to a dull, sunless, wet morning. Goodies in hand, and hope in our hearts, we set out in Pia’s car from our homes in Queens to the big city! As we got there we realized, it was no longer chilly but very cold and the raindrops got bigger all the time. We were between 88th and 89th streets and we had all of 6 or 8 stores on our block…because most vendors decided not to set up at all!

Yup, we had never been to a street fair where vendors who have already put down payment for stalls, decided not to set up. As we went along, the wind got worse and the Clearview Festivals guys came along to say that the winds were to get worse and to check whether we were adequately reinforced. A large pumpkin did it for us. We were safe under our sturdy tent.

At 11:30 a.m. I was ready to go back home (because traffic was slow and more importantly, I was dressed for 45 degree F and it had already dropped to 36 degree F). But thankfully, traffic did pick up and we ended up staying till 5:00 p.m. Also, did a decent bit of business.

Products that sold out were: Pandan and Chocolate Marshmallows, Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingerbread on a stick and the Cheesecake with Lemon Curd and Sponge Cake base.
The brownies did well, as always! They are becoming a solid cash cow.
The winner in the ‘Sooo Cute!’ product category was the Cupcake in a Jar

Many people came out to encourage the ‘brave’ few who set up their stalls. Others were happy have our samples that put smiles on their faces in the bad weather! Thank you so much for stopping by! It did put a bright spot in our day.

Many persons asked us about where we will be next, the answer is Union Square. Watch out for the bright pink banner. Hope to see you there!

Flavored Marshmallows

Chocolate

Vanilla

Pistachio (come and be surprised if you have never had this before)

Strawberry

Cardamom

Brownies

Dark Chocolate (decadent and healthy)

Golden Raspberry

Cheesecake

Vanilla with almond crust

Golden Raspberry with chocolate crust (tart and sweet melt-in-your-mouth sensations)

Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream… in a jar…convenience for your tastebuds

Lychee Rosewater Cupcakes

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Biscotti

Orange Chocolate

Pistachio Cardamom

Brownie Cheesecake Cups (for those who can’t get enough of either)

Dark chocolate brownies with cherry cheesecake swirled in

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Crunchies

Really hard to resist!

Ingredients

1 2/3 cups + 4 tablespoons all purpose flour

1/3 cup spelt bran

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

2 cups chocolate chips

Pre-heat the oven to 375 F degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, bran, salt and baking soda using a wire whisk. In a bowl, with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition to ensure that they are completely incorporated. Add the teaspoon of vanilla and beat well to incorporate.

Slowly add the flour mixture, mixing well. Stir in the chocolate chips.

For chunky cookies, drop on baking sheet using a tablespoon. You may have to shove the dough off with another spoon! For a smoother look, roll out small portions of dough in the palms of your hands and place them gently on the tray. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes on the tray and then for 10 minutes on a wire rack… if you can wait. No one in my family could. We got 36 cookies, you may have more depending on the size.

The winner of our Santa centerpiece cake raffle is TERRY McCARTHY. Cheers to you! Your cake will be available for pick up in time for your Christmas celebration. The cake is a peppermint flavored butter cake with white chocolate buttercream and an almond marzipan covering. 

Santa Centerpiece Cake

We thank everyone who participated in the raffle for the valuable information that you left us with. From all the views that we have, we gather that cheesecake rules as a dessert. We will certainly bake you some, so watch out for updates on the website. If you would like to purchase any of our products for holiday gifting or simply to treat yourself and your loved ones, please do so on the website as well. You can also call or leave us a message on our blog page or at our e-mail id (cultureslice at gmail dot com). 

It was great being with all of you, our neighbours! We look forward to seeing you again, in church, at the grocery store, on our way to school or simply on the street! Until then, savor the flavor!

We would love to hear what other people think about seasonal flavors. Do people want to enjoy the flavors of pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, pomeogranate, cranberry while they are in season? Or would they rather be reminded of spring with a honey-lavender splash or a raspberry tingle? Or be taken even further into summer with the smells and tastes of mango, watermelon, passion fruit? Someone please speak up, even it is Father Christmas!

Another question for fair veterans or just any one who wants to share some insight into consumer behaviour – Would you, in the holiday season, rather buy a single helping of brownies or do you think you would prefer to have a brownie sampler to share with friends and family or better still, gift to your loved ones? 

Just some musings while cooking up a new set of treats. Watch this space to see what we will finally have on our platters. I can assure you though they will be the best you will try this season. Happy Holidays!

This is a toast to Shashank and Peter (our husbands), Ayaan, Ezra, Akemi and Sophie (our kids) and all other significant persons in our lives, whose palettes and patience are both tested in all of our experiments.

While we have overcome the challenge of converting our love for cooking and sharing the joys of good food into a profession, our creativity continues to be challenged in deciding what new offerings to bring to the fairs. You could check out our previous products in our blog posts and please leave any feedback that you may have about our products. Also, let us know what else you would be interested in eating and we will get it out there!

Looking forward to hearing from you folks and also, to seeing you in the future.

Rich, fudgy, moist, soft......

Dark Chocolate Fantasy Brownies

Belgian bittersweet chocolate, coffee, butter, eggs, flour, white sugar, brown sugar, sea salt, vanilla, belgian dark chocolate chunks & walnuts.

          Full of dark chocolate, rich in anti oxidants rich in taste!        $4 each, $7 for 2

• Tiger Swirl Fudge

          Belgian dark chocolate swirled into a fusion of white chocolate & peanut butter. You can have a mouthful of all your favorite favors.  

Dark Belgian Chocolate swirled into a fusion of premium white chocolate and creamy peanut butter.

$4 for 1 pack, $7 for 2           

3oz in each pack

• Apple Struesel Muffins

Red delicious apples, flour, vegetable oil, eggs, sugar, apple cider, vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon, brown sugar, butter, sea salt

Cruchy apples hidden in a crisp streusel covered muffin

          Crunchy streusel topping hides juicy apples in a moist muffin.          

       $2 each, $3 for 2

• Crunchy Chocolate Granola

Rolled oats, baked rice cereal, premium bittersweet chocolate, pecans, dried cranberries, honey.

          Eat healthy, vote better!  

Crunchy, healthy, nutty.

$3 for each packet, $5 for 2           

Each packet contains 4oz or 4 servings

• Vanilla Marshmallows

Powdered Sugar, corn syrup, sea salt, vanilla.

Soft, chewy, hmmmmmm…..the best! EVER!

$3 each, $5 for 2

• Valrhona Chocolate Marshmallows
  

  Valrohna Chocolate Marshmallows

   

      Valrhona chocolate, powdered sugar, corn syrup, sea salt.

      Soft, chewy, rich, luscious, decadent…..More.     

    $4 each. $7 for 2. 

• Vanilla Fleur-de-Sel Caramels
  

  Vanilla Fleur de Sel Caramels

   

Vanilla Fleur-de-Sel, cream, butter, sugar, sea salt

Chewy, lightly salted, … sure to bring back memories of warm and happy holiday times. 

$5 each. $9 for 2. 

• Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
  

  Pumpkin Whoopie Pie

   

Pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, butter, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla, flour, cream cheese, brown sugar, sea salt, powdered sugar.

One bite will tell you how the ‘Whoopie’ got into this pie!

$2 each.