Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://specialtyfoodmagazine.epubxp.com/i/79798
FOODS IN FOCUS Fruit and Vegetable Flavored Toppers. Even around the holidays people are thinking about making healthier choices. Lisa Johnson's Yummy Yammy Sweetpotato Dips address that issue. A 12-ounce jar of Mexican-inspired Hot Fiesta Dip is 250 calories and her 12-ounce jar of Honey Lemon Ginger Dip is 350 calories. The genesis of Johnson's 3-year-old Norwich, Vt., company was her desire to create a time-saving, organic roasted sweet potato dish to feed her family. She'd buy sweet potatoes, "but I could not get them from the store to my oven to the table because I had a fulltime job and I didn't have an hour before dinner to roast them," she recalls. One day, she says, "I made a bunch of roasted sweet potato dip and froze it and I got all prickly when I realized: This is a specialty food that no one's ever made before!" Within nine months of experimenting, she was able to quit her job and devote herself fulltime to Yummy Yammy. After developing a following at Vermont farmers markets, Free tasting samples with each order! Celebrate the holidays in style Johnson began making a shelf-stable version of her dips to sell at area co-ops and specialty stores up and down the East Coast. Chips work well with the dips, but Johnson has more decadent ideas such as mixing them with cream cheese and then rolling them in caramel- ized bacon to create an unconventional cheeseball. "The dips are great for holiday parties because it's something people have usually never had before, which is fun," she says. Other fruit and vegetable dips on the market include Gourmet du Village's varieties such as Lemon Dill, Mango Curry and Onion Chive, to be mixed with sour cream and mayonnaise. In its Hot & Baked Dip line, the company's mixes include Hot Pepper Parmesan and Hot Spinach and Leek. ANTIPASTI IDEAS Gourmet Artisan Hors D'Oeuvre Crackers all natural crackers perfect for entertaining FoodMatch Inc., a New York producer of bulk Mediterranean foods and antipasti as well as the source for sofi Gold Winner Dalmatia Fig Spread (2010) and Silver Finalist Divina Baby Artichoke Hearts in Oil (2009), presents myriad ideas for holiday entertaining. "Having a Mediterranean pantry in your cupboard is ideal for quick and simple appetizers," says marketing manager Mary Caldwell. "If you think about how many people are traveling and going home, or have family and friends popping over, it's great to be able to easily put together a vibrant spread of antipasti or tapas or mezze that's healthy and sat- A festive and satisfying spread of antipasti, WWW PARTNERSCRACKERS COM s &IND; US AT "OOTH Partners, a tasteful choice company AT THE .!#3 SHOW 54 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE ❘ specialtyfood.com tapas or mezze can include stuffed peppers or grape leaves, as well as condiments that pair well with meats or cheeses.