Prepared Foods showcases new bakery food products debuting in February 2019.

This February saw Carrs Foods International, Manchester, U.K., began its US distribution of new St Pierre Cinnamon Filled Crepes. The new flavor joins the brand’s already popular Chocolate & Hazelnut Filled Crepe. 

Officials say the imported crepes actually are made in France using traditional recipes. Lace thin crepes are carefully rolled around a decadent cinnamon filling and individually wrapped for use as an on-the-go snack. 

To improve on-shelf display and drive impulse purchases, St Pierre also has launched new shelf-ready packaging for the crepes. Both flavors will now be available in packs of eight in shelf-ready packaging for easy in-store merchandising. From the deli and salad bar to the bakery and snack aisle and even the register, the new shelf-ready packaging makes it easy to merchandise St Pierre Crepes throughout the store. 

The broader St Pierre line also includes brioche (including buns, rolls and more), croissants and pain au chocolat and Belgian sugar waffles. Product literature says the products are free of GMOs, high fructose corn syrup and trans fats.

“St Pierre is the fastest growing European Bakery brand in the US with an array of European inspired products…” the company says. “… Inspired by traditional European Café culture, we launched St Pierre in America in 2014 to bring the European bakery experience to the mainstream.”

Health Harvest, LLC, Mesa, Ariz., used the Specialty Food Association’s 2019 Winter Fancy Food Show to introduce Audrey’s Chia Cookies—available in Lemon, Almond, Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter.

“We are very excited to see Audrey’s Chia Cookies selling quickly online and making their way onto store shelves,” says Audrey Martinez, founder of Audrey’s Chia. “The support and excitement from so many in the Mesa community, as well as those across the country, has fueled my passion to get chia seeds into the hands of everyone I know.”

Martinez notes that chia seeds are an excellent source of fiber, omega-3 fatty acids and quality protein, while loaded with antioxidants. Each bag of Audrey’s Chia Cookies contains one full tablespoon of chia seeds, the most important cookie ingredient, according to Martinez, who discovered the mighty chia seed at the age of 50, while training for her first marathon.

“From the first day that I began incorporating chia into my lifestyle, I could tell a difference...a difference in my energy, endurance, clarity of mind, gut health, the list seemed endless,” says Martinez. “I suddenly felt as though I could run for days, and I was more determined than ever to find new ways to incorporate these nutrient-dense seeds into my daily routine, as well as the routines of everyone I knew! I wanted to offer people a way to fuel the body and satisfy cravings for a sweet, indulgent treat.”

Martinez says Audrey’s Chia Cookies are created with all-natural, non-GMO ingredients, free from preservatives, dyes and corn syrup.

Love & Light Nourishing Foods LLC, Yarmouth Port, Mass., introduced three edible gluten-free, plant-based cookie doughs—and doubled the company’s product line. The new flavors—Holiday Ginger Bread, Good Sugar Cookie and Oatmeal Cranberry—all carry the BeReal brand and also are organic, non-GMO and vegan friendly.

The cookies are a creation company founder, avid baker and nurse practitioner, Mary Galvin. After several illnesses, Galvin said she was diagnosed with a gluten allergy. She later started Love & Light Nourishing Foods and soon developed three other varieties: Signature Chocolate Chunk, Cacao Fudge Chip, Cape Cod Cranberry Chocolate Chunk (seasonal).

“I refuse to give up cookies,” she says. “There’s no reason a great-tasting cookie has to be unhealthy. I knew I could make doughs that were delicious and smart at the same time. ”

Galvin says BeReal doughs and cookies are handmade in Cape Cod, Mass., with certified-organic, non-GMO and fair-trade ingredients available including coconut oil and flaxseed meal. The shelf-stable doughs can be stored without refrigeration for 60 days, making them easy to take anywhere or ship anywhere, the company notes. Product may either be consumed raw or baked.

In an effort to create a healthier yet delicious specialty treat that is made without gluten, dairy or soy, Brooklyn Bites NY LLC, Brooklyn, N.Y., says it developed Brooklyn Bites Cookie Brittle.

Officials say each of the six flavors offers a “crispy, flavor-packed punch to satisfy a sweet tooth or a crunchy craving without derailing healthy eating efforts.” The line is made with gluten-free oats instead of white flour and is vegan-friendly as well. Other ingredients include coconut oil, low-glycemic coconut sugar, and almond milk according to company owners, mom- and daughter-duo Sara Bibi and Barbara Dayan.

“We are excited for the [fall 2018] launch of our new Brooklyn Bites products because they are truly a labor of love that developed out of our passion for baking combined with our desire for a delicious yet healthy sweet treat,” said Bibi, the namesake for the family’s other artisan snack company, Baked by Bibis, which started in 2015 out of the kitchen of the women’s Brooklyn, N.Y., home.

Brooklyn Bites Cookie Brittle is vegan, certified gluten-, dairy-, and soy-free, and certified kosher. Flavor varieties include Coco Crispy Rice, Cinnamon Coffee Cake, Nutty Chocolate Sea Salt, Chocolate Lovers Delight, White Chocolate Brownie and Crunchy Creamy Pretzel Each flavor is 110 calories or less per serving and are available on the company’s website for $7.99 for a 6oz package.

Roons LLC, Portland, Ore., used the 2019 Winter Fancy Food Show to launch Lil ROONIES, which it describes as “bite-sized morsels of delicious coconut macaroons, fully coated in a thin layer of Guittard chocolate.”

Flavors include Original and Chocolate Espresso. Lil ROONIES are packaged in 4oz. resealable bags with a suggested retail price of $4.99.

Company founder Jenn Topliff says the new offerings are a new take on her ROONS coconut macaroon product. ROONS are moist coconut macaroons, baked to a toasted, golden finish and then hand-dipped in Guittard chocolate. Topliff says they are naturally gluten-free and grain-free and made from a blend of different coconut shreds to achieve a just-right balance of texture and sweetness. 

“After trying nearly all the gluten-free desserts and snacks on the market, it became my mission to create a macaroon that tasted amazing, had a great shelf life and had a short, pronounceable ingredient list,” says Topliff. “I spent years developing the recipe, using only the highest-quality ingredients possible to make a well-balanced macaroon that I am proud to launch nationally in 2019.”

ROONS come in a variety of year-round and seasonal flavors including Original, Lemon, Chocolate Espresso (made with Portland’s own Stumptown espresso), Orange Creamsicle, Chocolate Orange, Chocolate Decadence, Caramel, Pumpkin Spice, and Candy Cane. ROONS are 1.7oz, individually- wrapped with a suggested retail of $2.99 each.

ROONS have a 60-day shelf life at room temperature and a six-month frozen shelf life. Lil ROONIES have a six-month shelf life at room temperature or frozen.

Better Baking

Bakery foods fit many on-trend tastes, topics

Chomptown Cookie exhibited its plant-based protein cookie line at the Specialty Food Association’s recent 2019 Winter Fancy Food Expo in San Francisco.

The Specialty Food Association’s Trendspotter Panel, comprised of professionals from diverse segments of the culinary world, identified eight trends for 2019. As it turns out, bakery products (appearing in bold) have applications several trend topic areas. 

Plant-Based Foods & Drinks: The plant-based groundswell has firmly established itself in consumer eating habits. Stretching beyond vegans and vegetarians, plant-based foods now hold broad appeal to consumers who are intrigued by health benefits and have concerns about how their food is sourced. Makers are creating new product categories and disrupting old ones with plant-based options.

The movement will become situated in the larger context of sustainability: intertwined with upcycled products, as more companies turn to root-to-stem ingredients to combat food waste; snacks made from rescued bananas, or flours made with spent grains or pulp. In addition to continuing product rollouts in snacks, and as dairy and protein alternatives, plant-based foods’ rise across the foodservice sector will be significant in 2019.

Palate Shift to Emerging Regional Cuisines: This trend is driven by Millennials and Gen Z. Much has been said about younger generations’ unprecedented exposure to global culture and cuisine from an early age. These consumers are adventurous and seek experience in their travel and in their food, which has led to a shift in interest to authentic regional fare. African foods and ingredients from all over the continent are gaining notice, including fonio (West); nitter kbeh (East); ras el hanout (North); and biltong (South). Regional South Asian cuisines are emerging and ayurvedic products—primarily whole or minimally processed foods—are on the radar.  Savory-sweet snacks in the street snack tradition will become more popular.  Expect to see new menus and packaged foods touting the regional flavors and ingredients of Mexico, Central, and South America, from heritage corn tortillas to the advent of mezcal as a spirit and an ingredient.

Cannabis: 2018 saw the emerging edibles segment gain a foothold in snacks and treats, as more states legalize sales of hemp-derived CBD products. Though the segment has its challenges as cannabis is still illegal at a federal level, consumer curiosity has been piqued. Factor in that a new generation is growing up in states where cannabis is legal, and signs point to future growth of the edibles market. New products are rapidly hitting the market, many with high-end beautiful packaging and savvy marketing. Look for more infused cooking oils, coffees, teas, chocolates, baked goods, snacks, and even beer and pasta to hit the market in the coming year. Foodservice will continue to adopt cannabis cuisine menus and cocktails. 

Casava: A specific star of the plant-based phenomenon is cassava, also known as yuca, a starchy tuberous root native to South America. Grain- and gluten-free, the cassava root is high in carbohydrates, but its leaves are a reported good source of protein and rich in lysine. Cassava leaves have been especially evident in packaged snacks from cassava leaf chips to popped cassava and even a cassava leaf jerky. While many products so far are packaged for retail, expect to see more cassava on foodservice menus as well in 2019, likely in baked goods or tortillas made with cassava flour.

Edible Beauty: Noted as emerging by last year’s Trendspotter panel, collagen is a full-fledged trend in 2019, and part of a bigger move to develop products that promote skin health and appearance. Collagen is being infused into beverages, snack bars, and even wraps to help replace diminishing levels as consumers age. Traditionally used topically, argan and almond oils are coming to market. Both oils are high in omega fatty acids and vitamin E which can help hydrate skin, restore elasticity, and reduce the visibility of wrinkles. While marketed broadly, many of these products are targeted at the aging, and often overlooked, Gen Xers.

Originally appeared in the February, 2019 issue of Prepared Foods as Hitting the Shelves.