Darden’s Delights
Darden’s Dangerously Delicious Fudge Pie
Darden’s Extra Dangerous Fudge Pie with Pecans
Darden’s Off the Chart Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
Darden’s Smack Yo’ Lips Lemon Chess Pie
Darden’s Luscious Butterscotch Pie
Darden’s Super Luscious Butterscotch Pie with Pecans
Darden’s Get in My Belly Gooey Pie
For information: www.dardensdelights.com; 404-973-8760; fax 404-549-4193
Here’s how Betsy Glass and her husband, David, turned a school bake sale into a business that helps people with developmental disabilities:
She whipped up five or so fudge pies, sans the pecans her grandmother was known to use, scanned their daughter’s picture on a plain label, hand-wrote Darden’s Desserts, and tied the container shut with a cute little bow.
“The feedback was great,” Betsy Glass said recently. “People loved the picture. They loved the pies.”
So much so, it occurred to David Glass, the financial adviser in the family, that they might be on to something really good.
And he was right.
Within a year of Peachtree Presbyterian Preschool’s 2009 spring fling that precipitated it all, the Sandy Springs couple had turned the alchemy of flour, butter, eggs and sugar — the details of which Betsy Glass dares not share — into Darden’s Delights, a full-fledged one-woman pie-making machine.
Two years later, that single pie recipe from Betsy Glass’ late grandmother has morphed into seven with names such as Darden’s Dangerously Delicious Fudge Pie, Darden’s Off the Chart Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie and Darden’s Smack Yo’ Lips Lemon Chess Pie.
And since launching Darden’s Delights, named for Betsy Glass’ grandmother and the Glasses’ 8-year-old daughter, Darden, they have donated nearly $8,000 to seven local nonprofits from the sale of the 6- and 9-inch pies.
The venture, David Glass said, was a way to both honor their daughter and help solve issues she and others with development disabilities face. Darden has Down syndrome.
“We’re all about using people’s purchasing power to help create better opportunities and outcomes,” he said.
For their contributions, the Glasses were recently awarded the Legacy Award from All About Developmental Disabilities. The Atlanta nonprofit serves people with developmental disabilities.
Just 30 minutes after giving birth in 2005, the Glasses learned their little girl might have Down syndrome, a chromosomal disorder occurring in one in every 691 babies born each year in the United States.
Even though Betsy Glass had had an uneventful pregnancy, Darden’s nurses immediately recognized the tell-tale signs, including almond-shaped eyes and a single deep crease across the center of the palm of her hand.
Twenty-four hours later, doctors confirmed their suspicions.
Except for the extra chromosome, the Glasses said Darden experienced few complications.
“She was as healthy as a horse,” Betsy Glass said.
As she got older, though, Darden needed eyeglasses and hearing aids, and doctors diagnosed her with hypothyroidism, common in children with Down syndrome. Every week she undergoes physical, speech and occupational therapy.
Darden was a Peachtree Presbyterian preschooler when her mother homed in on Grandma Darden’s famous pie recipe for an upcoming bake sale. Proceeds would benefit the school’s Adaptive Learning Center.
Glass had to go out of town on business that day, but she sent six pies to the school.
The response was overwhelming. Not only were the pies delicious, they looked every bit as appetizing. Plus it made people feel good knowing their purchase went to a good cause.
‘There simply is no better pie’
That’s when David Glass realized they could turn the effort into a business with ongoing benefits for people with developmental disabilities.
In the fall of 2010, he enrolled in the Edge Connection, a 12-week program at Kennesaw State University that a friend had told him about and that helps small-business owners launch, sustain and expand their businesses. By the end of the class, David had a plan, which garnered him a second-place award among a class of 40.
By then, Betsy Glass’ pies were already delighting the palates of hundreds across metro Atlanta.
“There simply is no better pie,” said Greer Monin of Atlanta. “We bought our first in 2010 and haven’t stopped.”
Courtenay Gabriel of Atlanta doesn’t even have a “sweet tooth,” but she’s hooked.
“My family and friends throughout town and even the country are hooked, as well,” she said. “We love every variety we have tasted, but the chocolate chip pie, in particular, has become a staple item for family gatherings.
“The convenience of being able to store the pies in the freezer is an added bonus. I love being able to have some on hand in case of last-minute guests or in the event a friend needs a pick-me-up.”
Darden’s Delights officially launched in 2011.
“At that time we started focusing on major holidays like Valentine’s Day, Easter and Mother’s Day,” David Glass said. “We’re trying now to expand to the corporate world.”
Although still relatively small, news of Darden’s Delights’ wholesome goodness is spreading, mostly by word of mouth.
Alicia Treadway of Atlanta said she first tasted Darden’s Delight while vacationing in Michigan, then received one as a gift from a friend.
“It melted in my mouth,” she said. “My first reaction was how was I going to keep the kids from eating it all.”
Since then, Treadway said she has become a regular customer, buying pies for potlucks, special occasions and teacher gifts.
“Everyone loves them,” Treadway said, “and it’s truly a win-win to be able to feel good about contributing to such a great cause and get a premium product in return.”
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