How about a little something to sweeten up your week?
Biscotti
If you think of biscotti as cookies that might break your teeth, you need to learn about Mary Caye Hagen of Grammy B’s Biscotti in Newnan. She bakes the just-soft-enough biscotti of your dreams. Based on a recipe from her chef brother and perfected by Hagen and her mother (Grammy B) over several years, the biscotti became the thing Hagen’s children expected when they came to visit. It wasn’t long before Hagen was baking her biscotti for showers and weddings, and her friends were asking for more. When her children and their spouses surprised Hagen with a logo and trademark for Grammy B’s Biscotti, the company was born. The biscotti come in five flavors, each available plain or dipped in white or dark chocolate. We tried the bestseller, lemon cranberry with white chocolate, and the very traditional almond biscotti, dipped in dark chocolate. We couldn’t have chosen between the two.
$5 for a bag of three biscotti, $6 for three chocolate-dipped biscotti. $18 to $20 per dozen. Available at Senoia Coffee & Cafe, Spezzano’s in Tyrone, Leaf & Bean and HH Artisan’s Kitchen in Newnan, the Saturday Peachtree City farmers market and grammybsbiscotti.com.
Credit: Travis Jackman
Credit: Travis Jackman
Red velvet cheesecake
Can’t choose between cheesecake and red velvet cake? You don’t have to. Tierra Jackman, the “T” of Sweet to the T Cheesecakes in Newnan, makes a dessert that is a layer of rich, creamy cheesecake sandwiched between two layers of red velvet cake, iced with cream cheese frosting. Jackman grew up enjoying her grandmother’s cheesecakes, but never got the “secret” recipe. So, she experimented on her own. After developing a recipe that earned her grandmother’s approval, she started her company in 2022. She offers nine varieties of cheesecake, including strawberry, brownie and key lime, in addition to the red velvet version we tried. Our taste testers thought the red velvet cheesecake was the best possible marriage of two favorite desserts. You can purchase the cheesecakes by the slice, or as a whole 8-inch cake that serves 12 to 16 people.
$7.50 per slice, $50-$75 per 8-inch cheesecake. Available at the East Atlanta, Oakhurst and Peachtree City farmers markets and sweettothet.com.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Flavored pecans
For many years, Wesley Junius roasted all kinds of nuts and shared them with friends and family. Soon, his Loganville-based Sak of Nutz was selling those roasted pecans, peanuts, cashews, walnuts and almonds in vanilla or whiskey flavors. You can buy the individual types of nuts or a bag of mixed nuts, which is a combination of all five varieties. These nuts are light and crisp, because there’s no oil or butter used in the roasting. The “luscious” nuts are flavored simply, with vanilla, sugar and salt. The “boozy” nuts add whiskey to the mix — the alcohol evaporates during roasting, so what’s left is just a whisper of the spirit’s flavor. We tried both flavors of the pecans, and they were a huge hit. We couldn’t find anyone not happy to devour a handful or two.
$8 per ¼-poung bag of nuts, $24 per pound. Available weekly at the Castleberry, Avondale Estates, Lilburn, Sandy Springs, Roswell, Dunwoody and Monroe downtown farmers markets and sakofnutz.com.
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