Let The Little Guys Deliver for Your Big Day Include these delicious foods in your celebration to impress your guests and support local businesses after a challenging year
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f your wedding was planned for 2020 and you’re reading this magazine, there’s a good chance your original plans were altered or postponed. It’s estimated that was the case for about half of the 2 million weddings Americans typically host every year. The pandemic greatly affected all of us, of course, but some small businesses especially felt the pinch. Many independent, local companies here (see more in sidebar) make wonderful food products you can use for every event from shower to welcome basket to reception to the day-after brunch. Consider integrating their tasty treats into your festivities to show off some St. Louis originals—and give these talented and hardworking family-owned businesses a boost.
THE CARAMEL HOUSE The Caramel House is a house you want to visit. Owner Janet Schulman has been making all things caramel for 12 years and opened her shop in Olivette six years ago. She makes 24 different flavors of the individual caramel “kisses,” caramel sauce, turtles, caramel apples (year-round) and pretzels, English toffee, and caramel popcorn, as well as four other fresh popcorn flavors. Many more yummy goodies are available, and Schulman’s secret caramel recipe is known as “the caramel that doesn’t stick” to your teeth, yet it’s every bit as caramel-y and scrumptious. Everything at The Caramel House is peanutfree and the products are officially certified as being gluten-free by the Celiac Foundation. Schulman has four employees and is proud that The Caramel House is 100% women-owned and St. Louis-grown. “We are all about staying local,” Schulman said. “All of our ingredients and packaging are locallysourced. Pecans from Missouri are the only nuts 120
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we use, and everything is American-made.” The Caramel House creates lots of corporate gifts, which can translate well to gifts for wedding celebrations. Assorted caramels in various-sized boxes can work as a wedding favor or gift at a bridal shower. Unbreakable jars of caramel sauce would be great in a welcome basket for out-of-town guests. Schulman suggests a new line of items for groomsmen gifts that capitalize on a popular trend-products made with bourbon. “We make caramels with flavors of bourbon vanilla, bourbon apple jack & bourbon fire cinnamon, as well as our Liquid Gold Bourbon Caramel Sauce, and bourbon caramel corn,” said Schulman. She is immensely grateful for the generosity and support of her customers in helping her through 2020. But she also loved being able to provide sweets to those who came by the shop. “It was a lonely time for many people,” Schulman said. “I enjoyed being the ‘sugar bartender’ to people who came to get treats to feel less isolated and just needed a little pick me up.” The Caramel House shop is located in Olivette at 9639 Olive Boulevard. Items can also be ordered online at thecaramelhouse.com.
FREDDIE LEE’S GHETTO SAUCE St. Louis is a barbecue town, and gifting some locally-made, acclaimed barbecue sauce to your guests would be a great representation of the Lou. Freddie Lee James Jr. has been cooking up his sauces for over a decade, but 2020 was a tough one. “Last year almost crushed us,” James Jr. said. “Online sales helped keep us afloat, but it was scary.” The Ghetto Sauce (also labeled as “American Gourmet Sauce” in some stores) comes in spicy and mild flavors and isn’t just for meat. It tastes
great in chili and baked beans, on salmon, even pizza. But Freddie’s favorite use of the sauce? “I love it on spaghetti,” James Jr. said. “It just takes spaghetti to another level.” He also loves using the sauce in meatloaf and stuffed peppers. Couples can ask caterers and chefs to use the sauce in their cooking for the reception dinner, and may want to display a sign noting the use of this small-business, local product. The 18-ounce jars would be a great addition to a welcome basket, or a bachelor party gift. Having a backyard rehearsal dinner? Use the sauce on the grill, then send some jars home with the wedding party and guests. James is a well-respected sauce maker, as he also produces sauces for several popular restaurants in the St. Louis area. Ghetto Sauce received a small business award in 2017 and was featured at the Governor’s Mansion in Jefferson City at the annual Taste of Missouri. He has six employees and his wife Deborah is his business partner. The sauces are gluten-free and contain no high-fructose corn syrup. “I only put love in my product,” said James. “I don’t put anything in the sauce that I wouldn’t eat myself.” The sauces are available at many Schnucks, Straub’s and Dierbergs locations and some independent butcher shops, among other retail outlets. Order online at freddieleesgourmetsauces.com.
IRENE’S HOMEMADE GRANOLA Another delicious product made with love began with Irene Reinkemeyer’s love for her husband. About eight years ago, he developed heart issues and she was hoping to find healthy foods he loved. “He loves oats and I looked for a healthy granola, but couldn’t find a good one,” Reinkemeyer said. “So I started making my own. My kids and their friends loved it, then I gave some
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BY J E N N I F E R C . F R A K E S
