A holiday tasting party is planned at Ranch Foods Direct from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sat., Dec. 4, to allow customers to sample exciting new products from GottaLoveIt!, a commercial kitchen/retail outlet that recently opened in Old Colorado City. "We love doing tastings," says owner Jerry Downing, shown here with his wife Debbie in their new space. "We'll be doing a lot of them."

When the Downings decided to rent their new storefront, they had a chance to make a dream come true. And not just their own.

"I was praying for this and along came Debbie," says Tina Peters, a caterer who sells Mama Tina's chutneys, cheese balls and more.

Involved with marketing Jerry's Gotta' Love Garlic! gourmet garlic butter through farmers markets as well as Debbie's specialty cookies and cakes, the Downings knew many local food artisans still needed an outlet for their products when the farmers market closed for the season. As early as 1996, Debbie had wanted to start a food business, even sketching out ideas on paper. Now, with a storefront identified, the couple immediately began teaming up with other local food makers to create what they envision as a gourmet cooperative kitchen.

Carol Hildebrand subleases a bakery space in the back for her new business focusing on creative wedding cakes. She has done nearly 100 cakes since September. Many other small food artisans are entering into cooperative arrangements for prep space, retail space and co-marketing, including Mya Bella Cupcakes, Mountain Lightning Salsa and Wally's Tamales. "This list will be ever-changing, as businesses grow and move on, and new ones come in," Debbie says.

Their kitchen storefront at 2521 W. Colorado will carry Ranch Foods Direct meats along with an array of other items. To place special orders, call Debbie Downing at 322-7143. Keep them in mind for the holidays: her plates of decorated cookies are a work of art, and the Mya Bella cupcakes are gorgeous too.

They've also begun providing products to Ranch Foods Direct, which has a community-oriented size and scale that Jerry prefers to a mega-store like Whole Foods. Ranch Foods Direct will feature the signature garlic butter, creamy spinach pestos and dips, made-from-scratch pies and other items.

Come by the tasting party Saturday to sample these unique local products.

 CLICK HERE for the PDF with additional photos.

 

Ground round (95% lean), ground sirloin, and one and a half pound packages of 90% ground beef are 10% off; top sirloin and chuck roasts, 10% off. Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday buy two packs of ground beef, get one free (85% lean and 80% lean only.) Marrow bones are $2.50/lb. Pet food $1.50/pkg; $1.25 in bulk (over 40 lbs.)
 

Here's a great idea for using up leftover sweet potatoes. These would also be nice for serving on Christmas morning or for New Year's Day brunch.

1 1/4 c. white whole wheat flour
    (or all-purpose)
1/4 c. chopped pecans, toasted
2 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. milk
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 T. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 lg. eggs, lightly beaten
1 lg or 2 small sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, 2 T. pecans, baking powder, spice and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine milk and next 4 ingredients (milk through eggs); add to flour mixture, stirring until smooth. Stir in sweet potatoes. Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Put about 1/4 c. batter into skillet for each pancake.