When Stephanie Belanger’s friend was looking for a better way to preserve eggs, she toyed with the idea of freeze drying.
After some research, she realized it wouldn’t pay off for eggs, but there were many other benefits and uses for investing in a freeze-drying machine.
“I bugged my husband for a couple of months and he finally caved and bought me a machine,” she laughed.
Stephanie started with simple fruits like pineapples and strawberries, and brought her mother, Claudette Servant, along for the ride. Mangoes, cantaloupe and watermelon were also test-piloted.
That’s when the Purple Kitchen came to be. A nod to Stephanie’s favourite colour, she wanted a company name that did not just associate her with freeze-dried goods for future expansion.
Happy with the initial outcomes, Stephanie and Claudette moved on to gummy bears, gummy worms and peach rings.
“The gummy worms and peach rings don’t exactly work the best,” she said.
Colourful Skittles and Jolly Ranchers, though, were added to the mix and now it has opened up a wide array of freeze-dried delights like Airheads and caramel M&M’s, which are a best seller.
The tastes generated by this space-like-food is light and airy with a completely different texture which young people seem to really appreciate.
“We give samples at the market. When parents tell me their kid won’t eat certain fruits, we offer a morsel and the reaction we get is amazing. Suddenly they want more samples,” she added
Campers, hikers also love the product as do dog lovers for the sweet potato and cantaloupe treats.
The process is not for the faint of heart. Stephanie and Claudette usually need a few days to cut the fruit and then freeze it for two days. After that, the freeze dry process takes another two full days.
Recognizing that everyone has their niche, Claudette enjoys the packaging and preparing. Stephanie is the master of all things clerical and managerial.
The duo has done popups and local farmer’s markets since last year.
Equipped with freezers and two commercial-style freeze dryers, the operation is not that big.
Despite that, Stephanie says they do get a lot of requests for different items. For each test batch, Claudette and Stephanie balance cost effectiveness with the tedious work of skinning and poking holes in a lot of fruits.
The Purple Kitchen will be branching out this summer to vegetables for its one-year anniversary. They are also planning to add baked goods and canned preservatives to the mix as well.
The Purple Kitchen can be found on Facebook. They can be contacted by email at [email protected].
Claudette and Stephanie are often at the Sudbury Farmer’s Market on weekends. It’s now located indoors at the Elm Place Mall (former Rainbow Centre) downtown.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
