Mayor Justin Elicker samples a chocolate espresso cocktail cupcake Monday at the Q House incubator kitchen (above), where baker Maxine Harris (below) displays a stand mixer she received from City Seed.
Paul Bass Photos
It wasn’t too early in the morning to sample an artisanal beer-infused cupcake — or announce an infusion of federal dollars into a recipe for strengthening both public health and entrepreneurship in the Dixwell neighborhood.
The tasting and announcing began at the Dixwell Q House Monday at 10 a.m.
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal arrived to announce a $194,400 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to a joint effort based at the Q and run by CitySeed (which operates farmers markets) and LEAP (which oversees programs there).
The grant, from the department’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative, will support a new weekly City Seed farmers market beginning this Wednesday at the Q House (details here) as well as a food incubator that enables start-up business to launch from the Q kitchen. CitySeed & LEAP competed with programs nationwide to snag one of the 134 projects chosen for grants under the initiative.
LEAP's Fernandez (at right) at Monday's announcement with (from left) Mayor Elicker, CitySeed's Rendon, Sen. Blumenthal.
“This $194,000 will be a force multiplier” boosting both entrepreneurship and communal health in a “food desert” where people don’t have enough access to fresh, nutritious food, Blumenthal said. “Good nutrition and good produce are essential to good health.”
LEAP Executive Director Henry Fernandez said the money will support staff to run the farmers market and expand operations in the kitchen, both for entrepreneurs and families looking to take cooking classes.
“Food access is fundamentally a justice issue,” stated CitySeed Executive Director Cortney Rendon. And Mayor Justin Elicker noted that the announcement took place on Juneteenth, casting the Q House-based programs supported by the money in the broader effort to combat racism and racial inequities.
Je T'Aime's Laurren Robinson and Maxine Harris.
The stars of the morning were Maxine Harris and Laurren Robinson, and the artisanal beer-infused cupcakes they make in the Q incubator kitchen before selling them at farmer’s markets and beer fests.
The 29-year-old New Haveners started hatching their company, Je T’aime Cupcakes & Cocktails, in Westville two years ago. They plan to open a storefront in the CT Post Mall next month. (They previously had a soft opening there, but had to close down until they could obtain needed refrigeration equipment.)
“Cupcakes provide a sense of nostalgia, joy and fulfillment,” Harris offered.
After the speeches in the Q gym Monday morning, those assembled retired to the kitchen to check out the cupcakes.
The cupcakes on display included the “Chanana Berry,” which includes chocolate, banana and swirled espresso, topped with a “berry medley” buttercream and a “quadruple” vegan variation including raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, and blackberry. (Click here to read about and order other varieties.)
Harris pointed out a Globe brand mixer provided by CitySeed. It enables her outfit to produce five to 10 batches at a time rather than having to mix one at a time by hand.
Mayor Elicker sampled a dark chocolate espresso cupcake.
“I’m not going to get tipsy, will I?” Elicker asked before taking a bite.
No, he was informed: The alcohol from the beer in the cupcakes burns off in the cooking. Although some of Je T’aime cupcakes sold at partner locations like Armada Brewing on River Street do provide a kick.
Congratulations to these young entrepreneurs and I will advise them to take advantage of the available free resources out there like the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), the Women's Business Development Center(WBDC), SCORE and the US Small Business Administration (SBA), they all have programs that will benefit small business owners. Please check them out.