EASTON, Pa. — The first Easton Sweet Stroll will combine the excitement of a traditional pub crawl with the irresistibility of freshly baked goods.
The event, from noon to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, will feature 11 local sweet shops in Downtown Easton.
Organizers hope to make it an annual event, though tickets for this year's event are sold out.
Attendees will begin their journey at Easton Public Market, where they’ll be given a map, to-go box and passport.
At each stop, they can collect a sample sweet and a punch in their passports to enter them into a $100 raffle.
“We have everything from macaroons, to chocolates, to French croissants, to amazing chocolate chip cookies and scones."Kathryn Gaffney, the founder of the Modern Crumb Bakery
Kathryn Gaffney, the founder of the Modern Crumb Bakery, one of the featured businesses, co-organized the event with the Greater Easton Development Partnership.
Gaffney said she created it to showcase Easton as a premier dessert destination.
“We have everything from macaroons, to chocolates, to French croissants, to amazing chocolate chip cookies and scones,” Gaffney said.
Almost all of the featured shops are small, local businesses, Gaffney said.
Banana foster cream puffs — and more
During the stroll, the Modern Crumb Bakery will offer banana foster cream puffs. Other featured sweet shops, such as Chocodiem and Mia & Maddie’s Bakery, will provide dark chocolate truffles and chocolate chip cookie-brownies, respectively.
“I feel like I am in Europe again,”Chocodiem founder Belgian chocolatier Jean-Paul Hepp
Chocodiem’s founder, Belgian chocolatier Jean-Paul Hepp, has been in the business for more than a decade. After two decades of living in America, he said, he missed authentic Belgian chocolates and left the pharmaceutical industry to make his own.
His chocolates have since been featured in the New York Times. In 2016, Desert Professional magazine included him among the Top 10 Chocolatiers in North America, and the year after, Chocodiem’s pearl truffles were chosen by Forbes magazine among the Best Chocolates for Gift Giving.
He operated locations in Clinton, New Jersey, and Philadelphia before settling in the Lehigh Valley.
“I feel like I am in Europe again,” Hepp said, describing the welcoming and “liberal” community he said he’s found in Easton.
Inspired by internation cuisine
Mia & Maddie’s Bakery founder Eileen Newman said she also was inspired by different countries' cuisines.
Newman, whose mother is from Curaçao, said she grew up in New York City with influences from many Caribbean cultures. She said her family traveled frequently, to other islands, Europe and beyond.
“I'm a true believer that food connects people and connects family. We always gravitated toward the food. We wanted to see how food connected with us and what was different and what was the same.”Mia and Maddie’s Bakery founder Eileen Newman
Wherever they went, Newman said, they found themselves drawn to the food.
“I'm a true believer that food connects people and connects family,” Newman said. “We always gravitated toward the food. We wanted to see how food connected with us and what was different and what was the same.”
She said through her travels, especially to Italy and Europe, she was able to get a sense of the ways they use cream and fillings. Today, she said, she uses those techniques at Mia & Maddie’s — named after her daughters.
She said her regulars bring her back spices from all over the world when they travel. After experimenting with the different flavors, Newman said she sources the ones she wants to keep.
Other businesses participating Friday include Bank Street Creamery, Cake and Corolla, the Carmelcorn Shop, Duchess Cookies, Fox Bakery, the Modern Bakery, Pie + Tar and Sweet Girlz Bakery.
In addition to the shops handing out samples, the Service Electric Community Room at Easton Public Market will hold a range of activities, including a cupcake decorating station and other baking-related demonstrations.
