It’s a dessert lover’s dream come true! Artisan ice-cream maker Treat Dreams and gourmet cookie company D’Vine Cookies have announced plans to open Treat Dreams Dessert Emporium in Ferndale – a one-of-a-kind shop featuring over-the-top desserts – and the sweetest, most imaginative flavors southeast Michigan has to offer. Renovation of Treat Dreams’ Ferndale store, at 22965 Woodward Ave., kicks off Monday, January 14 to make way for this unique concept, slated to open by spring 2019.
“Our concept is local – we’ll showcase Michigan-made products,” said Rebecca Abel, owner of D’Vine Cookies. “We’re looking to bring influences from famous dessert companies around the world to metro Detroit. This shop will be unlike anything our area has seen.”
Think Instagram-worthy sundaes, hot chocolate creations, 5-pound ice cream sandwiches to share with friends (and single-serving “petite dreams”) along with confections of every kind and even syringes filled with molten chocolate. The new dessert emporium will also carry a diverse array of delectable locally-made gourmet desserts from other well known brands.
This business partnership blossomed after Abel and Treat Dreams owner Scott Moloney met at a food truck rally last summer and quickly realized it was a match made in dessert heaven. Both share similar business backgrounds and an entrepreneurial spirit; both are dreamers and doers who share a passion for all things sweet. Abel is a financial planner and money manager who started her cookie company in 2017 because she wanted to make the world’s most delicious cookies. Following a career in commercial banking, Moloney launched his ice cream business – known for its many exotic flavors like maple, bacon and waffles – in 2010.
“When I opened Treat Dreams, it was my intent from Day 1 to offer a broad array of desserts in addition to the specialty ice cream that put Treat Dreams on the map,” said Moloney. “When I met Rebecca and discovered our shared love of desserts and similar career paths, it became clear that a collaboration was in the cards.”
Added Abel: “We both love dreaming up unique flavors and crazy dessert compilations. It really is a perfect match.”
Construction on the project begins Jan. 14, with Abel and Moloney doing all of the demolition and renovation work themselves. Once complete, the 4,000-square-foot space will feature high ceilings, modern industrial décor, exposed brick walls and cozy booths perfect for sharing sinfully-delicious desserts. To elevate the dessert lover’s experience, there will be indoor and outdoor seating, a private party space and a gift shop with eye-popping dessert novelties to go.
“We are still dreaming up the final desserts,” said Abel. “But one thing’s for sure – this will be a place where dessert lovers' dreams come true. We can’t wait to welcome the crowds.”
The ambitious project will consolidate D’Vine’s cookie operations all under one roof. The company’s kitchen facility will relocate into the renovated space; D’Vine’s retail locations at Ferndale’s Rust Belt Market and in Detroit’s New Center One building will also move into the emporium when it opens. In the meantime, Treat Dreams lovers will still find their favorite ice cream at the company’s Midtown store at 4160 Cass Ave, and alongside D’Vine’s products at Rust Belt Market starting this Friday, Jan. 18, 2019. Both companies will continue their catering and food truck operations.
]]>If you or someone you know is on the hot new Keto diet sweeping the nation, we’ve got a treat for you! D’Vine Cookies & Dough is proud to introduce our new Keto cookies – with just 5 net carbs per cookie.
The keto (short for ketogenic) diet is low in carbs and high in fat, which forces the body to burn fat instead of carbohydrates. And while the diet only recently began soaring in popularity, it has been around for some time. In fact, the keto diet was first developed to treat children with epilepsy.
According to a recent article posted on USAToday.com, a few studies have shown that the diet may promote weight loss, lower blood sugar and increase insulin sensitivity in diabetics. The diet, the article says, has also shown to improve LDL cholesterol levels and regulate insulin, increase mental focus and boost energy.
It’s easy to see why folks are flocking to this latest diet trend – and eating up D’Vine’s delectable keto-friendly cookies, offered in chocolate chip and dark chocolate pecan flavors.
The response so far has been phenomenal, says Rebecca Abel, D’Vine’s founder and CEO.
“A ton of my friends are on the keto diet, so I know there’s a demand for keto-friendly baked goods,” says Abel, who added that she is not aware of any other keto-friendly fresh baked goods on the market in metro Detroit. “D’Vine was founded to celebrate all things cookie, so we strive to offer cookies everyone can enjoy.”
In true D’Vine fashion, Abel says, she spent months working to create the perfect keto-friendly cookies. She experimented with different flours and sweeteners before choosing the perfect mix.
So, what’s the secret to D’Vine’s flavor-filled keto cookies?
Monk fruit, Abel says. “I found that monk fruit provides a flavor very similar to that of a traditional cookie and has very little, if any, aftertaste.”
The cookies are sugar-free, too, making them a tasty option for people on a sugar-restricted eating plan.
You can purchase our Keto cookies now by CLICKING HERE. You’ll also find them at the Rust Belt Market in Ferndale and D’Vine’s new kiosk inside Detroit’s New Center One building (3031 W. Grand Blvd, Detroit - open Monday through Friday, 10am to 4pm), as well as all Westborn Markets (Berkley, Dearborn, Plymouth & Livonia), Naked Fuel & Bubble Tea (West Bloomfield), and Western Market (Ferndale).
]]>What makes D’vine’s gluten-free, vegan cookies so popular?
The reasons have more to do with what they’ve got, than what they don’t:
“It has everything to do with the type and quality of ingredients we use,” she says. “People who follow special diets face a lot of limits, especially when it comes to baked desserts: limited choices with limited flavor.
“Our gluten-free, vegan cookies don’t taste like ‘limiting’ cookies.”
Before Abel launched D’vine last fall, she was determined to include a gluten-free, vegan cookie in her initial product lineup because the demand was so high.
“I have a lot of friends who are gluten-free,” she says. “They were very excited to learn I was working on a cookie they could enjoy, too, because there aren’t a lot of truly tasty options out there.”
D’vine Cookies & Dough debuted with its popular gluten-free, vegan peanut butter chocolate chip cookie and has since expanded its flavor offerings to include oatmeal chocolate chip, oatmeal cranberry pecan and the top-selling double chocolate.
“Double chocolate remains one of my all-time favorites,” Abel says. “It’s got a delicious fudgy flavor and a rich, almost brownie-like texture.”
D’vine takes great care to ensure the integrity of the allergen-safe cookies it sells.
“We make them at separate times and with sterilized equipment allocated specifically for the special-diet recipes we use,” Abel says. “Doing both avoids any cross-contamination that can be dangerous for people with food allergies. Our customers trust us and we take that trust very seriously.”
Achieving the heavenly trio of taste, texture and aesthetic appeal wasn’t easy. Abel spent countless hours in the kitchen experimenting with a ton of different ingredients to develop gluten-free, vegan cookies that compromise nothing.
Here are some tips and techniques she learned along the way:
Mix things up: When it comes to which gluten-free flour makes the best-tasting cookie, Abel finds a blend works best. Many bakers use just one, such as white rice flour, tapioca starch, or sorghum flour. But Abel believes a blend yields a much better flavor. And finding the right mix is a process of trial and error, she says: “I tried six different flour blends before I found the right one.”
Coconut products are key: Vegan foods contain no animal products, including dairy. Instead of relying on butter to make her cookies rich and moist, Abel uses coconut milk and coconut oil in its place. The milk lends a rich and creamy flavor while the oil results in a clean, natural taste, she says.
“They are a much better alternative than the butter substitutes I’ve found,” she says. And if you don’t want your peanut butter cookies to have a tropical taste, be sure to use refined coconut products. The refining process removes the coconut flavor but leaves the product’s goodness intact. “
Keep it chill: A lot of gluten-free, vegan cookies look as flat as they taste. If cookie height is what you seek, Abel advises chilling the dough before baking. Once it’s ready, Abel rolls the dough into balls on a cookie sheet and puts them in the refrigerator for an hour or so.
“Doing this helps the cookies keep their shape during baking,” she says. “In the end, you’ve got a cookie that looks as fabulous as it tastes.”
To order a box of gluten-free, vegan cookies that are simply D’vine, visit: https://dvinecookies.com/. Your taste buds will thank you!
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