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caramel recipe she uses today brings back the memories of those mother-daughter
cooking sessions.
Although McCarthy had always dreamed of owning a chocolate business,
it wasn't until she had several years of experience in the information
systems end of the hospitality industry that she opened one in her then
home state of Arizona.
Testing her skills, the primarily self-taught chocolatier entered
the 2000 Arizona State Fair. Winning first place in the caramels and
toffee categories, McCarthy rented a commercial kitchen and opened Kathy's
Gourmet Chocolates in Scottsdale, Arizona the following year.
Selling to farmers' markets and taking special orders, the business
proved to be a success. Then a move to Door County followed and a return
to her former profession with the Marriott Corporation.
McCarthy met chef Janice Thomas, who owns the Savory Spoon Cooking
School with her husband, Michael, at Thomas' "Chocolate
Dreams" class last year. Today, McCarthy not only teaches candy-making
classes at the cooking school, but offers her handmade chocolate treats
through the school's Marketplace retail store using pure Belgian
Couverture Chocolate.
Whether one of her students, or just one who enjoys chocolate, McCarthy
has some words of advice. "If you're going to eat chocolate,
eat the good stuff and make it worth your while," she says. "The
difference is whether it sticks to the roof or your mouth or melts in
it."
Students may enter one or multiple of the candy-making "Sweet
Saturdays with Kathy" classes in the series.
The Savory Spoon Cooking School and Marketplace, owned and operated
by classically-trained chef Janice Thomas and her husband, Michael,
is located at 12042 Highway 42 in Ellison Bay and is open daily from
10am-5pm. A complete listing of events and classes is listed on savoryspoon.com.
For further information, call Betsy Titterington at 920-854-6600 or
920-854-6100.
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