In Our Spring 2019 Issue
LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER
Back in 2015, after several years out of print, edible Nutmeg relaunched. It was an exciting opportunity for me to help strengthen connections within and highlight the bes...
Nutty Bunny
Opening day of a new farmers market season is a flurry of excitement: a medley of farmers, chefs, crafters, and creators, my fellow vendors, and I settling into our assigned spaces and getting to know one another, shimmying tents open, hauling tables, and guiding trucks into place. I’m a market veteran by now, but I often still embarrass myself, as I struggle to pop my tent into place, spindly legs catching on my own. Pamela Aflalo of Nutty Bunny often lends a hand, and while returning the favor one morning, I asked her how it was that she came to be lugging coolers of vegan “ice cream” around in the back of her SUV.
I listened with empathy as Pamela described her daughter, Sophie’s, childhood health struggles. She says it was heartbreaking to witness her suffering from chronic colds and respiratory issues, all while conventional medicine – a “cocktail of allergy medicines,” she says – was consistently ineffective in abating Sophie’s symptoms. I spent much of my own childhood with grubby tissues in my pockets, something perhaps not uncommon when taking into consideration that, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, over 8% of children in the U.S. suffer from food allergies, and that this number appears to be on the rise. For decades, we’ve been told that children need to drink milk, if they want to grow strong and tall, but with cow’s milk listed among the most-common food allergens for children, it’s no wonder that many kids fumble through their youth in a phlegmy haze.
Determined to find a solution for her daughter, Pamela experimented with pulling dairy from Sophie’s diet. Her effort was rewarded with clearer breathing and deeper sleep for Sophie, who was then able to perform better in school and get back to the general misadventures of being a kid. Inspired by the dietary lessons this experience provided, Pamela enrolled in the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts, completing the Chef’s Training Program in 2012; soon, she was providing Sophie with homemade, nutritious, and enjoyable vegan meals.
However, one significant hurdle remained: satisfying Sophie’s love of ice cream. With a career in market research and consulting at Stamford-based Gartner, Inc., Pamela called upon her background in problem-solving to develop a dairy-free treat for her “nutty bunny” that would ultimately become a business by the same name. She began with small batches of vegan ice cream for Sophie to enjoy, but it wasn’t long before friends began asking for pints to take home. To satisfy the interest, Pamela began producing her recipes at a larger scale, and before long, she was churning out pints for farmers markets and grocery stores that sell out as quickly as she can make them in her commercial kitchen
Photo 1: Preparing nuts for use in one of Nutty Bunny's vegan ice cream recipes.
Photo 2: Pamela Aflalo, founder of Nutty Bunny.
According to a BusinessWire 2018 report, “over the last decade, the number of people adopting veganism and opting for vegan diets has increased by about 300%.” Non-dairy frozen desserts are quickly gaining shelf space in markets large and small across the country, replacing the traditional milk base with anything from coconut milk to various nut milks and even avocados. While large companies, like Ben & Jerry’s, now offer a line of non-dairy desserts, Nutty Bunny’s commitment to pure, nutrient-dense ingredients sets it apart from many of the bigger name brands that often leverage corn syrup and cane sugar as primary sweeteners.
Pamela does more with less; with only a handful of 100% organic, vegan, non-GMO ingredients, she whips up palate-pleasing desserts with decadent flavors. Nutty Bunny’s vegan ice creams start with cashews (soaked overnight) that are processed in an industrial blender with house-made almond milk (free of any additives), coconut milk and oil, and maple syrup as a sweetener, all of which are 100% certified organic. Homemade rosewater lends a light floral finish to the Moroccan Rose flavor, and the award-winning Orange Blossom is a best seller. Her chocolate and vanilla varieties please those seeking a classic treat by pairing the flavors they know so well with a surprisingly light, silky texture.
When asked about other hurdles she’s encountered as she’s developed Nutty Bunny, Pamela touches on an issue that many food manufacturers face. “There are numerous challenges in building and growing a company, including the fluctuating costs of ingredients. The challenge is to communicate to consumers that our products cost more than those of many of our competitors because we use only pure, nutrient-dense ingredients, never any artificial flavors, colors, or chemicals.” As an example, she explains how, when she first began, vanilla extract cost $49/gallon. After only a few years, it’s now close to $300/gallon. Many manufacturers deal with rising costs by using imitation ingredients (such as the opaquely named “natural vanilla flavor,” a synthetic compound that is sometimes prepared from wood pulp, guaiacol, or other, even less desirable components), but Pamela is committed to following her original principle: to use only the best-possible ingredients
It’s a strategy that is working. High demand for Nutty Bunny’s vegan ice creams makes it difficult for Pamela to keep her products in stock, and 2019 has her looking to potential co-packing partners in order to increase volume, a difficult task, she says, due to her brand’s need for stringent quality control. Soon enough, she is hoping to be able to provide Nutty Bunny desserts to large markets, like Whole Foods and other holistic chains, as well as ship her products nationwide. Until then, though, Nutty Bunny’s delicious and nutritious treats will remain the envy of neighboring states and yet another reason to take pride in the great local food that Connecticut has to offer. Visit Nutty Bunny’s website for a full list of retail locations, or visit the Westport Farmers Market to try a sample from Pamela, herself. If you come by early, please don’t hesitate to help me set up my tent.
> Nutty Bunny: Stamford; 203-253-9915
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