14 - Fair
FAIR FILLING
labor
Day
weeKeND
The Flay’s the Thing
SePT. 3 - 7, 2009
For many, the attraction at the New York
State Fair is the food. This year, the fair is
M A I N S TA G E
www.alexbay.org
trying something different, by having a food
S C H E D u L E
maker be one of the reasons to pay a visit.
SuNDAY, SEPT. 6
Cable TV’s Bobby Flay, one of the Food
THuRSDAY, SEPT. 3
Double Barrel Blues
1-3pm Network’s superstar chefs—an Iron Chef, in
Los Blancos
6-8pm
String of Pearls
fact—owner of New York City’s Mesa Grill
3:30-5:30pm
and a cookbook author, appears at Chevrolet
FRIDAY, SEPT. 4
HEADLINER
Court on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 1 p.m. It is the
Carolyn Kelly 6-8pm
Trevor Finlay
first time a celebrity chef will appear as part
of the entertainment lineup at the Fair.
& The Roosevelt Dean Band
Band
“Food has always played a central role in
SATuRDAY, SEPT. 5
6-8pm
all that we do here,” says fair director Dan
O’Hara. “Bobby Flay, a native New Yorker,
T
O
Taz Crus Blues 1-3pm
MONDAY, SEPT. 7
has helped educate millions of people about
PHO
Bernie Clarke
how to get more enjoyment out of fresh meat,
VIS
3:30-5:30pm
All Star Jam
A
fruits and vegetables, many of which are pro-
D
Ronnie Spencer 6-8pm HOSTED BY DOUBLE BARREL BLUES
1-4pm duced right here in New York state.”
Overnight packages available. Contact the Alex Bay Chamber for details 482-9531
Flay will prepare several dishes on the
MICHAEL
Chevy Court stage and afterward sign copies
of his books; his most recent tome is Burgers,
A flour bouquet: Peter and Tina Hess
Fries and Shakes (Crown Publishing, New
show off one of Corso’s Cookies’ creations,
York City; 160 pages; $25.95/softcover).
celebrating summer.
Flay won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2005
in the Outstanding Service Show Host cat-
egory for his series Boy Meets Grill. He cur-
a realtor in Syracuse and opened up her first
rently stars in Throwdown! With Bobby Flay
shop, located at 107 Montrose Ave., Westvale.
and Grill It! With Bobby Flay. He is also a
Hess and her mother operated the busi-
mainstay on Iron Chef, one of the most popu-
ness together for two months, baking, frosting,
lar food shows in television history.
arranging and wrapping each gift individually,
As with all Chevy Court appearances,
before the task became too demanding for just
watching Flay weave his culinary magic is
the two of them. “We started out with people
free.
who could help with the wrapping,” Hess says.
—GEORGIA WILLIAMS
“But the first year I baked every cookie myself.”
As demand for Corso’s cookies grew, the
Hands in the
business flourished. In 2005, Hess’ husband
Peter Hess, 40, quit his own job as a business
Cookie Jar
consultant and came on full time to handle
A sign in the shop reads “No dessert is
the business aspects of the bakery. Addition-
too pretty to eat,” but Corso’s Cookies, 314
ally, the couple created a Web site and began
Lakeside Road, Lakeland, is certainly trying
selling through third-party online companies
to make one. The gourmet cookie factory spe-
like
ProFlowers.com and
Amazon.com, which
cializes in elaborate cookie bouquets that can
sent business through the roof. “Within hours
be shipped anywhere in the country for just
of being up {on their first third-party Web
about every occasion. “These are personalized
site} we had 20 or 30 orders,” says Peter
gifts,” says Tina Corso Hess, 35, the owner
Hess. “Now we do 90 percent of our business
and original baker. “We wanted them to have
through the Web.”
a wow factor.”
In 2006, the couple bought and completely
With more than 300 different cookie
renovated their current location in Lakeland,
designs and hundreds of themed bouquets, the
transforming an old warehouse into equal
originality and attention to detail provided by
parts cookie factory and office. It is here that
each bouquet contributes to that wow factor.
their new workforce, more than 20 employees
Specializing in vibrant-hued, frosted but-
who bake, decorate and wrap bouquets all
tercreme shortcake cookies, the business has
day, create the works of art Corso’s is known
morphed from a childhood passion for Hess
for. The company has even done specialized
into a full-fledged factory producing thou-
cookie bouquets for companies such as Vera
sands of cookies each day.
Bradley, eBay and QVC.
Corso’s Cookies had a booth for the first
With expansion the cookie operation has
time at this year’s Taste of Syracuse and also
gone through a few alterations. Old family
debuts at the New York State Fair, showing
recipes have been modified for freshness.
off their craftsmanship and selling individual
Cookie designs, once drawn up and executed
cookies, including a horse-shaped cookie
by Tina Corso Hess herself, are now created
developed especially for the event.
by teams of professional cake decorators, who
But Hess didn’t start her business so grand-
are “master copycats” at designing each cook-
ly; it began in her kitchen. In 2001, after tak-
ie. They have experimented with different
ing some old family recipes and baking some
frostings to find the perfect one that looks and
edible gifts with her mother, Judy Corso, she
tastes good, but can also withstand shipping.
began branching out and selling gift baskets
You will find Corso’s Cookies inside the
involving her creations. “I always had a love
Center of Progress Building at the State Fair.
of art as well as for baking,” she notes. “This
The cookies cost from $1 to $3. For more
allowed me to add some creativity and art-
information, contact Corso’s Cookies at 487-
istry.” With her mother’s help, Hess filled the
2111 or visit their Web site at www.corsos
kitchen with cookies and started passing out
cookies.com.
business cards. By 2002 she quit her job as
—DAN RyS
4 Aug. 26 - Sept. 2, 2009 Syracuse New Times
NEWS & OPINION FEATURE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EVENTS CLASSIFIED WWW.SyRACUSENEWTIMES.COM
Syracuse New Times Aug. 26 - Sept. 2, 2009 5
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