DeRusha Eats: Favorable Treats In South Minneapolis
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Favorable Treats is about more than just cookies; it's about a business woman with passion and a dream.
Junita Flowers wants you to feel the love in every batch. Her journey to a loud, commercial kitchen in south Minneapolis starts with a childhood memory of spending time in her grandmother's kitchen.
"Every time I bite into it, it takes me to growing up, and licking the beater when my grandmother would bake cookies," she said.
Favorable Treats mixes fresh-from-scratch frozen cookie dough in rented space in a Minneapolis commercial kitchen. Instead of putting all of that dough into a tub and freezing it, Flowers pre-portions it out and flash-freezes that dough.
"I make frozen, pre-portioned cookie dough. It's pre-portioned because families are busy, nobody has time," she said. "I've purchased cookie dough in the tubs, and when it's in my refrigerator it's hard!"
Favorable Treats started in 2009 as a side-gig for Flowers, who was working in the nonprofit world.
"I'm more of a rule-breaker. I like to create my own stuff; I've never been one to follow the same path as everyone else," said Flowers.
She sold at farmers markets, and did catering jobs selling cookie bouquets. But over the last couple years she's focused her business on frozen dough, sold at retail locations, including Whole Foods in the Twin Cities.
"When you believe in something, you figure out how to make it through," Flowers said.
Her cookies come in three varieties: triple chocolate chip, oatmeal peanut butter chocolate chip, and oatmeal raisin.
"There are people who don't like chocolate," she said, adding, "I'm not one of them."
Flowers says being an African-American female entrepreneur has come with challenges.
"I was told once I should focus on raising my family. From a business coach, not just someone on the street," said Flowers.
"When you have a cookie biz people didn't take me seriously. They said, 'oh that's so cute.' 'Oh, aren't you cute.' It wasn't until I got into Whole Foods where people took notice of the business and say 'well, maybe she is really serious about it,'" she said.
She is serious. And the cookies are seriously good.
Flowers is helping families create new, memories while recreating her own with grandma.
"Because she's not here any longer, it brings her here," she said. "It makes it that much sweeter."
You can find Favorable Treats at Whole Foods in St. Paul, Edina and Maple Grove, along with Lakewinds Food Co-op and Golden Fig Fine Foods.