At the intersection of passion and business

(Part 1)

This is ancient history, but back when I was in my twenties, a career and getting into business did not necessarily have anything to do with pursuing one’s passion, or turning that passion into a profit-making enterprise. They were often exclusive domains, and we were always told to first be “practical.” Thankfully, the spirit of entrepreneurship is very much alive today, and it’s always nice to discover young individuals “testing the waters and finding they can float!” The three young women who’ll be featured over the next few weeks all took the risk of going with what was close to their hearts, transforming that into business ventures that now enjoy excellent “word of mouth” reviews and hold great promise!

Entering the arena of premium, gourmet ice cream is no mean feat, but Alexandra Rocha, with her Pinkerton line, has been garnering great notices since she was still a university student. As she describes it, it started off with wanting to get into the frozen yoghurt craze and finding she was too late in the game when gifted with a home ice cream-making machine. Rather than letting the machine gather dust, Xandra read up, experimented like crazy, went with higher grade ingredients and aimed for a quality that most commercial brands would eschew — for example, she doesn’t incorporate air, making her line creamier, and less likely to ice or crystallize when subjected to electricity fluctuations.

Turning the craze for cupcakes into an ice cream, Pinkerton’s Red Velvet.

With flavors like Vanilla and Choco Nutella, Carrot Cake, Food for the Gods, Butterfinger and Milo, you know you’ve entered into a sublime arena of ice cream tastes. Her Candied Maple Bacon has actual bacon bits in them! For those suffering from diabetes or with sugar-free issues, she has three flavors, Honey Rosemary, Honey Coffee and Honey Banana, that use organic honey and coco sugar. Packed in gold tin cans, the Pinkerton label is carried in such eateries as 2nds and Empire Deli. A new venture, Dali, a Spanish-inspired tapas bar, has commissioned her to come up with new, exclusive flavors such as Sangria and “Chocolate con Churros” — and she swears you can get tipsy on her Sangria ice cream!

When I asked her what would be that dream flavor she still has to concoct, she waxed rhapsodic about vanilla bean, a balsamic vinegar reduction (sweet and yet tart) and fresh berries. You can order her Pinkertons by calling 0917-3611329, and having tried the Choco Nutella and her Guava Basil sorbet, I can guarantee you that you’re in for a totally different kind of ice cream experience! This is business at its sweetest!

Food for thought

The three novels today make for great reads, with lots to ruminate on and digest. One is a textured, contemporary romp through the world of witches and demons, the second operates on the premise of a chimp that talks; while the third is chick lit elevated to a different universal plane.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (available at National Bookstore): Enter the world of Deborah Harkness, where there are humans, like us, witches, demons and vampires — all co-existing under strained but peaceful circumstances. When Diana Bishop, Wiccan witch in denial, upsets that balance, a great fantasy/adventure story ensues. Set in Oxford University, where vampire Matthew takes it upon himself to be Diana’s protector... but is he? This novel reads like a grown-up and more mature Twilight. Fast-paced, sexy and still literate, this novel works on several levels.

Great ‘food for thought’!

The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore by Benjamin Hale (available at National Bookstore): Bruno Littlemore is a highly evolved chimpanzee that talks, and is this novel’s narrator. Lydia is the animal behaviorist that becomes his keeper and eventually, love interest. That forbidden love that blossoms, the reaction of the public, how Bruno tries with all his might to assimilate and be “human” while still being essentially “ape” — these all become the trajectory of this novel that dares to ask and examine what it really means to be human. Flawed, but engrossing!

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (available at Fully Booked): Rose, Bea and Cordy are three sisters whose father is an English Literature professor specializing in Shakespeare — so no prizes for guessing their full given names. Stuck in a smallish American university town, their father speaks exclusively in Shakespearean verse, and it’s part of the delightful eccentricities Brown utilizes to create her vivid, unforgettable characters. On the surface, a book for women, but the dysfunctional and very real aspects of the sisters’ relationships shine through.