Summer is here in full “all in” mode, and so are summer treats.
Story by Dave Eckert
Many of those treats are fun, whimsical, and are served on a stick. You can find sweet sticks treats – popsicles are probably the most famous and easiest to find versions of those. You will also see, and taste, many savory food on a stick offerings. Kabobs and other grilled items fill the void there! I wanted to dig a little deeper, so I asked some of my talented chef friends and fellow foodies for their thoughts. Holy cow! Before I knew it, I was down a rabbit hole of Summer on a Stick!
I can’t possibly list all of the sticky options I was sent, but let’s start with a short daytrip to the Northern Missouri town of Gallatin and the Cake Pop Bakery. Cake Pop Bakery is run by husband-and-wife team, Michelle Kenyon and Sean Forfar. The couple opened the shop three years ago following a multi-year run in the catering business. They still cater, and their shop features pies, cakes, sandwiches, and pizza, among other items, in addition to their showcase cake pops, the sales of which are as unpredictable as the cake pops are delicious. “It’s impossible to know how many to make,” Forfar told me during a recent visit to the bakery. “One day, someone will walk in and buy the whole case. The next, if we make more to compensate for that, no one shows up and we end up losing them.”
Kenyon says the couple’s obsession with cake pops started with Patrick Mahomes’ obsession with putting ketchup on his steaks. Forfar asked her if she could create an edible cake pop using ketchup. She did, and the pops, and the couple, were off and running. “Our hook was ‘ketchup and cake, it’s not just for steak anymore.’ We got a lot of media attention when we first created those. Our cake pop business took off after that,” Kenyon shared. Cake Pop Bakery’s business continues to grow. In fact, the couple plans to move their bakery to a higher traffic area this summer. Wherever they land, Cake Pop Bakery is definitely worth “popping by” for a visit.
Fellow foodie, Katherine Gordon, offered more summery culinary options than you could shake a stick at. Here are a few of my personal favorites. “I made s’mores on sticks when my daughter was young, and she still loves them. Crush graham cracker and spread on plate. Melt chocolate. Roast several marshmallows on a stick, dip into chocolate and roll in the grahams. Pizza on a stick: alternate mini meatballs with mozzarella balls and pepperoni, wrap with thin dough and bake. Dip into marinara. Wellington on a stick: cube of beef tenderloin with mushroom caps and sweet onion wrapped in puff pastry and baked. Au jus dipping sauce. My favorite dessert one: wedge of cheesecake dipped into melted chocolate, drizzled with strawberry sauce, and chilled. For outdoor casual events, I do sticks to have one hand free. Hamburgers on a stick: form a beef log on a stick and partially cook, then wrap with pizza dough that already had condiments added before wrapping; dogs and sausages cooked the same way,” Gordon shared. Wow, just wow!
Finally, from chef and good friend, Carey Weir, the best and the most interesting of all foods on a stick ideas I was sent, in my opinion – Steckerlfisch, which Weir had with her daughter and husband at Oktoberfest in Germany last year. “Steckerlfisch is an iconic Bavarian dish and a popular meal served at Oktoberfest. It was first introduced to the fair in the early part of the 20th century by a local fish merchant. The fish is grilled over wood embers, wrapped in paper, and served with a squeeze of lemon. That’s it, though you always get a big Bavarian pretzel to go with it, along with a bier, of course,” Weir recalled. “It’s typically mackerel, whitefish, char, or bream. Steckerlfisch is Bavarian for ‘little stick.’ The way they angle the fish over the coals allows the fat to run down the fish but not into the fire. We were all obsessed with it. It was like 10:00 am, and we were only there for an hour because we had to get back on the boat. We almost missed the bus that took us back, waiting for the Steckerlfisch. It was worth it, though, as it was one of the best bites I had in the entire trip!”
From Cake Pops to Steckerlfisch, and everything in between, there’s your summer.
