All The Treats That Are Fit To Eat!

This morning I read a blog that got me thinking about all of the different kinds of items that go into gift baskets. The author wrote about how much she loved the office breakroom after the holidays because coworkers will bring in items from gift baskets they received.
I think it's great to share. I received a big box of chocolates from my mother in law this Christmas. I love chocolates, and I know I would eat the whole box in short order and regret it soon after. So, I had a couple or three or four and brought the rest in to the Studio to share with customers and the crew.
But, as I said, the blog got me thinking about gift baskets that I have seen and that my family has received, that contained foods we had no interest in ! There were "weird" foods I couldn't imagine who would want to eat.
I include some "interesting" food products in my gift baskets. A couple of examples are Cape Cod's Caviar by Appalachian Naturals and Bog Frogs by Cape Cod Provisions, LLC. Cape Cod's Caviar is a delicious organic cranberry sauce and Bog Frogs are a yummy cranberry, cashew, and caramel chocolate covered candy. The names just happen to be unusual.
When I was forming my business plan for Laurel Mountain Basket Company I vowed not to include items in my gift baskets that I personally wouldn't enjoy receiving. Because I am not a big fan of spicy foods, I make my husband taste test the salsa, salad dressings, mustards and such while I concentrate on the chocolates and cookies. Our dogs even test the dog treats and toys we use in our pet gift baskets! Taste testing new product is one activity that I don't have trouble recruiting help for.
My husband likes to sample the inventory so much that I am afraid to leave him in the Studio for very long unsupervised. He really loved it when I was operating the business out of the house because there was always a great supply of great snack food within walking distance of his recliner and remote. He especially likes the Ghiraradelli and Guylian chocolates, and Brent & Sam's and Nonni's cookies.
In addition to using these fine gourmet foods, we've searched out many excellent locally made products from companies like The Tea Guys, Terra Americana, and The Little House of Thyme to give our gift baskets that New England flavor.
At Laurel Mountain Basket Company our gift baskets are designed in good taste and designed to taste good.

Laurel Mountain Cupboard

I'm often asked where I get all of the wonderful products we use in our gift baskets. Although we design gift baskets for all occasions and themes, we are known through out the US for our New England style gift baskets. I believe one of the reasons they are so popular is that we work with a number of small local vendors. Having access to so many sources means that we always have a wide variety of items to choose from. I am always looking for new vendors from our local area or from around New England to add to our list.

I found my local honey supplier when a man approached me in the parking lot of a grocery store. (I have signs with the Laurel Mountain Basket Company logo and contact information on the front doors and tailgate). He is involved with a local apiary association and recommended a really fine apiary not two miles from my home. It is a small operation so I wasn't surprised I had not heard of them but their honey is fantastic!

I was recently asked by a client to custom design a breakfast gift basket . He had seen the one on our site but he needed one for a group of 20 to 30 people and he wanted us to use products from all six New England states. The challenge was to find product that was ready to eat since the gift basket would be presented at a morning breakfast meeting of corporate executives. We contacted a local bakery (one of my personal favorites) to provide fresh breads and muffins then set out to find several different jams, jellies and honeys, as well as fresh roasted coffee, blended tea (check out our friends at www.teaguys.com if you want some really excellent tea!)and other items like cheeses and salsas. It goes without saying that all of the products we use at Laurel Mountain Basket Company have to be delicious, but we require that they have a nice presentation too. Our gift baskets are a reflection on our clients and our job is to help our clients make a great impression.

I found so many wonderful new products while designing that gift basket that I decided to add an new element to Laurel Mountain Basket Company . We will be stocking our Studio with many of the locally made products that we use in our gift baskets and make them available to our clients. A couple of jars of jelly or a small jar of honey and a canister of tea make a great little gift. So, stop by and check out the cupboard!

Happy New Year,
Marie

A Little Taste of New England

I love New England. To me it's not a place so much as a state of mind. So when I started Laurel Mountain Gift Basket Company almost 10 years ago, I created gift baskets that reflected the tastes and the people of New England. I sought out local artisans, farmers, chocolatiers, herb growers and sugar house operators, and developed a line of gift baskets made up almost entirely of locally produced goods.

Our line of New England Gift Baskets has been very successful, and as we discovered new products, we were able to increase the number of designs we could offer. So I was really excited when I discovered Appalachian Naturals a producer of all natural, certified organic foods made from ingredients grown on small New England farms. Now we will be able to add a line of all natural and organic products like their Veracruz Salsas and Cape Cod Caviar to our own New England gift baskets!

From Cape Cod to the Berkshires, from Maine to Rhode Island, we bring the taste of New England to where ever you are!

Greetings From Laurel Mountain

Greetings from Massachusetts! My name is Marie. I live with my husband Vic and our two rescued dogs, Dana (left) and Fox (right) on a very large hill situated in a very small town in Western Massachusetts.

We own and operate Laurel Mountain Basket Company a full service gift basket company with a retail site in Easthampton and on line at http://www.laurelmtbasket.com/.

The company newsletter, in which I write about all kinds of irrelevant things, is called The View From Laurel Mountain. I wanted to keep my life simple so I gave my blog the same name.

Keeping life simple is getting more difficult every day. I am a very low tech person trying to get along in a very high tech world. Last week I changed the telephone service provider at the business and today I spent a good hour trying to reprogram my speed dial numbers. For someone who still remembers party lines, reprogramming a telephone is a challenge! My 15 year old nephew can't believe I am so inept.

I love living in the country. We have a little red fox (not the one pictured above) that has set up housekeeping down the hill, humming birds visit our feeder every evening, and a really insane Cardinal pecks at our family room window while we watch television. I wish I knew what she wants. She probably doesn't like my choice of programming.

Time to put on another hat and get back to work.

Thanks for visiting. See you again soon.

Marie