If the kitchen is filled with the scent of warm cookies, you’ll probably find Susan Dolinko in Garden State Kitchen’s custom space for professional bakers. She’s there a few times a week making treats for her customers, both human and canine, during farmers market season. And she likes to share her creations.
“If you’re working in the kitchen the same time as me and smell something incredible, you can have a cookie to taste,” she says, “you know, to make sure it’s good.”
Through her company Save the Crumbs Cookies, Susan sells packs of Dogscotti, wholesome treats for dogs she makes with meat, eggs and vegetables. For humans, she bakes gourmet biscotti in combinations like chocolate chip hazelnut and pistachio mango. For people, classic cookies are also on the menu – oatmeal, chocolate chip or peanut butter, some made without sugar, all with a nice crunchy bite.
The idea for the name came to Susan while she was slicing a batch of her signature biscotti. Her friend saw the delicious crumbs left on the cutting board and asked if she could brush them on top of her yogurt. Since it was a cookie fit for humans, Susan said yes. A delicious treat, and a fun, irreverent brand, was born.
Save the Crumbs Cookies leans on clever marketing – the company tagline “Nom ~ Nom ~ Nom Crunchy Cookies and Biscotti for People and Their Pets” speaks to the products. Dogscotti flavors are named after dogs with big personalities, each package featuring a furry face and the story behind their canine adventures and flavor preferences. While Grace likes beef, Ruby wants chicken. Then there’s Rowdy who needs things salt-free, and Susan’s own Arlo who will do anything for a bacon and peanut butter reward.
While she loves dogs, interacting with customers is Susan’s specialty and an important way she grows her business. It’s been a challenge in these socially distant times, but she’s found new ways to connect. Since sampling is not allowed at the markets this year, she created special mini packages for people to take home and taste. To stand out from the crowd, she celebrates sales by ringing a cow bell. She also takes contactless donations for local hunger relief organizations and rewards online pre-orders of $24.95 or more with a 25” social distance fork.
While Save the Crumbs Cookies is in three farmers markets this year, Susan started at the West Orange Farmers Market last year. After she completed The Formula at Garden State Kitchen, a six-week series of workshops for entrepreneurs, she decided to push her business to the next level and joined the kitchen community.
Look for Save the Crumbs Cookies online and on Instagram, Facebook and Etsy. Find Susan at farmers markets in West Orange, Little Falls and Bell Works Fresh in Holmdel, and help keep her cow bell ringing.
