Fancy Food Find: Star Kay White
In the “Fancy Food Find” series, take a closer look at some of the treats on display at the 2015 Winter Fancy Food Show.
You’ve seen vanilla extract, almond extract, perhaps even lemon or rose. But have you laid your eyes on extracts of chocolate? Garlic? Cilantro?
Star Kay White was one of the few businesses that captured my attention at WFFS15. The company prides itself on its storied 125-year history as a quality extract and flavor manufacturer. The privately owned company is still run by the Katzenstein family, now with the fifth generation running the show.
In 1890, chemist David Katzenstein founded Star Extract Works in New York City. Along with his brother Sam, the duo developed and sold flavors and extracts to local bakers, brewers, distillers, tobacconists, beverage and ice cream makers throughout New York, New England, and Pennsylvania. Prior to World War I, David partnered with White-Stokes Company’s Warren White to create Newark, NJ-based Kay-White Products. This second company specialized in butterscotch, marshmallow, chocolate, toffee, and butter pecan extracts and confections for ice cream. 1928 marked the construction of a modern facility combining all operations in the Bronx, as well as the formal launch of the company as Star Kay White. The company moved to a new custom-built facility in Congers, NY, in the 1980s; this site remains the location of the company’s campus.
Ben & Jerry’s, Häagen-Dazs, Breyers, and Hershey are household names. But did you know they are long-term Star Kay White customers? These companies and so many more are a testament to the stellar quality of the company’s products. Fortunately, the expansive portfolio is available to the home cook/baker for anything you might be making. All extracts are Kosher, Non-GMO Project Verified, gluten-free, and all natural.
I gave the extracts a spin in a number of recipes and was impressed by the clean, intense flavors they provided. Star Kay White overturns the idea that using flavors and extracts is restricted to your baking needs; the culinary extract line is a revelation to those raised on underwhelming dried versions and a powerfully-flavored shortcut to fresh versions. Check out some of my resulting dishes below:
Star Kay White has a good rule of thumb: you can always add more, but you can’t take it out! Here are their suggestions for flavoring approximately 2 cups (~1 pound) of mildly flavored batter or liquid:
Almond – 1 teaspoon
Clove – 1 ½ teaspoons
Cinnamon – 1 teaspoon
Chocolate – 1 teaspoon
Lavender – 2 teaspoons
Lemon – 1 teaspoon
Lime – 2 teaspoons
Orange – 1 teaspoon
Peppermint – ½ teaspoon
Rose – ½ teaspoon
Star Anise – 2 teaspoons
Vanilla – 1 teaspoon
If you need recipe ideas, who better to ask than the extract and flavor makers themselves?