Sweet 16!

JuicyJ and I walked the 56th annual summer Fancy Food Show on Monday, the day of they announced the winners of the sofi™ awards. We checked out  all of the new products and scoped out the flavor trends for the year. In the back of our minds, we were thinking about the day’s big event – the sofi™ awards ceremony. Would Ciao Bella win for the sixteenth time? There was no doubt that our Key Lime Graham Gelato Squares were absolutely, undeniably irresistable. But hey you never know.

As we took our seats, eagerly awaiting the anouncement for Outstanding Dessert or Dessert Topping, I couldn’t help but notice all of the other fantastic brands that were in attendance – Food Should Taste Good, Eleni’s NYC, Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery and Nielsen-Massey Vanillas to name a few. I felt proud to be a part of such a great organization, the NASFT, that recognizes the accomplishments of truly artisanal, specialty companies. And even more proud that Ciao Bella was among them.

So here we are as they are reading the other nominees fingers crossed, butterflies in our stomach and camera ready (of course) -

• Ciao Bella Gelato for Key Lime Graham Gelato Squares
• De Medici Imports, LTD for La Salamandra Dark Chocolate Dulce de Leche
• New England Herbal Foods for Danielle Fruit Chips: Roasted Coconut
• The Great San Saba River Pecan Company for Pecan Pie In-A-Jar

And the sofi™ goes to … Ciao Bella Gelato!

We jumped up screaming and clapping with both excitement and relief, somewhat forgetting where we were. Ciao Bella has done it again. Our sixteenth sofi™ Gold! At that moment I couldn’t help but think, Ciao Bella has the stuff that dreams are made of and boy am I glad.

Until next time.

~ coconutKate

The Key Lime Graham Gelato Squares were one of 140 sofi™ Silver Finalists selected from a record 2,257 contenders this year by a national panel of specialty food experts.

Ciao Bella’s Key Lime Graham Gelato Squares are available at Whole Foods Market, Target, Ralph’s, Kings, Costco, IceCreamSource.com, and other retailers nationwide.

About sofi™:

The sofi™ Awards are open to members of the NASFT, a not-for-profit trade association established in 1952 to foster commerce and interest in the specialty food industry. Today there are more than 2,900 members in the U.S. and abroad. For further information on the NASFT and its sofi Awards, go to www.specialtyfood.com/sofi.