Twist on tradition

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Weekends in December, the front window of Pastries by Design will be filled with more than pearl-lined, edible flower-covered wedding-cake displays.

Owner of the Lakewood Ranch Main Street bakery, Sandra Byers, is opening her doors to partner with annual candy cane crafter Pete Vrinios.

The duo is working together to create a visual experience for customers; they offer a chance to go behind the scenes of the striped seasonal sweet.

The public can watch the process of making candy canes, followed by a chance to get involved by dipping a cane in chocolate and dusting red and green sprinkles on top — a twist on Vrinios’ tradition.
Byers will dip her hands in the Vrinios family business, which dates back to 1898, by incorporating the Pastries by Design tradition of covering various sweets in chocolate. To do so, her microwave will stay busy this holiday season as she and her employees use it melt more than an estimated 25 pounds of imported Swiss chocolate, in which they will dip the candy canes.

As for Vrinios, the 55-year candy cane veteran welcomes the task of submerging his 10 flavors into white or dark chocolate — something he has never done before.

“I think the combination of candy canes and chocolate is a new way of presenting these gourmet candy canes — an addition that makes it even more unique,” Vrinios said.

Turning the cake display window into a workshop took some time and muscle last week, as Vrinios and his assistant, Ryan Beckley, prepared for their first customers. Moving unneeded boxes out of the way and utilizing a table half the size of the room, they created a space suitable for assembly-line production.

Beckley helped with more than cleaning the baking trays, however. He traveled from his home in Illinois — from where Vrinios moved 10 years ago — to lend a hand, and to help with candy transportation.

Earlier this week, he hauled thousands of candy canes to businesses in the Midwest state that pre-ordered the peppermint pleasures.

Regular foot traffic in the bakery, along with the crowd Vrinios attracts, excites Byers.

A newer face in the area, she hopes working with Vrinios, who dusts off his copper kettles to make the candy canes at a different business each year, will help make her shop a familiar spot in Lakewood Ranch.

She plans to use the peppermint theme throughout the winter months, even after Vrinios packs up his equipment. His family’s tradition sparked a line of holiday treats that will fill her cases this season, including using candy-cane remnants to create peppermint cupcakes and bark.

Byers also put together a trivia contest as part of the First Friday festivities Dec. 6, on Lakewood Ranch Main Street. Customers guessed how many candy canes are in each batch — 125.

In return for drawing attention to the local business and its owner, and being the muse for a slew of new holiday treats, Vrinios has a guaranteed workspace.

The stay-at-home father waits all year to boil the sugar that, after a process of twisting and stretching, transforms into candy canes he will sell for $5 each, until Dec. 22.

“We’re both small, family-oriented businesses, hoping to get that community involvement,” Byers said. “I have the space and the location, so I thought working together would be something different and fun.”

As families get their fill of a marriage of chocolate and peppermint, two small business owners hope their temporary union can add to two long-lasting traditions.

BY THE NUMBERS
10 — Number of candy cane flavors
25 — In pounds, amount of sugar it takes to make 125 candy canes and pounds of chocolate to be melted this month
40 — Number of pounds that one batch of candy canes weighs
125 — Number of candy canes in a batch

IF YOU GO
Watch the making of candy canes from 1 to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays this month, at Pastries by Design, 10067 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch.

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].