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A SWEET Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a holiday full of food– turkey, sweet potatoes, stuffing, and much more! But some might say that the most important part of every meal is at the end– the dessert! We have the perfect desserts that are sure to be a hit at your Thanksgiving dinners!

A classic dessert that is a staple in every Thanksgiving meal… PIE! Many people consider pumpkin pie the go-to Thanksgiving dessert. While pumpkin pie is delicious and always compliments a Thanksgiving meal, there are so many options for pies alone! Peach, pecan, cherry, blueberry, and–Angelo Caputo’s favorite and an american classic– apple pie! So many options to satisfy any craving. While you’re picking out the perfect pie, don’t forget the ice cream to go with it!

Our bakery has cooked up some special treats specifically for the holiday! Butter cookies with holiday sprinkles, brownie platters decorated for thanksgiving, cookie cakes decorated for Thanksgiving or for the football game, and turkey cakes! Turkey cakes are individual cakes covered in chocolate and decorated to look like turkeys. They are just as delicious as they are cute!

Along with holiday desserts are the classic desserts. Our bakery has a wide variety of homemade desserts that are perfect for any occasion. Tiramisu, cannoli, pyramid cakes, eclairs and so much more! There are options for everyone to enjoy! In addition to those is our classic twist on cannoli! We offer a cannoli dipper which is a tray with cannoli chips and and cannoli filling in the middle of the tray–perfect for any party!

Let us do the work– stop by to pick up a dessert that will please all of your loved ones! Need some last minute items on Thursday? We’re open and here to help! Our holiday hours are:

Elmwood Park: 6am-6pm

Addison: 7am-5pm

Bloomingdale: 7am-5pm

Hanover Park: 7am-5pm

South Elgin: 7am-5pm

Naperville: 7am-5pm

Carol Stream:7am-5pm

 

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How About Them CARAMEL Apples

Fall is in full gear with Halloween being only weeks away. People are prepping for parties, picking costumes, and even beginning Thanksgiving meal prep. It is the time for sweet treats to take center stage as they are a staple in all the upcoming festivities. A treat that has a perfect mix of health and deliciousness are caramel apples!

Caramel apples came about in the 1950s when Dan Walker, a sales representative for Kraft Foods, was experimenting with leftover Halloween candies from the company. It was a pretty simple combo as all he did was melt down some of the remaining caramels and then dip apples in them to create a crunch. He did not know it at the time, but he was creating a dessert that would become a fall favorite. Dan Walker’s simple creation has evolved in many ways. Today, there are many different apples, caramels, chocolates, and toppings that go into making more complex caramel apples.

At Caputo’s, we believe in simple, fresh ingredients. We use this to make our own caramel apples! Our process starts with the apple. We want the juiciest apples for this dessert, so we use honeycrisp apples! Our honeycrisp apples come from farms around the US, usually Michigan or Washington. Honeycrisp apples range in size from medium to large and are characterized by their incredibly sweet flavor with subtle tart underlyings. Honeycrisp apples, sometimes called honey crunch apples, have a reputation of being one of the sweetest apples. The sweetness and subtlety of tartness compliment each other to make a juicy apple, perfect for dunking in caramel! The next step of the caramel apple process is the main event– the caramel! We prepare to dunk the apples by putting a stick in the core of the apple. We take caramel and melt it down, then submerge the apple in caramel. After the apple is properly and fully covered, the toppings get added! We use a variety of toppings like sprinkles, nuts, and chocolate candies. No matter what topping, the caramel apples are the perfect treat. The sweet, crunchy apple mixed with the decadent, soft caramel and the fun variety of toppings makes for happy and satisfied taste buds! Stop by and get one to test out for yourself!

Don’t forget that October 31st is National Caramel Apple Day! Be sure to enjoy a caramel apple while getting ready for trick-or-treating!

 

Check out this video for an inside look into how we make our caramel apples:

 

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Carving Out Some Fun!

Fall is in the air! As soon as October approaches, people are gearing up for all the fun fall festivities there are to do– hayrides, haunted houses, seasonal drinks, and so much more! A favorite amongst the Angelo Caputo family was picking and carving pumpkins thanks to the unique way our founder and my grandfather, Angelo Caputo, did Halloween!

Our family always had a unique way of carving pumpkins. We wouldn’t carve pictures into the pumpkin or make it a Jack O’Lantern, we had a different way of doing it which involved goodies from around the store! It would start with my grandfather taking us to Caputo’s to pick a pumpkin. There were so many to choose from and Nonno Angelo would help us pick the perfect one and then load it into the cart. After we picked out our pumpkins, we would go around and find different foods and props for our pumpkins to make faces! We would get things like chestnuts or lychee for the eyes, a gourd or a pepper for the nose,smaller pumpkins or corn husks for the ears, hay for the hair, and no pumpkin was complete without a carrot as a pipe! We could come up with any crazy idea and Nonno Angelo would do it for us.

 

When we got home from picking up our tools and ingredients for our pumpkins, my parents and Nonna Romana were waiting for us with the kitchen ready! The first thing we would do is cut open the top and clean the insides of the pumpkins. We would separate all the seeds and give them to Nonna Romana so that she could roast the pumpkin seeds. We would let them soak in some water so that all the pulp would come off. Then Nonna would salt them, put some olive oil, and put them in the oven! While she was doing this, we would be helping direct the carving! The adults would cut the holes and we would put the food in the proper places. After that, we would draw or paint all the finishing touches on our pumpkins!


We have a fun Halloween tradition, what are yours? Do you have a unique way that you carve pumpkin or think your design is the best? Stop by Angelo Caputo’s Fresh Markets, pick out your perfect pumpkin, then send us a picture of you and your creation! Email your pumpkin carvings to events@caputomarkets.com and the coolest pumpkin will win a $20 gift card to Caputo’s! The finalists will be put to a vote and the winner will be contacted by email. Submit your pictures to events@caputomarkets.com before October 29th at 2pm for a chance to win!