Rowington’s Sweets is one significant step towards a dream come true. Baker Rosie Voon and her sugarcoated stall are new to the St. Albert Farmers’ Market this year, but if you search the far reaches of St. Thomas Street, you can spot the booth by its bright turquoise dĂ©cor and the cascading display of candy-coloured macarons.
Burnt out from years of working in an office, Voon felt that something was missing. She had dreamt of opening a bakery for the last few years, but the challenges and costs of launching a store from scratch were understandably intimidating for the completely self-taught baker. As such, she was casting about for an additional creative outlet – a way to express herself – when a friend suggested she try selling her treats at a farmers’ market or craft fair.
“It’s my first venture,” Voon says. “I was really, really scared because I didn’t know what to expect. But all the other vendors are really nice, the people that come are really nice, and the people organizing it.”
While Voon displays a mixture of treats along the front of her quaint booth, including caramels, candy popcorn and the occasional bag of chocolate-caramel dipped pretzels, her main focus is the macaron – possibly the most exacting of the French pastries.
“It’s the first thing that I’ve baked in my entire life that didn’t turn out on the first try,” admits Voon. “That didn’t somewhat turn out. Most of the things, they resemble what they’re supposed to be and if it doesn’t look the prettiest, it still tastes okay.”
Macarons, however, were not as accommodating. On Voon’s first attempt at conquering the light little sandwiches, the shells melted into sticky brown puddles across the baking sheet.
“Macarons were very difficult for me to learn,” she says. “When I was serious about learning to make them, it took me three weeks. I baked three or four batches of shells every single night trying to figure out how to make them.”
Her fiancĂ©, farmers’ market support staff and main taste taster, Dave Kotowicz, describes her learning process as ‘awesome.’
“She was sitting right in front of the stove with her little notebook taking notes every couple minutes and watching them as they did their thing, as they baked,” Kotowicz says. “She got to a certain point, she would take tons more notes, and then try them and be like, ‘no! They’re no good!’ and throw them out.”
Her rigorous macaron development process has yielded exceptional results. As Voon explains it, the pastry should give a slight crunch, as the thin outer-shell shatters, but the inside should be full and fluffy with a soft, yet chewy texture. It’s rare to find a version that hits all those marks, but Voon has managed to achieve this mysterious balance. It’s the Holy Grail for those with both a sweet tooth and a delicate palette.
Part of the reason the macaron has such a celebrated status in the pastry world is the fact that it can be served in basically any assortment of flavours – from fresh and fruity to rich and delectable. On this point, Rowington’s offers a pleasing assortment of scrumptious tastes, both for kids and for adults. Some of the highlights include her lavender, salted caramel and Cream of Earl Grey macarons, which she makes on a regular basis. Her seasonal or featured flavours include coconut lime, maple bacon, rose lychee and, Kotowicz’s favourite, spicy hot chocolate.
Currently, the St. Albert Farmers’ Market is the only place to find Rowington’s Sweets. While Voon admits her first month or so into the world of farmers’ market sales was slow, she says word of mouth is spreading and she’s been delighted to discover she now has returning customers.
“I was like, ‘you know, office work just really isn’t for me,’” says Voon. “But I really love baking and I wish that I could just bake and make people happy. Giving people baking – something homemade – it’s like you’re giving a piece of yourself and love, right? I love seeing the look on people’s faces when they eat things that I make and they just look so happy. I find that really fulfilling.”
