The Pittsburgh Dish
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The Pittsburgh Dish
062 Scott Baker and Jenny Lee’s Legacy
(01:06) Scott Baker, a fifth-generation baker and president of Five Generation Bakers, unveils the rich legacy behind Pittsburgh's beloved Jenny Lee Bakery. It's all about family tradition, resilience, and reinvention.
Through fascinating family anecdotes, Scott traces the evolution from that first bakery to the Seven Baker Brothers wholesale operation, to the birth of Jenny Lee in 1938—named after a popular Guy Lombardo song. As Jenny Lee expanded to 14 locations throughout Pittsburgh, it became a treasured institution, famous for its buttercream cakes and exceptional baked goods.
(10:15) When disaster struck in 2006 with a devastating Thanksgiving Day fire, followed by the 2008 recession, the original Jenny Lee Bakery closed its doors. However, Scott's discovery of his grandfather's handwritten notes and photos sparked a new beginning, launching Five Generation Bakers to restore the Jenny Lee legacy through their famous swirl breads.
(20:10) Scott shares exciting developments including their new baking mixes that let customers recreate authentic Jenny Lee treats at home, and the upcoming Jenny Lee Breakfast Nook restaurant opening in Moon Township.
(37:15) Later in the show, Catherine Montest shares a spicy trend for white wine, and we revisit the lemon posset, a perfect warm weather dessert, with Steven Bright. Enjoy the show!
Welcome to The Pittsburgh Dish. I'm your host, Doug Heilman. Did your family members have fond memories of the Jenny Lee Bakery legacy? We learn what Jenny Lee is up to right now with President Scott Baker. Want to spice up your chilled white wine this summer? Katherine Montest shares a trend that will do just that. Catherine Montest shares a trend that will do just that. And if you're searching for the perfectly simple and cool summer dessert with only three ingredients, we step back in the archives and remind everyone of Steven Bright's Lemon Posset recipe. All that ahead, stay tuned. The Pittsburgh Dish is supported by Third Space Bakery. Join me on June 26th for a special event with local cookbook author Jessica Merchant of How Sweet Eats. We'll be showcasing Jessica's latest book Easy Everyd ay. This event is presented in partnership with White Whale Books and tickets are available at thirdspacebakerycom. Now on to the show. Thank you so much for coming over and for being on the show. Would you introduce yourself to our listeners and what you have going on right now in the world of food?
Scott:Absolutely, Doug. Hey, thank you for having me. It's such a pleasure to be here and talk to you and tell you a little bit about Jenny Lee. So my name is Scott Baker. I'm the fifth generation of my family in the business, the baking business. Yes, so my company is called Five Generation Bakers. We're the spinoff of Jenny Lee Bakery. Five generation, as I just alluded, is a literal term. Yes, my great-great-grandfather emigrated to the United States in the 1860s and started a family and had opened his first bakery Well, I guess his only bakery. He only had one, but he opened up the Michael A Baker Bakery in 1875 in the West End of Pittsburgh.
Doug:Okay, Steuben Street right.
Scott:Steuben Street.
Doug:I think I read some of the about in your website there.
Scott:And it was at about 25 Steuben Street. So if you're going through the West End Circle and you cross over the train tracks like you're going up towards Crafton. Pretty much right beyond those railroad tracks is where 25 Steuben Street would have been.
Doug:Oh, I mean, that's actually really close to where we're recording right now. It is sort of fun for me.
Scott:Right, right Could be there on a bicycle in 10 minutes.
Doug:I know right right right. So, I love it started right here, really, in the city, or in just the outskirts of the city, and it's gone on in many iterations for five generations. That's correct, Right, right. Tell me a little bit about your dad, then, and that lineage from Jenny.
Scott:Lee Sure. So you know my dad, uh, and and and I'll. I'll actually start from from Michael A Baker. Yes, um, he had, he had seven sons and eventually they all joined his business, changed the name to the seven Baker brothers. Yes, it was the largest whole wholesale bakery in Pennsylvania back in that time. They were pretty, pretty neat stories I've heard about them. They they rented a plane so that they could be the only bakery that delivers by air. I mean, it was a stunt, it was a marketing stunt, but it was effective. They coined the terms wholesome baked products, wonder baked products. A lot of people have heard a wonder, I don't want to say the name but, you know,
Scott:some other products out there. They actually originally coined that term and that business continued until in the 1940s. And there were some challenges. That was going on, you know, obviously that time with World War II and just coming off their depression. Yes, before the seven Baker brothers closed their doors, my grandfather, the third generation, he, and a cousin, Bernard McDonald, had their ideas to get into business for themselves. So they started writing their business plan for a retail bakery. Seven Baker Brothers was more of a wholesale bakery and back at that time wholesale didn't necessarily mean commercial business to business, but it was door to door. They were like the milkman, they were the bread men. They delivered up into Erie, into Youngstown, into Altoona, via horse and buggy. My goodness, they delivered bread door to door.
Doug:I think I would like that. By the way, If somebody wanted to deliver bread, let's do that I think they're doing it now.
Scott:Walmart and Amazon gets fresh food to our doors these days.
Doug:Oh my gosh.
Scott:It's crazy how it all comes full circle. It does so. Anyways, grandpap and I never knew his cousin Bernard. He was drafted into the war and it was a pilot and he was shot down and killed. This was in 1944 that Bernard McDonald died. My dad was born in 45 and that became his namesake, so my dad's name is Bernard. But anyways, backing up to the third generation, grandpap and Bernard were starting to write their business plan and they enlisted two of their uncles, two of the seven Baker brothers, to help them come up with a business plan and write their draft. And I know eventually you're going to ask me where's the name Jenny Lee come from.
Scott:Everyone, always asks that It'd be fun to say it was my grandma. Or you know, I joke a lot and say it was my grandfather's mistress, but anybody that knows him knows he just spun again in his grave. Sorry, grandpapa, you know he was the most straight-laced and ethical person you'd ever meet. So when they were working on their business plan, uncle Frank, one of the seven Baker brothers, waltzed into a meeting late and grandpapa was like Uncle Frank, we're already on line three, do you have an idea for the name of the bakery? And Uncle Frank had come in whistling a song and he said Sweet Jenny Lee from sunny Tennessee. And apparently and I've done some research, I mean it's not just apparent, it was real. There was a song in the 1930s, recorded by Guy Lombardo, that was pretty popular he was actually the third or fourth artist to perform it and didn't really take off until he had recorded it. And so had my great-great-uncle Frank not heard that Sweet Jenny Lee from Sunny Tennessee song, who knows what the bakery would have been named.
Doug:Isn't that interesting timing too. Yes, probably. If he wasn't late, he might not have heard it. He would have been on time Right, right, right.
Scott:And the funny thing is is too. That's why our logo is the southern bell, because sweet jenny lee was from tennessee interesting so then, you know, in 1938 they got the bakery off the ground. They started in the in the corner of the gc murphy building and what then was known as pittsburgh's diamond market today market square yeah in market square, yep and um you, and it was an open-air market that people from Crafton or Dormont or all parts of the city would come in, bring their wares and set up shop and sell them out in the open market, and originally their plan was to just become a retail outlet for Seven Baker Brothers products.
Scott:Within the first couple of months he had requests for donuts, which is not something that the Seven Brothers made. So he rented a fryer, bought a fryer, put it in the front window and started frying donuts, and then he started making cookies that the Seven Baker Brothers didn't make and started making other items. By the end of the first year he was making everything himself and they didn't have the space in a GC Murphy building for that much production. So they rented space from a bakery in Dormant. Okay, I'm not sure the exact name of the bakery, it might've been Kohler's bakery, but Francis Kohler was a very good friend of my grandfather's, it was her family's business and they had rented space to Grandpap and they would bake it and bring it in in the morning and sell it out of the GC Murphy building. Well, by a year or two in that space they completely outgrew it. So 1941, three years after the bakery had opened, they bought their first building in McKee's Rocks Right and so they moved the entire production operation there and that became store number two. So, and he continued to grow the bakery. Eventually he had three separate locations in McKee's Rocks, one in West Park. He had the candy kitchen. It was actually a restaurant along with a little candy store, you know. And then you know fifties and sixties. They continue to grow.
Scott:My dad was the youngest of three. Uh, his older brother, the oldest brother, jim, middle brother, rich, and my dad, bernie. Um, their ages are separated by four years. There was one year that they were all at Notre Dame together. Uncle Jim was a senior and my dad was a freshman. But Uncle Jim graduated from Notre Dame and worked for, I believe, us Steel, one of the big legacy companies in Pittsburgh. Uncle Rich went to fight for us in Vietnam. He actually served on a swift boat with John Kerry, wow. And then my dad graduated Notre Dame in 67 and immediately joined the family business. So even though he was the youngest, he was the first one in the business.
Doug:Oh my.
Scott:And at this point they continue to grow genuinely. I recall my dad saying that one of the first projects he worked on was opening up our Kenmar store, which, as we opened up a store, we up our Kenmar store, which is as we opened up a store, we you know we became the Kenmar store, but then we also assigned it a number. Kenmar was number seven. Eventually, in the heyday and in the early eighties, there were up to 14 locations all around Pittsburgh and I think at that point in time there was Ray's bakery.
Doug:I'm not sure if they were bigger than us or not, but they had multiple locations. I think Jenny Lee was probably the premier bakery in Pittsburgh. So many memories for these folks of going to.
Scott:Jenny Lee to get a sweet treat. All these different things.
Scott:I love it. It's able to continue the legacy. First of all, the family trade, the family business. But when I opened up Five Generation Bakers and it was a period of time it was pretty difficult. When Jenny Lee had a major fire in 06 on Thanksgiving Day shut us down. My mom and dad, committed to the legacy of my grandfather, committed to their customers and their employees, decided to rebuild and we reopened just in time for the great recession oh, in 2008, and we opened up mid seven, okay, and we're trying to rebuild.
Scott:We had, you know, all of our retail business back, but we also supplied 20 supermarkets at that time and the supermarkets weren't going to wait months for donuts or decorated cakes.
Scott:So they had to find find replacement suppliers, and we get it, and we were just fighting to get that business back. But as we're trying to get our revenue back up, the recession hits and then costs go out of sight, and it just wasn't. You know costs that you could pass along to your customers, and so, you know, my parents made the very difficult decision in August of 2008 to close the doors, you know, and at first I find myself, you know, pissed off on unemployment for the first time in my life, burnt out and uh, but still traveling from Zillion Opal to McKee's rocks every day to help my dad liquidate and inventory his business. And, um, a couple months ago I'm doing this and, um, you know, a couple of months go by and at this point the anger had subsided. And this was a huge building, doug, it was a 34, 35,000 square foot building, and we're German, we don't throw anything away. So I find this file box that was taped shut. It had my hand, my grandfather's handwriting on it, said 1978 or something like that. I cut it open. And I find this file box that was taped shut. It had my hand, my grandfather's handwriting on it, said 1978 or something like that. I cut it open and I find some, some file folders in there that have newspaper clippings and family photos and and things you know from when he was starting over and newspaper stories about Jenny Lee. And I was just like you know what I'm a fifth generation baker, I can do this and that really was my aha moment, um, a spark. It was like you know what I'm a fifth generation baker, I can do this and that really was my aha moment A spark. It was Absolutely, Absolutely.
Scott:I went home that night Actually it's kind of funny because I had a job offer from a buddy of mine that I'd known for a while. He was an entrepreneur, he had a sign business and he had offered me a national sales manager position. It was close to double the amount of money I ever made in my life. And I get home that night and I said to my wife I said, joelle, I don't think I can accept Ed's offer. And she's like, oh yeah, why not? And I said, well, here's my idea. I think I need to start a business. And fortunately she comes from a family of entrepreneurs as well. And she's like you know what, scott, if you need to do that, then let's do it, and I love it. I never looked back.
Doug:I love it, and so you're the fifth generation Right Bakery or baker.
Scott:Five generation bakers. It's a very descriptive name. Yes, five generation bakers. People always get it mixed up. It's either fifth generation bakery, you know five generations of baker. It's like you know. I just wanted a descriptive name that might fool some banks into giving me money because I'm an established business. Well, you have the legacy for sure it didn't work.
Steven:I didn't get any money.
Scott:But you know I could not leave Jenny Lee on the sidelines. That was a brand, it was a Pittsburgh institution and so immediately my bread was Jenny Lee's Swirl Bread by Five Generation Bakers. And if you look at some early versions of our label, the name of the company and the brand are just as big as each other. Now, if you look he's grabbing a loaf that he brought me right now and I can show you on the side here, Five Generation Bakers is just a footnote on the side.
Doug:Yeah, sort of like diminished, you're still pushing. Now. Jenny Lee is in the forefront of all of it.
Scott:We had to tell a story. At first I didn't want people to think it was a continuation or some transfer of business. This was a new business a new strategy. But now you know, I look at it, it's Oreo cookies by Nabisco or Cheerios by General Mills. The company that makes the brand is just a footnote.
Doug:Exactly right. Yeah, scott, I do want to break down the current state now. You do not do retail anymore, right? Since the fire and then all of the sort of the reorganization and you forming this new company so folks can find Jenny Lee Swirl Bread in retail locations that you partner with. You're also on QVC. Yes, I am, is that right?
Scott:Yeah, so you're correct, we're a commercial manufacturer. Part of my strategy, I did not want to be a retailer.
Doug:You spend all night making donuts, and then you get a sudden snow, squall and half your customers don't come in.
Scott:Donuts have an 18 to 24 hour shelf life. So you know I was very intentional about being a manufacturer. I wanted to partner with expert retailers.
Scott:Shop and Save.
Scott:Giant Eagle, Eat n Park. Those type of entities are where you can find our breads and our products. You can, we do, offer pickup. You can go to JennyLeeSwirlbreadcom, yes, and order a package of bread to pick up, and this is down at McKee's Rocks. That's at McKee's Rocks. Yeah, you can go in.
Doug:Not necessarily a it's our reception area. Yeah, yeah, you're not going into a store, that's correct yeah. You're in the front of the big manufacturing house, right.
Scott:And we of direct-to-consumer via QVC and e-commerce.
Doug:I do want to say I don't want to spoil anything for folks, but I know things that you do beyond the bread now, Because I was gifted a few of these things and I made some darn good cookies. So, going back to the roots of Jenny Lee as a bakery and you mentioned earlier, there were sweets, there were donuts, there were other things you now have a product line beyond the bread. Can you tell me a little bit more about that?
Scott:So, Doug, one of the things I've found, it's 17 years since Jenny Lee Bakery is closed and I'm literally still asked two, three times a week. When are you going to make the buttercream case again? Can you make me the chocolate drop cookies? There's this one woman, Tammy, that just beats me up on social media to get these recipe for these chocolate chocolates. She wants her chocolate.
Doug:And I don't blame her.
Scott:They were good, but you know, 17 years that lives on and people were asking me for this and for that, and so, finally, I partnered with a blending company, um Tasty Blend, out of uh Frazier's, bottom, West Virginia, and we spent a year developing authentic box mixes that you can take at home. And now I'm not going to make that, but you can. You can make the blueberry muffins, you can make the chocolate chip cookies, you can make the birthday cake, and we've literally just launched this new product a couple of months ago. It's been so exciting. The response we're getting from people is it does taste exactly like I remember.
Doug:Oh, good see, I I baked with them, right? I don't have that uh taste memory that some folks have, sure. And and if I can just kind of chime in here, what I like about the mixes is that they are a bit of a blank canvas, like you can do a muffin mix with blueberries or something else like cranberries. You, you gave me the, the cookie mix and, uh, you can do chocolate chip cookies. I think I threw in some.
Scott:Yours were really good.
Doug:I did a brown butter in mine. I think I doubled the chocolate chips that you call for too. They were loaded, yeah yeah, and I think I threw in. Oh, what was the last thing? Oh, cranberries. I put cranberries in mine, yeah yeah. Not like not to toot my own horn, but the cookie mix is like it would. It made it super easy.
Scott:You won the competition, so I would toot your horn.
Doug:Well, I would say this too. So there's a yellow cake mix, there is a sweet dough, like, if you're going to make like cinnamon rolls, um am.
Scott:I missing anything? There's a the blueberry muffin, the yellow cake, uh, the sweet dough and the chocolate chip cookies, and we do have plans for for others to come out. But you nailed it like if you want to remember what jenny lee tasted like, follow the instructions on the back of the box to a t. If you want to amp them up, if you want to modify them, if you want to give them your own twist and pretend like you mixed it yourself from scratch, yes, by all means, please do it. And in fact I'm developing a website it's not live yet JennyLeeBakeMixcom where we intend to give tips and tricks, and I'd love to feature you on that website with your recipe from that competition.
Scott:So, you know, and also to show there's different ways. Everybody's home mixer is different. Somebody's using a hand blender, somebody might just be mixing by hand or a countertop, um yeah, like a kitchen aid exactly right I prefer the kitchen aid. That's what I use at home, I mean. So there are different ways to use each type of home equipment tweak it up a little bit.
Doug:You know just the technique's just a little bit different. You want everyone to get it perfect, right?
Scott:and I'll tell you a little. Other neat piece of pittsburgh history and baking industry is the bundy family from from pittsburgh, uh, crescent township, usa, pan. So their family goes way back. I went to high school with with some of the bundy's beautiful family um, nice big family like like the bakers and great pans pans by the way, I have many many USA pans in this house, right.
Scott:So we actually collaborated with the Bundy family and USA pan when we started to develop these mixes. Okay, you know, the idea was that they could bundle them with their pans. If they're going to sell a muffin pan, then it gives them an opportunity to sell the bake mix. How smart, right.
Doug:I love that synergy yeah.
Scott:And so they've become our biggest outlet for the bake mixes right now.
Doug:Well, that was sort of one of my questions when can folks find the baking mixes now?
Scott:USAPancom, JennyLeeSwirlbreadcom and, as of today, QVCcom.
Doug:I thought I saw them on the QVC site.
Scott:Literally that just went live today. I think there's a bug we're trying to work out.
Doug:We're recording in early June, so once you hear this, it's probably all worked out Perfect.
Scott:This is Scott Baker with Jenny Lee's World Bread, and you are listening to the Pittsburgh Dish.
Doug:All right, Scott. Beyond all of that, I'm going to go back to my original question and say what else do you have going on in the world of food? Oh, nothing much.
Scott:Let me think so. We very intentionally opened five generation bakers without a retail strategy. I am so excited we are opening the first ever Jenny Lee breakfast nook. It's going to be a breakfast and a diner and sandwich shop. The first location will be in moon township, where I grew up, and it's going to be, you know, sandwiches, french toast. The whole, the entire menu is designed around Jenny Lee breads.
Scott:Right, but the good thing is where people like you don't have a store. You're a bakery. I smell so good here, but I come in I can't buy. This will be a retail outlet for our breads and for our cake mixes, bake mixes, other items that we're making, as well as a daytime restaurant.
Doug:So, breakfast lunchy kind of place the breakfast will be. I'm excited because I have to say a couple of years back you were at one of the Good Taste Pittsburgh bake-its and you were making sandwiches on the spot. Specifically, I remember this is the savory breads you can get off of QVC you were doing something with, I think. Is there a tomato basil flavor? Oh my gosh.
Scott:I think I remember that event. I believe we were making a gourmet grilled cheese, so it was two slices of the tomato basil, california's tomato basil bread buttered up. California tomato basil bread buttered up, um, and we, and we toast both sides and then I think we were putting some spicy jalapeno cheese on there and, um, some fresh basil incredible little bit of garlic powder.
Doug:I don't know if you can answer this, but at the nook will we see any sandwiches or items like that?
Scott:Oh, absolutely. So, not just sweet, but savory and also lunchtimey things.
Doug:So you got it for sure.
Scott:Yeah, so, um, we're making, we've developed a smash burger. I'll show you this picture our chef. Um, you know, I don't have the time and I don't have the knowledge or experience to be a restaurateur or a cook or you know um, so I partnered with three exceptional restaurateurs. So the fun part of me developing this business with these guys is all the tasting meetings that we've had.
Doug:I can't imagine your job Right. That's incredible Right. And you mentioned it's going to be opening in Moon Right. Do you have a target timeframe for us now?
Scott:So I'm hoping that by the time this comes out, we're open.
Doug:We're targeting mid month. Okay, in June, in June, yeah, so June 2025.
Scott:Yeah, another week and a half.
Doug:Oh, my goodness Right. I truly had no idea when you were coming over today that it's that close. Yes, that's fun.
Scott:Yeah, in fact, this week we had a hiring job fair at the restaurant. Yeah, in fact, this week we had a hiring job fair at the restaurant. My cousin, who happens to be good friends with one of my partners, spent Tuesday and Wednesday building the coffee bar. Oh, that's, that's our plan is, immediately when you walk in, you'll see the coffee bar and be able to order a good cup of Joe. Um, you know, we, we anticipate that we'll do a good deal of takeout as well as dine in. We think there's going to be, you know, possibly about equal amounts of takeout and dine in and then, um, you know, possibly as much as 20% of our business will be.
Doug:You know, I call it swag, um, but just add-on sales, retail sales, yes, and that's where you're talking about the mixes or making the breads to go and stuff. You got it I love this. Can you remind me? Do you know the address off the top of your head?
Scott:Yes, it's 1014 Broadhead Road, moon Township. It's been a restaurant for many, many years, dating back to the 70s and 80s when I was growing up. It was formerly the Pompeo's Restaurant. Okay, a lot of first dates. A couple of last dates there.
Doug:There's memories. Right, right, right, and then it operated as Fritangelo Gardens which was a farmer's market and food outlet for many years. Scott Baker, you are such a true Pittsburgher because you're telling us what used to be there.
Doug:Right, it was down a street from the giant eagle, I know scott, you've already given us so much family history, and then what's going on currently with the business? It just has me wondering like what was food life like at home growing up, or or even now, like you know, was there baking at home? Yep, you guys use the products on a regular basis. Like what was food like? Oh, we ate dessert every night at home. Yep, you guys use the products on a regular basis. Like what?
Scott:was food like oh, we ate dessert every night at home growing up. Yeah, my, you know we never baked at home, or very rarely. I don't recall moments of baking. Why would you? Right? Yeah, but you know my dad would come home from the bakery the bag of goods every night. We always had something fresh. Well, we always gone to it. We wouldn't waste anything. We'd get a glazed donut and it'd be four days old. It'd be, you know, almost rock hard. But you cut it in half and toast it, put a little butter on it and that zaps it right up. Whole new thing.
Scott:But my mom is a wonderful, wonderful cook and we had I mean, we had dinner as a family together every night. In fact, you know I'm sitting here at your table with my arm on it. My mom used to put molasses on the table so that I wouldn't put my arm on the table. You had to eat with proper manners. But just, you know so many memories of sitting around the kitchen table with the family and talking about our day and enjoying a good meal. My mom, you know where we're Italian and where we're German. On my dad's side, my mom's half Italian, so I'm a quarter, so we've got. She served a lot of Italian meals and you know she learned how to cook from my grandma, who was also a wonderful cook.
Doug:I love that and I think I just keep thinking now that you are getting into a restaurant business. So just this world of taking food to the next level is everything for your. You know your profession and your livelihood at life.
Scott:Yeah, absolutely, you know it's. There's just so many good moments that happen around food, right, and it's what you're in this business. For a reason it makes people feel good. You know, and, frankly, Doug, one of the things that helped me determine my course of what career I was going to do I came out of high school. I was a lazy student. I, you know. I had some intelligence and and, um, you know, some common sense and stuff, so I made it through school, but I didn't really focus on the right things at that time and I went to college not knowing what I wanted to do and thought maybe I'll be a teacher, I don't know. It was suggested to me by a counselor friend and so I started taking some education classes at Kent State. Frankly, I failed out at Kent State. I had a 2.0, but only because it wasn't your heart's fault?
Scott:It was not. Yeah, and thankfully they had freshman forgiveness so they dropped the Fs off my transcript. But I'm home trying to decide what I'm going to do next. I'm at Kmart and it was a Thanksgiving break and there was two cashiers bickering back and forth and she's like I can't believe they're going to make us work on Thanksgiving. I get up in line. I said oh, I'm really sorry to hear you have to work on Thanksgiving. Where I work, we work really hard up until the holidays, but we get the holidays off. And she's like yeah, where do you work? And I said Jenny Lee Bakery.
Scott:And this miserable beast of a woman just all of a sudden calmed, like her face just melted. She's like oh, my goodness, your buttercream is so good. And I, I, at that moment I remember the goosebumps that my hair stood up, and I get it when I recall that moment, at that point in time, like I always thought I was an, I was the class clown. I, I couldn't sing, I couldn't dance, I could tell jokes and that was about it. But I, really, I wanted to entertain people. And now I'm like you know what I'm going into? The family business.
Doug:You do it in such a great way and I have to say again you're saying you weren't feeling like you know, book smart or whatever. You're the president of the company.
Scott:Well, let's just say that, please Okay.
Doug:So you've done good.
Scott:I've done, okay, okay.
Doug:Oh my goodness. Well, based on, like these folks, reactions to some of the old timey baked goods, is there anything today that comes up as a recipe from one of the products or something you've seen that's really notable? I mean, I love to take the cinnamon bread and, just you know, toast it whatever. Are there recipes now that people are sharing with you or things that your team has come up with that like really does make the product go to the next level?
Scott:Yeah, absolutely, and that's one of the most fun things I have is when I talk to people about our breads and how to use them. It's like you know it's bread and it's such a common thing and there's so many different variations of what bread is. You know, ours is a cinnamon swirl bread. It's a breakfast bread. It's a breakfast bread, it's a snack bread. But I've learned most of this from my customers. But when my son he's 22 now when he was, you know, six, seven, eight years old, we would take a dab of vanilla yogurt and then cut fruit and put it on top of a slice of bread. Perfect, exactly Right. The grilled cheese sandwiches with the savory bread.
Doug:Yes, it makes a mean French toast the cinnamon swirl or any of the fruit-type ones too.
Scott:Bread pudding. My aunt, for Christmas every year for her kids, makes a French toast casserole. It's like a cross between French toast and bread pudding. A friend of ours, a really good friend of ours, uh, um, one day came over with a pumpkin trifle oh and I'm eating it. I'm like this. Has my my pumpkin cinnamon swirl bread in it? She's like it does. So I mean those are like the layers right yeah, right of cream and and and whipped cream.
Scott:Amazing, right, but that's that's where it's really neat to me to learn from somebody else, yeah, how they're using our bread.
Doug:How they're interpreting Right and I don't want to put you on the spot. But for the swirl breads, how many flavors in total do you currently have?
Scott:Well, now that we just retired the banana split, cinnamon swirl bread, I think we're down to 14 different flavors oh my gosh, that's still a lot of.
Doug:I don't even know if I know all those right. I knew you had some savory. I definitely know the cinnamon and the cranberry cinnamon, yeah, so let me.
Scott:Let me see if I can run through these real quick. Our original is the classic cinnamon swirl bread.
Scott:That's the basis for everything that's the top seller 80 of my breads come in that loaf Then cinnamon raisin, cinnamon, apple, chocolate chip, cinnamon pumpkin pie, cinnamon swirl bread, cranberry cinnamon swirl bread. Then we introduced the savories California tomato, basil, italian olive, focaccia, parmesan, garlic and herb and we do a white sandwich bread. And then we started, and you know, our success on qvc has allowed us to introduce more flavors. We have a blueberry muffin, cinnamon swirl bread, strawberry cinnamon swirl bread and are these only available through qvc? Um or our website or your website.
Scott:Most retail partners don't carry all these. Yeah, it's just too much right.
Doug:Yeah, I did one more question about the retail partners. It's not just the Pittsburgh area now right?
Scott:No, not at all.
Doug:How many states do you guys distribute?
Scott:to. You can find our breads in more than 30 states. Yeah, amazing. We're in probably close to between 4,000 and 5,000 retailers and restaurants across the country. Now, if you and the retailers you'll, you'll usually find it under our brand, genuinely, and then usually in the bakery department occasionally it's under that store's brand. We'll sell it to them in a clear bag and they slap their own sticker on it. And then we're in more than 2000 restaurants under the VLOR brand. It's just we wanted to keep food service separate from retail.
Doug:I see, Amazing. I mean I really don't mean to pound you with these facts, but it's like you're so prolific and I love it. It's not just Pittsburgh-based, it's really an American-based company. We become that.
Scott:And that's part of the reason why we're expanding into so many different products now. The power of QVC when I'm on air, we'll sell 2,000 individual orders when we go on air, but I'm being broadcast into a couple million homes and so the Jenny Lee brand, this Pittsburgh institution, is now in the home of people in all 50 states and in fact, we ship into all 50 states every year. The beauty about the partnership with QVC if you bought from me, I'd have to charge you the shipping costs from here to Hawaii. You don't want to pay it. If you go to QVC, that cost that shipping cost is built in and it's very affordable because they've got huge leverage that will leave my bakery and be in your home in Hawaii two days later for the same price as if you're shipping to Ohio. That is incredible.
Doug:I just love the success. I love that you have the access and I love that you have all these other new things happening. I usually ask if folks have things upcoming or new goals. Is there anything that we didn't touch on that you have going on soon or coming up in the near future?
Scott:Well, I had a meeting today with an engineering and architectural firm to put an addition on my building. I can't keep up with orders.
Doug:Oh my gosh In McKees.
Scott:Rocks In McKees.
Doug:Rocks the big production facility.
Scott:Yes, might be getting bigger. Might be getting bigger. Wow Right, we talked today about a 7,000 square foot addition that would allow me to double my bakery space Incredible.
Doug:I love it and I also I'm thinking about all the opportunities that you're giving for other folks locally If they're looking for employment. You're looking to expand, absolutely.
Scott:Incredible, absolutely, yeah. I mean we're looking for quality people to join our team. We try to have a good culture. We want to make it fun. We believe in the people that work for us. We believe in our community. That's one thing that we're super focused on. When I first took a job in management for my dad that one of the first things he told me to do was join McKee's Rocks rotary. And you know, being a part of our community is a big part of of our identity.
Scott:Um so you know if you're working on an event, if you've got, uh, you know, a need for things like that, we we produce more, more bread that we can't sell because it might have a small defect, but it's still perfectly edible, and so I'm always happy to help out efforts in the community.
Doug:Scott, thank you so much and thanks for letting us know those things too. Why don't we remind folks that maybe don't know yet? How can they find and follow you? Could you remind us your social handles or website?
Scott:all of those things I mean personally, you can find me on LinkedIn Scott Baker. We're five generation bakers on LinkedIn. Everywhere else, we're Jenny Lee Swirlbreads On Facebook, jenny Lee Swirlbreads On Twitter, instagram. I think we have TikTok. You'll have to ask the Jagoffs.
Doug:John and Rachel.
Scott:Yes, yeah, they run my social media.
Doug:Okay.
Scott:And Michaela. They do a fantastic job. They do. Yeah, it's all under Jenny Lee Swirlbread. Okay.
Doug:And will the Breakfast Nook kind of have its own website and handles eventually it?
Scott:will They'll all kind of connect. They'll all be interrelated. The Jenny Lee Breakfast Nook is a separate company, related, but they're separate entities.
Doug:Exactly. So, it might have its own website.
Scott:It will definitely have its own website. In fact, it's set up right now. You can go and check out some early renditions of our menu. You can join our loyalty program already to earn 5% back. All right, I think we're already selling gift cards.
Doug:Oh, okay, all right, scott, I always have one final question for our guests. Sure, the name of the show is the Pittsburgh Dish. What's the best dish you've had to eat this past week?
Scott:Well, you just caught me coming back from New Orleans and I've literally have been in New Orleans for a week. So that's unfair, because I'm going to tell you I had a muffalata at the Napoleon house. That was all the good food I had down in New Orleans.
Doug:That was by far the absolute best and can you remind listeners because I've had this sandwich like what's on a muffaletta.
Scott:A muffaletta. It's a special Italian dough and it's brushed with olive oil, there's mortadella, there's salami and then there's provolone and mozzarella, and then there is a layer of olive salad, and a New Orleans style olive salad is what you want to use. It is a fabulous. In fact, one of my favorite sandwiches on the Jenny Lee Italian olive focaccia is the muffaletta.
Steven:Oh.
Scott:But okay. So one of my favorite Pittsburgh dishes that I had two weeks ago I had at and the business started here originally Rockefeller's. Oh, what started in Pensbury? I don't think they're here anymore. Um, they serve gnocchi. It's just out of this world. It's little super tender puffs of pasta. Uh, I know. For many years Teresa's Italian bakery made the gnocchi for them, though Teresa's closed last year, so I'm hoping that they're still using the same authentic recipe. It's delicious.
Doug:And where is this Rockefeller's?
Scott:Rockefeller's is in the Giant Eagle Plaza in Kennedy Township. That's right.
Doug:Yeah, because they used to have the two locations. Yes, yeah, I miss them here. Yeah, good food. Well, those are some best bites and we can go with muffaletta from New Orleans as well.
Steven:That's excellent, that's good bites.
Doug:Scott Baker, it has been such a pleasure to talk with you, to learn your history and talk more about your business and all of the great things going on right now. Thank you so much for taking the time and thanks for being on the.
Scott:Pittsburgh Dish. I'm just honored and humbled to be in here and being able to have the opportunity to share my story. Thank you, Doug. No, thank you.
Doug:Up next. If you're looking to spice it up as you're sipping your white wine this summer, Catherine has a trend that will do just that. Hey, everybody, we're joined today with Catherine Montest, our resident wine expert from your Fairy Wine Mother, Hi Doug, Hi, Catherine. Hey, as we get into this year. I know in the past we've talked a lot about red wines. I was wondering if there are any new trends in white wines. I feel like people drink white wine more in the summer. I think maybe that's just my own perception.
Catherine:No, I think your perception is bang on. There is a huge trend in white wine right now, and you can see it all over social media, and that is Sauvignon Blanc with jalapenos in it. What, yes?
Doug:Wait, so people are making this, or is there a vinter actually making?
Catherine:it. This is kind of an at-home thing. Got it so you get your favorite Sauvignon Blanc, and this makes sense for Sauvignon Blanc, because Sauvignon Blanc already has a little bit of a grassiness okay yeah to it.
Catherine:So a lot of times you'll get some grapefruit and peach and passion fruit flavors, but it's that lemongrass and the herbaceousness that um kind of really marry up nicely with the jalapeno. And there's also a compound that comes from the grape, from savignon Blanc, called Pyrazine, which to a lot of people tastes really strongly of green pepper. And at the heart of it all, a jalapeno is a green pepper after all, it's another green pepper yeah.
Steven:Absolutely.
Catherine:So if you like green peppers and you want a really refreshing and bright summer drink, that's why everybody's throwing their jalapenos in the Sauvignon Blanc.
Doug:Okay, so let's just break this down. So I have a chilled bottle of Sauvignon Blanc.
Catherine:Yep 45 to 55 degrees.
Doug:Okay, Am I just throwing a jalapeno in the bottle like squishing it down through the neck? Am I cutting it in half first to get a little more heat? What have you seen?
Catherine:Mostly what I've seen is people cutting it into little slices okay and, depending on your spice tolerance, floating one or two or three of them in the glass oh so this is like once you've poured the wine, absolutely you're not letting it sit for days. No, no, no, no no no, okay, and you can even slice your jalapenos and then put tuck them in the freezer okay so that'll help to chill the wine a little bit or keep it chilly longer when you're drinking it. Oh, I like that.
Doug:Yeah, interesting. You know, when you were talking about the notes of Sauvignon Blanc, I started thinking about margarita, because some of those same kind of flavor profiles grapefruit or the grassiness that sort of picks up in a margarita. So I could see how this is a different but playing in the same flavor neighborhood as that.
Catherine:Kind of dovetailing off the spicy margarita. Yeah yeah, all right, that's a great observation, Doug. I haven't made that connection either.
Doug:Okay, so we're saying a wine trend, that's out. There is Sauvignon Blanc with a, dare we say, a float of jalapeno slices.
Catherine:Yeah, yeah, does that sound yummy to you? I mean, I would try it, yeah.
Doug:All right, Catherine. Thank you so much.
Catherine:It's always fun to talk with you, Doug.
Doug:You can follow Catherine on Instagram at your fairy wine mother. That's you are fairy wine mother. That's U-R Fairy Wine Mother. Searching for the perfect dessert for an evening summer meal? Look no further than the Lemon Posse. We first learned about this recipe at the end of last summer with Chef Steven Bright and thought it's worth a revisit. Let's have a listen.
Steven:Okay, so this summer has been really hot, okay, so this summer has been really hot.
Steven:I've been looking for something that is really cool and refreshing. I brought you you and Greg a few samples of it today. It's called Lemon Posset and you know it's becoming very popular. When I first started making it for clients, I had never heard of it. It was a three-ingredient dessert that you know. I thought, wow, how good could this be if it's just that simple? But we realize now that the simpler the better. So this has sugar, cream and lemon in it and it just comes together and it creates this dreamy pudding that totally melts on your palate and leaves just a lemon cream not cloying. Yeah, it's perfect for summertime.
Doug:Perfect for summer.
Steven:Yep, it's not. You can have a large dinner and then still eat this, and you might want seconds.
Doug:What does thicken it? Is it the? Lemon hitting the cream, yeah and that's sort of tightening the cream up. Yeah, so there's no gelatin no gelatin.
Steven:How amazing. The pectin from the, from the lemon juice, and beautiful, wonderful thank you so much for the sweet treat.
Doug:Well, yeah, you got it. I hope you enjoy it. And chef Steven Bright, thank you so much. Oh, thank you for being on The Pittsburgh Dish. Thank you for having me. Do you have a recipe? Share it with us. Just visit our website at wwwpittsburghdishcom and look for our Share a Recipe form. If you enjoyed the show, consider buying us a coffee for this episode or supporting the show monthly. You can find links to those options at the bottom of our show description, and if you want to follow my own food adventures, you can find me on social media at Doug Cooking. That's our show for this week. Thanks again to all of our guests and contributors and to Kevin Solecki of Carnegie Accordion Company for providing the music to our show. We'll be back again next week with another fresh episode. Stay tuned.
