Jacqueline Day from Real Treat has a very important lesson to share with everyone, check your email junk folder because there may be very exciting news waiting there.

The news that Jacqueline’s business, Real Treat had won the Gold award in the Cookies & Sweet Snacks category of the Specialty Food Association’s 2021 sofi Awards was sitting in her junk email folder. It had been there since April 26 but it wasn’t until May 5 when winners were announced and when everyone was calling to congratulate her that she became aware of the win. She actually had resigned herself to the fact that they hadn’t won and has been pinching herself to ensure that it isn't a dream ever since.

Needless to say, winning gold in the highly prestigious contest that has been a highlight of for Real Treat but Day says, “What I’m most proud of is that we are the first Canadian certified organic cookie to win that award and that is such a strong validation of our mission. To make an organic cookie that is gourmet and specialty and indulgent and so to have that validation of the quality of the product that we’re making is just tremendous, we are so excited.”

Real Treat was founded by Jacqueline in 2014 and the mission was to create delicious organic cookies. They produce two lines of cookies the Real Treat Pantry line which is the more traditional flavour of cookies like oatmeal raisin and chocolate chunk. The Top Shelf line as Day explains, “Is a collection of gourmet cookies that are really geared to an adult palate. These are cookies that pair with wine and cheese we have one that’s amazing with a great scotch. So, they are really cookies for grownups and it was a cookie from that line that won the sofi and it’s our Lemon Sablés with Herbes de Provence.”

The winning entry, Lemon Sables with Herbes de Provence is the first Canadian brand to win a sofi since its inception in 1972. The judging process entails the cookies being blind taste-tested by a group of expert judges made up of seasoned food professionals including chefs, culinary instructors, recipe developers and specialty food buyers. Judges scored each submission on multiple qualities including flavour, appearance, texture, aroma, and creativity. With its Gold award recognition, Real Treat outperformed all other competitors included in the category.

Day says it will be a few weeks until they get their statue, but supposedly it looks a bit like an Oscar, and just like the Oscar winners, she is figuring out the perfect spot to put it, most likely on the mantel.

Real Treat is also up for another award in the industry called the Nexty and they will see how they fare in that competition in the next couple of weeks.

For you to do your own taste test, you can purchase the Pantry Line at Safeway or at Tiegan & Jackson in Cochrane.

The Top Shelf line is available through their website at realtreat.ca and will be available at The Haven Spa opening soon in Cochrane.

There is free delivery within Cochrane.  

Bon Appetit!