Los Alamitos, CA (November 2021) – Here at Frieda’s we’re a little more obsessed with the kiwifruit than the average company. The fact that our fearless founder, Frieda Rapoport Caplan, introduced the kiwi to the American public in 1962 may have a little something to do with that.
This month, lifestyle retailer and design company Concepts International—famous for collaborating with manufacturers including New Balance, Nike and Adidas—has taken this unassuming fruit as the inspiration behind its latest collaboration with New Balance footwear. The New Balance 992 “Low Hanging Fruit” sneaker honors Dr. Frieda Caplan, the “Kiwi Queen,” and injects her spirit into popular culture.
“Recognizing what Frieda did in terms of breaking new ground in a male-driven environment is admirable in itself. Whether breaking the glass ceiling of produce or redefining fruit & veggie marketing, she’s always been in a league by herself. Uncovering these stories for our consumer and bringing them to life through fashion has always been at the forefront of what we do,” says Deon Point, creative director at Concepts.
Design details for the New Balance 992 “Low Hanging Fruit” deliver a textured balance of brown suede and pops of neon green, giving overt nods to the kiwi. The shoes feature a playful twist through a strawberry footbed, harkening back to 1990s Americana when the pairing of strawberries and kiwi made a dynamic flavor profile. Concepts will simultaneously be launching a matching apparel collection including the Concepts Icon hoodie, sweatpant and T-Shirts — all garments that inform a new luxury streetwear sensibility.
The Concepts x New Balance 992 “Low Hanging Fruit” launches November 12 at Concepts Boston, Concepts NYC and in exclusive partnership with Bodega LA. The full Concepts “Nothing is Real” apparel collection will launch in all stores and cncpts.com on November 12th.
Visit the Concepts website or stores to see the collection and celebrate our Kiwi Queen!
Research Reveals that as Consumers Emerge from the Pandemic, They Are Considering Up-Leveling Their Holiday Menus and Making Beautiful Desserts, Resulting in First-Ever Partnership to Help Supercharge Traditional Friendsgiving and Thanksgiving Menus
LOS ALAMITOS, California – Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving are right around the corner, and according to research from Frieda’s Specialty Produce, as consumers emerge from the pandemic, they are considering ways to put a new twist on their traditional recipes this holiday season, especially when it comes to dessert. To celebrate the start of the November holiday season and to help consumers supercharge their traditional menus and make them extraordinary, today Frieda’s announces its partnership with Lauren Ko, Instagram phenomenon, founder of @lokokitchen and New York Times Best-Selling Author of PIEOMETRY. For the first time ever, Ko is working with Frieda’s to help bakers of all abilities up-level their holiday celebrations with Stokes Purple® sweet potatoes. Her newest work-of-art is called the Stokes Purple® Wave Pie.
“The holidays are evolving, and Thanksgiving is especially meaningful this year. People want to create. They want to bake. They want to experience something extraordinary after being so cautious for so long. Thanksgiving should be vibrant, healthy, colorful and delicious,” said Cindy Sherman, director of marketing, innovation and insights for Frieda’s. “From our research, we know that people are looking for ways to dial up the mood, add color to their meals and up-level their traditional recipes this Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving. Thus, we are so thrilled to be partnering with Lauren Ko to celebrate this incredible, vibrant pie artistry.”
With food at the center of Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving celebrations, Frieda’s research revealed that more than 30% of consumers know it can bring a sense of comfort. Dessert is a major consideration and men, surprisingly, skewed higher in many areas of the research:
According to Sherman, dessert will be a major win with Ko’s Stokes Purple® Wave Pie, which brings together a filling featuring the just-right purple sweet potatoes, condensed milk and coconut cream topped with a design of purple potato waves with orange accents (using traditional sweet potatoes).
“This partnership is a match made in produce heaven! With the art that I love to create, Frieda’s unique offerings of fruit and vegetables inspire me to bake and build designs differently—with colors, textures and flavors,” said Lauren Ko. “I’ve experimented with a variety of potatoes, making both sweet and savory recipes, and I wanted to create something extra special for this holiday season. When I landed on the Stokes Purple® Wave Pie, I was really excited because every level of pie maker can use this recipe to create something extraordinary and artful. This extra touch of beauty feels especially needed after all we’ve been through with the pandemic.”
To bring even more inspiration and taste to the holidays, Frieda’s created two more trend-worthy recipes—Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato Mini Crostatas and Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato Hand Pies. These single-serve gems will give each consumer their own individual treat, which is a popular trend this holiday. These recipes build upon Frieda’s wildly popular original Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato Pie with Maple Whipped Cream, a decadent dessert that was created in 2018 and continues to be one of the company’s most popular recipes.
This holiday season the company is offering inspiration through new recipes so that everyone, at every level of indulgence, can create truly extraordinary holiday meals, according to Sherman. Stokes Purple® sweet potatoes are at the center of the holiday season because they are versatile and “just right”—not too sweet, too savory, too moist or too dry. Due to their deep purple color, they are full of anthocyanin antioxidants, just like blueberries, and are a good source of vitamin C and fiber, making them healthy, nutritious and delicious. Consumers can make healthy, colorful and delicious dishes that are both savory and sweet, from soups and fries to cakes and pies.
Frieda’s and Ko have created the following new holiday recipes. Find these recipes and more at Friedas.com.
Stokes Purple® Wave Pie By Lauren Ko
Serving size: 8-10 / Prep time: 4 hours 15 min / Cook time: 2 hours 30 min
All-Butter Pie Dough
Ingredients
1/2 cup ice
1/2 cup cold water
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Prep steps
Stokes Purple® Wave Pie Filling
Ingredients
1 pound Stokes Purple® sweet potatoes, roasted, peeled and roughly chopped into 1-inch chunks
1/2 can (7 ounces) condensed milk
2 tablespoons coconut cream
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Final Ingredients
5 medium or 3 large Stokes Purple® sweet potatoes
1 orange sweet potato (optional)
Cooking Steps
Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato Mini Crostatas
Makes: 16 / Prep time: 20 min / Cook time: 20-25 min
Ingredients
Pie Filling
1 cup cooked Stokes® Purple sweet potato (roughly 1 medium potato)
1/4 cup organic granulated sugar
1 large organic egg
1/2 teaspoon Madagascar vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons coconut milk
Crust
1 (14-ounce) box double-crust ready-made pie dough
Cooking Steps
Adapted from a recipe by Chef Brandon Hall, Owner of Thyme Well Spent
Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato Hand Pies
Makes: 16 / Prep time: 22 min / Cook time: 20-25 min
Ingredients
Pie Filling
1 cup cooked Stokes® Purple sweet potato (roughly 1 medium potato)
1/4 cup organic granulated sugar
1 large organic egg
1/2 teaspoon Madagascar vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons coconut milk
Crust
2 (14-ounce) boxes double-crust ready-made pie dough
Cooking steps
Adapted from a recipe by Chef Brandon Hall, Owner of Thyme Well Spent
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