Cane River Kitchenware has been serving the Natchitoches community with freshly ground coffee and desserts since 2006. Though most well-known for its sweet treats, visitors can also shop for unique kitchen gadgets and southern charm souvenirs, and locals can get involved in hands-on cooking classes.
The desserts are home-made recipes that Danielle Smith, co-owner of Cane River Kitchenware, has created for the last ten years. Every recipe, including dips, breads, cookies, jams, jellies and more, has been created and perfected for sale.
“I don’t know how many hundreds of thousands of cookies I’ve eaten to try to figure out which recipe was going to be the one, but we eventually nail it down,” Jesse Smith, co-owner of Cane River Kitchenware, said.
SweetD’s Kitchen is known for a variety of food choices that often changes. Its menu includes sides, soups and desserts. It also serves personal food catering for events such as weddings, birthday parties, fundraisers or even family reunions.
SweetD’s Kitchen is also home to SweetD’s Bakery, where they make custom cakes, cookies and other desserts such as cheesecakes, chocolate covered strawberries and cinnamon rolls.
“If our new cookies at SweetD’s Bakery are really popular, we will bring them to Cane River Kitchenware on Front Street,” Jesse Smith said.
Throughout the year Cane River Kitchenware displays different flavors of cupcakes and cookies, keeping some of their most famous flavors seasonal.
“Our Mardi Gras cookies are the absolute best-selling cookie of the year, and we’ve decided to keep it seasonal so that way people can have something to look forward to,” Jesse Smith said.
This magical cookie consists of royal icing on top of a king cake with a cream cheese mixture in the middle and has a spin-off of the snicker doodle batter, making it a loaded cookie that is unforgettable.
Cane River Kitchenware aims to not only make magic in cookies and cupcakes but also become a great date-night location for couples and locals interested in taking cooking classes. Attendees can expect to learn new and different recipes, as well as some classics that are often taught.
“Primarily, my wife and I teach the classes, but we also have guest chefs from all over that come in and teach,” Jesse Smith said. “Because there is a limited number of seats for every class, we repeat the classes that people don’t get an opportunity to come to, like our ‘everything is better with bacon’ class.”
To find a schedule of the available classes and book your seat, you can visit the store in person or give them a call at (318) 238-3600. You can expect a full course of two hours at a price of $60 per class as well as a 20 percent discount when you attend five classes or more.
“We have had countless people tell us that the food at the cooking class was the best they’ve ever had or that the cake we designed was the best they’ve ever tasted. For somebody who cooks for a living, and does it because they love it, telling us that we are the best that they’ve ever had is the ultimate compliment,” Jesse Smith said.
Next time you’re hungry, get yourself a nice treat and allow yourself to indulge in the hidden gems like Cane River Kitchenware that Natchitoches has to offer.
