Claudia Bildirici always loved baking and feeding people, an attribute she learned from her mother Lottie. Over the last few years, Claudia took a good old fashioned biscotti recipe and transformed it into Lottie Biscotti, named after her mother and made it into a household name.
“Lottie Biscotti was inspired by my mother. As far back as I can remember, she was in her kitchen when the sun came up. She was always feeding everyone who entered her home, from the mail carrier to every member of our family. I wish she was here today to see how far I have gone with her special recipe,” said Claudia.
At first Claudia made muffins, but their shelf life was too short, so she switched to biscotti. Since biscotti contain no oil, butter or margarine, they never get stale. The biscotti are baked in small packages so they always stay fresh. They have a shelf life of over three months.
Claudia first sold her biscotti at the Sephardic Community Center. It was right next to her house, the rent was just right, and the people were amazing. When the Sephardic Angel Fund approached her to see if she was interested in joining them in a professional kitchen, she jumped at the chance. She worked in Kingsborough Kitchen with a great staff that taught her a great deal. That experience opened many doors, and Claudia now rents her own space with even larger equipment. When she looks back at the days in the SCC, she is amazed at how much her business has grown. She is a one man show—baking, marketing, and packaging her delicious product. Yet, she still makes every batch of biscotti herself. She slices every cookie and makes sure it is packed correctly.
She realized her business was at the next level when she started going to local stores and getting stopped, like a celebrity, as the maker of Lottie Biscotti.
Claudia has come far in her endeavors—a true entrepreneur. When the business was small, she sold her biscotti to many local stores. She gained notoriety after changing her package from a white coffee bag to a real box with a logo. After that, her business really took off. The product was the same, but it was all about eye appeal. Also, the smaller package makes her product the perfect item for coffee shops.
Claudia was given a unique opportunity to truly branch out when she was asked to sell her biscotti in the Cellar at Macy’s Herald Square. There was one catch: they would only sell the biscotti if she could sell 40 boxes in a trial run. She sold 52 boxes that day, and has been selling there ever since. Now Lottie Biscotti can be found in Bloomingdale’s, Fairway Market, many variety stores in Brooklyn, New York City and New Jersey and many online basket companies.
“I am so excited that we recently started our own website. I am just so happy that people all over the United States will now able to enjoy the pleasure of munching on Lottie Biscotti,” Claudia said with a smile.
Lottie Biscotti uses only the best ingredients, and is available in a variety of flavors: chocolate chip almond, double chocolate chip, espresso chip, marble twist, pistachio/cranberry, and trail-mix. It is certified kosher under the CRC of NY, and is non-dairy (parve).
You can order biscotti at www.lottiebiscotti.com or by calling (888) 395-4532.
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Randi Shomer is a community member, a mother of four children, and a freelance writer.
