Made In Barnstable: Salty Oats Cookies

As the story goes, Terri Horn was kayaking off the coast of Maine one day and realized she needed something to give her the energy to get her back to shore. Terri instantly thought of the oat and raisin cookies she had been baking for years, and thought that she might not be the only one who might need a cookie to get them through a tough situation.

It was then, in 1997, that Horn, a pastry chef in Washington DC, launched her company, Kayak Cookies.

She named her oat and raisin cookies, Salty Oats for rolled oats in every recipe and the dash of salt that she sprinkles on top of all of her cookies.

Horn found much success in Washington, DC, but came to Cape Cod six years ago to be with family, and resumed making Salty Oats on Cape Cod four years ago.

Admittedly she couldn’t have been successful without the support of local residents and businesses.

Pain D’Avignon, a restaurant and bakery in Hyannis, “offered [her] a great opportunity,” by allowing her to lease space in their kitchen, and they deliver her product to her customers whenever possible.

Horn also found support from Jean Iverson, owner and operator of Kelly Farm in Cummaquid. Kelly Farm was the first local market to sell Salty Oats on Cape Cod.

As her business expanded, so did her cookie offerings.

Although people loved the original Salty Oat, there was great demand for a chocolate cookie. So, Horn made a chocolate cookie from her favorite Belgian chocolate. The chocolate is hand cut to create chunks, not chips. The cookie also has a hint of coconut, vanilla and rolled organic oats.

The next cookie was Horn’s personal favorite, the chunky chocolate pecan--her version of the classic chocolate chip cookie.

Horn revealed that a Peanut Butter Salty Oat in the works. When it will debut she doesn’t know. ”It comes when it comes,” she said, “but I know exactly what I want it to bite like and taste like.”

All of the Salty Oats are made using as many organic ingredients that Horn can find that are of the quality she requires, and then baked in a deck oven. And, “they are all mixed, scooped, baked and bagged by hand.”

The cookies are available in variety or single flavor packs. They are also available by special order for events and gifts.

It is very important to Horn that to maintain the quality of cookie she desires, and to her that means they continue to be made by hand.

Which means she, and her employee (whom Horn calls her “rock”) Ashley Bishop, are on their feet all day. “I work too much, and I know that,” Horn expressed.

In the summer Horn works seven days a week from 5:30 am to 6 pm, making and mixing 1500 cookies a day.

All of Horn’s hard work has paid off, as her business has expanded every year to many parts of the Cape. But her goal is to get into venues in New York City.

Presently, Horn is looking for her own space for baking and a small retail operation. She has decided it is time to expand--“as long as the cookies can have the same integrity I’ll continue to grow.”

In Barnstable, Salty Oats Cookies can be found at Pain D’Avignon in Hyannis, Nirvana Coffee Shop in Barnstable Village, Fancy’s Market in Osterville, and Kelly Farm in Cummaquid. They are also available online at www.kayakcookies.com.