Rickaroons at Jubon Juweelen
By Cookie Creator: Rick LeBeau

When most of us feel like having a great cookie, we don’t usually think we can get away with calling it healthy, too. But then again, maybe you haven’t had your first Rickaroon yet. Rick LeBeau has always loved cookies. He used to buy them at the local co-op, where they were made with whole grains, maple syrup, and other pure ingredients. In 2001, he spent the entire year developing his own cookie, which became the basis for his first cookie company. A couple years later, he sold that company, and kept working on developing a better and better cookie. Finally, in late 2012, Rickaroons were born. Suddenly it occurred to him that you could make a great-tasting cookie without even using flour of any kind. Inspired by the desire to create a cookie so good that it could double as a workout food, he included only ingredients that would serve that dual purpose- delicious as part of a cookie, nutritious enough to carry you an hour or three until your next meal (or Rickaroon). Now in their second year of producing Rickaroons, Rick and his son, Grant, work together daily to serve the growing base of Rickarooners- customers from all walks of life and activity levels. Whether you reach for a Rickaroon first thing in the morning before your run, or late afternoon as you’re coming in from the field or studying in the library, or last thing at night when you want something tasty after dinner, Rickaroons are fabulous for any reason, any time of day. Built on coconut and almond butter, with organic dark chocolate in most of the flavors, Rickaroons will make you forget what you’ve heard about vegan and gluten-free treats. These truly are wonderful, and if you’re eating them because you’re looking to avoid gluten, you’ll think you died and went to cookie heaven. For more information about Rickaroons, visit rickaroons.com.

Dutch Facts
By Co-Owner: Bonnie Meier

Once again, I would like to share some information that we received while on a Viking Ship tour of Holland and Germany.

• Until the 16th century, The Netherlands was bound with Belgium and Luxembourg – the three were known as the "Low Countries."
• In the late 1700s, French forces made the Netherlands a vassal state after helping to end a four-year conflict with Britain. Napoleon annexed the territory in 1810. After Napoleon’s final defeat, the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was created in 1815. The new nation included today’s Belgium, but religion prevented complete unity. Belgium was mostly Catholic, and didn’t believe the ruling government, led by Protestants, would foster the “equality for all” doctrine upon which the new country was founded. Belgium seceded in 1830.
• During WWII, The Netherlands stayed neutral, but was invaded by the Germans. The country was devastated and most of its Jewish population was murdered.

Next Tulip Festival will be our 75th
By Co-Owners: Bonnie Meier

We encourage everyone to attend Orange City’s 75th Tulip Festival. William (Bill) D. Kalsbeek has put together a book entitled Celebrating Our Dutch Heritage. Bill’s father was the town’s town crier for years. The book has actually not been published yet, but you can reserve one for $30 now or pay $35 when it comes out in time for the Tulip Festival. It is a 128-page book that documents the festival’s history since the 1930s and contains hundreds of images that span the decades of the event. If you are interested in reserving a copy, you should telephone the Tulip Festival/Chamber office by April 15. Checks can be made payable to the Orange City Tulip Festival. The telephone number for the Chamber office is 712-707-4510. Their fax number is 712-737-4523.

Perusing our guest book
By Co-Owner: Bonnie Meier

We have had people from many interesting places since our last newsletter. They visited our store from North Carolina, Wisconsin, North Dakota, California, Minnesota, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alaska, Nebraska, and Florida and all over Iowa. They also came from Bremen, Germany; La Paz, Bolivia; Mission, British Columbia in Canada, and many high school students from all over Japan.