6/12/2014
Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking lights a new path | TheUnion.com
Laura Brown
[email protected]
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May 13, 2014
Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking
lights a new path
Miriam Limov , Helen McDermott and Sarah Gordon enjoy ing the cookies on a ski in the Sierra
Buttes.
The "Original" Cookie.
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6/12/2014
Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking lights a new path | TheUnion.com
Dav e Gordon, Gregory Shaffer, Nancy Gillespie, Rod Gillespie and Todd Anderson enjoy ing
cookies on a ride in Nev ada County .
Sarah Gordon and Miriam Limov enjoy ing cookies on a cross country ski in Y osemite.
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Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking lights a new path | TheUnion.com
Since she was a small girl, Miriam Limov loved to bake.
“I remember baking with my mom, growing up and having such fun creating enormous layer
cakes and covering them in candy of all kinds for birthdays and parties,” she said.
On March 22, Limov and her husband, Union Hill School Principal Joe Limov, launched a new
cookie business, Rainbow’s End.
It’s a namesake shared by the couple’s Penn Valley country property of 24 years where they
raised their two daughters.
These aren’t just any cookies. All 11 varieties the Limovs offer start with one common
ingredient: pumpkin.
It all began 25 years ago, when Miriam Limov’s mother-in-law first introduced a moist and
delicious pumpkin spice cookie. Soon Miriam Limov was playing with the recipe — taking out the
spices and raisins and adding chocolate chips and later, butterscotch chips.
This combination became what she calls, the “Original” cookie. By using pumpkin, the cookies
require less butter than other varieties — producing a cakier, healthier, cookie.
Limov makes a point to use almost all organic ingredients.
“I’ve been making those cookies for as long as I can remember for every party, celebration, and
occasion and they became a hit every time,” said Limov.
Many know Limov from her time at South Yuba River Citizen’s League. For 17 years, she
volunteered for the organization, producing the annual auction and running events.
For the last seven years she has worked as the organization’s River People Manager. Every
week her volunteers get home-baked cookies for their hard work.
In June, she will step down from her post at SYRCL to work nearly full-time at Emily’s Catering
and Cakes and devote more time to her cookie business and her passion for backpacking in the
Sierra Nevada.
Over the years, Limov gave out her recipe to hundreds of folks and everyone urged her to sell
her cookies. When the cottage food law went into effect last January, Limov realized she could
bake in her own kitchen and give a food business a try.
Limov offers 11 different varieties for order: pumpkin, chocolate chip, butterscotch cookies (The
Original); pumpkin, cocoa, chocolate chip coconut; pumpkin, coconut, chocolate chip; pumpkin,
peanut butter, cocoa, chocolate chip; pumpkin, peanut butter, chocolate chip; pumpkin, oatmeal,
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Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking lights a new path | TheUnion.com
chopped apples and pears, raisins, and chocolate chip (Gluten Free) with the option to add
walnuts, or remove chocolate, or remove raisins.
She also offers two flourless chocolate cakes, too.
For now, Limov uses canned pumpkin, but in the fall plans to harvest fresh pumpkin from the
garden. In the works — awaiting approval from the county — is a pumpkin brownie and several
kinds of muffins.
“Our daughters grew up eating these cookies and I stopped buying store-bought cookies,”
Limov said.
She likes to bake without measuring and often uses whatever is available in the kitchen for
muffins, cookies and bars.
“It’s like an art of messing around in the kitchen. … When I went gluten free three years ago for
health reasons, I started playing around with gluten free varieties, too,” she said.
Launching a business was no small undertaking. It took a full year of preparation to create and
apply for a local business name, design a logo, test water, acquire a food handler license, create a
label, research packaging, test cookies and allow inspections of her home kitchen before finally
fulfilling all the requirements needed to get approval from the county.
Big fans of the outdoors, the Limov’s logo says it all — a mountain with “a perfect blue sky” and
“a rainbow giving you the magic that nature brings to us.”
All along the way, the Limovs have received an outpouring of support from friends and
community.
Peggy Malmud-Wright of Treats ice cream in Nevada City, a SYRCL volunteer, has been
Limov’s biggest business supporter. Treats hosted Rainbow’s End launch party and every
weekend offer Rainbow’s End cookies.
The cookies are always sold out by Sunday. SPD market in Nevada City and Caroline’s Coffee in
Grass Valley will soon carry the cookies and BYOB Winery hosted a wine and cookie tasting
event two weeks ago.
Miriam Limov hopes to increase her direct sales to customers by providing for parties, events,
staff meetings and company lunches.
Each month, Limov donates a portion of her proceeds to a local nonprofit group. In the past six
weeks, she has donated to: Hospitality House’s Empty Bowl event, Wildlife Rehabilitation art
night, SYRCL’s State of the Yuba Event, Cinderella Project opening boutique event and this
weekend to Soroptimist Garden Tour event.
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Rainbow’s End: A life-long passion for baking lights a new path | TheUnion.com
“I’m excited to be a catalyst for joyful occasions. I am an extra-happy person and love to
celebrate at all opportunities,” she said.
Learn more at www.rainbowsendbakery.com or by email at [email protected].
Do you have a local food story? Contact freelance writer Laura Brown at
[email protected] or 530-s913-3067.
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