Colibrí Sweets: made with love, not dairy

“Our favorite customers were little kids with allergies that normally could not have ice cream, but were able to walk away with one of our scoops.”

Colibrí Sweets quickly gained favor with the Everett Farmers Market crowd last summer, offering heavenly, small-batch, dairy-free ice cream that tastes just as good, if not better, than traditional, store-bought brands loaded with fillers and preservatives.

After making a huge splash at three Snohomish County farmers markets (Everett, Snohomish, Edmonds), Mukilteo middle school teachers Alphonse and Emily Leopold are back, making Colibrí Sweets with love, not dairy or gluten.

Colibrí Sweets returned to the Everett Farmers Market June 21 with COVID-19 restrictions in place and brand-new, farm-fresh flavors, like strawberry lemonade. Like other small-batch artisan vendors, they meticulously source local, sustainable ingredients, prepare their delicious concoctions wearing masks, and encourage preorders for easy pickups on Market Sunday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. (Seniors and other high-risk shoppers go earlier, at 10:30 a.m.)

“Our business is called Colibrí Sweets,” says Emily, who’s also an artist and certified culinary nutritionist. “Colibrí means hummingbird in Spanish (and several other languages) and is a beautiful representation of what we aspire to do: find the sweet things of nature and enjoy them.

We stick with organic ingredients out of respect for our bodies, the farmers who produce our ingredients, and the well-being of our planet. We also aim to source ingredients through fair-trade practices.”

Husband Alphonse has a background in restaurants and cooking. Together, they put their creative minds together to give the health-conscious and those with food allergies tasty, wholesome Colibrí Sweets, a treat in today’s one-size-fits-all, fast-food market.

Narrowing their focus into a niche farmers market allows the husband/wife team plenty of time to teach, while indulging in a side business in the summer.

They especially love Everett Farmers Market for the strong community feel. “We met so many people from our community that have become friends (both vendors and shoppers) and acquired a large following of loyal customers. Our favorite customers were little kids with allergies that normally could not have ice cream, but were able to walk away with one of our scoops,” Emily enthuses.

Giving back means so much, all around.

Knowing those scoops are as healthy as they are delicious, is the cherry on top of the sundae, so to speak. “The more we have learned about the impact of big food industries on our health, our resources, and our planet, the more we appreciate opportunities to get food from local producers.

This means less fossil fuels used for food transportation, fresher products that are in season, and support for the local economy,” Emily continues. “In this way, the Everett Farmers Market is a mecca for health- or environmental-conscious shoppers. Apart from that, the market just feels alive! …We really couldn’t have asked for a better place to spend our Sundays — it’s the highlight of each week.

People at the market seem to slow down a bit and open themselves to conversation with strangers, which naturally breeds connection. You start to recognize the same faces week after week and that sense of community is grounding and life-giving.”