We are excited we will have our first Playa Vista Farmer’s Market and also excited to feature on of our own, Nicole Johnson, with The Kookie Jar, that will be featuring her delicious cookies!

She currently participates in the Westchester and LMU Farmers Markets and now Playa Vista on June 6!. 

Nicole has lived in Playa Vista since February of 2004, sold their first Playa Vista property and moved to now another home here in December of 2006.

Nicole and her husband, Eric (who also plays on the Playa Vista softball league) loves Playa Vista!  When they first purchased they bought into the entire concept of Playa Vista and can’t imagine leaving it at this point in their lives.  “It’s a great place to start a family.”  “ We love the people, the parks, the location and all the conveniences”.  “We are patiently waiting for the school, the Village and we are excited for their arrivals”.  “Playa Vista was the best value around, even when we purchased during the “booms”, says Nicole.

Nicole has a great story about her successful cookie business, the-kookie-jar.com. 

When she was growing up her mother spent many an afternoon baking for her and her brother, along with friends, family and neighbors.  She often joined her in the kitchen and learned all of her family recipes, from cookies and cakes, to fudge, apple crisp, and pumpkin bread.  Some of her happiest memories are those spent baking with her mother in their family kitchen, and then sitting together at the table to eat the delicious desserts they had made. 

“Baking those treats, especially the cookies, gave me joy and happiness, a special sense of comfort and family, and it provided my mom a welcome respite from her hectic workday”, says Nicole.  “As I grew up, I carried on my family tradition of cookie baking.  I would faithfully follow my mom’s recipes, and share the cookies with friends.  They raved about the delicious flavors and soft, chewy texture and we all agreed that eating those freshly baked cookies gave us the wonderful feeling of being a kid again.  My friends and coworkers all urged me for years to sell my cookies and in the end, it was their encouragement and the bliss on everyone’s faces when sampling my treats, that finally convinced me to do so”.

“I realized that everyone needed a sweet escape from our crazy, fast-paced world, not just me and my friends!  I wanted to be able to share the cozy, happy feelings I got from baking  cookies with everyone.  Last year, I started an on-line cookie company called The Kookie Jar (www.the-kookie-jar.com).  I use all of my mom’s recipes, and I sell my classic, comforting “kookies” in jars online.  I also have been selling them in smaller batches at Farmers’ Markets and to local restaurants.  I have regular customers who swoon at the flavors of the kookies and return for more!” 

You would be surprised what a cookie does to make someone’s day!  It can be that little something you need to satisfy your sweet tooth; the perfect afternoon snack with the kids or a date; the pick-me-up burst of energy for the college student studying for exams; or that special treat to share with Mom, so you both can fondly remember the simplicity of when you were a kid, and the perfect day ended with a moist, chocolate chip cookie.

These kookies make a great gift just as they are, but only if you can resist them yourself! With a focus on simplicity and a classic kookie, Nicole and "The Kookie Jar" team dare you to "Get your hand kaught!" in a jar of Kookie Jar kookies.

Please come by to enjoy Nicole’s delicious homemade “kookies” at the Playa Vista Farmer’s Market!