When I was in 10th grade, I made quiche lorraines (they were terrible) for a French Club bake sale and thought myself a hero. Let’s just say that today’s teenage culinary entrepreneurs have elevated the craft.
In July, Wakefield High School rising seniors Farah Bahr and Sithiya Reshmee (who goes by the nickname “Resh”) founded F&R Sweets, a line that includes chocolate-dipped strawberries, churro cheesecake (made with croissant dough, cream cheese filling and cinnamon sugar) and hot chocolate bombs. F&R stands for Farah and Resh.
With the cold weather setting in, the bombs ($3-$10 each) grabbed my attention. They are bonbon-like orbs filled with mini marshmallows, Swiss Miss cocoa mix (regular, caramel or peppermint) and sometimes other add-ins. The cookies-and-cream bomb has crushed Oreos inside. An elaborately decorated “white unicorn” bomb features a vanilla-flavored coating with multicolored sprinkles. Place one in a mug, pour hot milk, water or coffee over it, and watch the coating melt as you stir the ensemble into an enticing wintertime beverage.
“The way we present…sweets and our hospitality and kindness with our customers was taught by our foreign backgrounds,” says Reshmee, 18, whose family is Bengali. She says she caught the cooking bug from her grandfather, who was a restaurant chef in Maryland.
Bahr, 17, is Egyptian and grew up cooking with her mother, making traditional dishes such as stuffed grape leaves and kanafeh, a syrup-soaked pastry dessert.
Both girls live in Arlington’s Barcroft neighborhood. They’ve been marketing their venture on Instagram (@fnrsweetsss), Facebook and Snapchat and love to customize orders—especially the strawberries. “Oreos, nuts, coconut, sugar sprinkles, Hershey mini bars, M&Ms, edible sugar flowers. Whatever the customer wants, we’ll go get it,” Reshmee says.
To order and arrange pickup (they sometimes deliver in Arlington), contact the duo via their website or DM on Instagram. Just be sure to give them plenty of lead time—school comes first and they limit orders to seven a day. (I had to wait for hot chocolate bomb samples because they were studying for the SAT.)
Both have applied for college scholarships. Bahr’s dream is to attend Georgetown University for undergraduate work and medical school, while Reshmee has plans to attend John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. F&R turns a profit, which goes toward their college funds. Their goal? $10,000. Ah, kids these days.