Bake & subscribe

Bake & subscribe
Photo courtesy of Simon Element

What if I told you there was a small business, run out of a family home in Kent, Conn., that saw averages of 300 thousand people a day?

From the rural farmhouse he shares with his husband Brian Dow and small twin sons,  John Kanell is refining being a local business in a small town. On his YouTube channel Preppy Kitchen, he makes weekly cooking tutorials that draw in big view counts thanks to his 3.18 million subscribers.

“It is a bit of lark that I’m able to putter around in my kitchen, upload my videos and they go to a broader audience," he told me.

Few would see Kanell’s videos as “puttering around.” The kitchen, for one, is enormous, think more spacious Ina Garten Hamptons house than the relatable intimacy of Allison Roman’s cluttered Boerum Hill pad. A long row of spotless copper cookware line the shiplap wall, along with an ILVE jade green range with bass trim, and a endless marble island.

Kanell himself is the ideal of a J. Crew catalog model, with perfectly white teeth and an eager, instructive manner. But his videos are also tightly edited and easy to follow. A former middle school math teacher, he puts the lesson ahead of the chit-chat. "Preppy" isn't a WASP allusion (Kanell's parents are Mexican and Greek), it's a pun on being prepared.

His new cookbook however, is opening up some new, in-person experiences. "People on Youtube or Instagram comment and will say, 'My daughter is making this cake for her birthday and she loves watching her channel,'" Kanell said. Written feedback is the way he experiences his audience, but now he'll be seeing some of the real faces who tune in to watch him in his kitchen. "It's one of the reasons I'm so excited about the book tour. I'm out here in rural, beautiful, pastoral Litchfield County, and you just don't see that many people."

John Kanell will discuss his new cookbook in person at House of Books in Kent, Conn., on Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. For more go to www.houseofbooksct.com

Latest News

A scenic 32-mile loop through Litchfield County

Whenever I need to get a quick but scenic bicycle ride but don’t have time to organize a group ride that involves driving to a meeting point, I just turn right out of my driveway. That begins a 32-mile loop through some of the prettiest scenery in northern Litchfield County.

I ride south on Undermountain Road (Route 41 South) into Salisbury and turn right on Main Street (Route 44 West). If I’m meeting friends, we gather at the parking area on the west side of Salisbury Town Hall where parking is never a problem.

Keep ReadingShow less
Biking Ancramdale to Copake

This is a lovely ride that loops from Ancramdale north to Copake and back. At just over 23 miles and about 1,300 feet of elevation gain, it’s a perfect route for intermediate recreational riders and takes about two hours to complete.It’s entirely on quiet roads with little traffic, winding through rolling hills, open countryside, picturesque farms and several lakes.

Along the way, you’ll pass a couple of farmstands that are worth a quick visit. There is only one hill that might be described as steep, but it is quite short — probably less than a quarter-mile.

Keep ReadingShow less
North East town records brought into the digital age

Chris Virtuoso reorganized parcel records in the North East Town Hall basement by parcel number during the process of scanning and digitizing the documents.

Photo by Grace DeMarco

MILLERTON — Within the walls of the two-story Victorian housing the North East Town Hall lies a room-full of town records dating back to the late 19th century. Stored in labeled cardboard boxes and protected by dehumidifiers, the records are in the process of being dated, organized, and scanned into categorized online programs.

As the Town Hall works to relocate to 5603 Route 22 at the former Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witness, the consolidation and digitalization of records, as well as the disposal of those unneeded, is a time-sensitive project. Marcy Wheatley, the Deputy Town Clerk, emphasized their current heavy focus on organizing and scanning. “Now, when we move, we can get rid of a lot,” Wheatley stated.

Keep ReadingShow less
Fun, food and facts bring crowds to downtown Millerton

Nora Garcia, 6, of Millerton, bottom right, gets a face painting treatment from Maddy Rowe, a Webutuck High School senior. Nora’s sister, Juliana, 8, top right, is decorated by Giana Kall, a Webutuck senior. The program was sponsored by the Webutuck PTA.

Photo by John Coston

Correction: the Millerton News Street Fair was a collaborative effort between the Millerton News, the Millerton Business Alliance and the North East Community Center.

MILLERTON — Locals and visitors packed into downtown Millerton Saturday, June 28, for the first ever Millerton Street Fair hosted by the Millerton News, the Millerton Business Alliance and the North East Community Center. Representatives from local nonprofits, businesses along Main Street, Bee Bee the Clown and face painters from Webutuck High School drew in crowds all afternoon.

Keep ReadingShow less