By MOLLY EANES | Staff Writer
ALABASTER — After three years of selling cookies at various events and festivals across the state of Alabama, owner Al Ruffino opened the Italian Cookie Company storefront in Alabaster on Sept. 19.
Ruffino’s family originated from Sicily, Italy, eventually bringing their love for food and authentic flavor to the United States. Ruffino grew up both in New Orleans and Bessemer before becoming a professional pastry chef and showcasing his skills all over the country.
Word of mouth spread quickly once Ruffino began to sell his bakery masterpieces after retiring in 2020 and moving back to the Shelby County area. Spending his life working in professional kitchens and refining his culinary skills, Ruffino decided to open his own company in 2023 with the help of Chris Clinner, his friend and business partner. In the beginning, Ruffino and his family members would bake cookies out of their own at-home kitchen every week, baking for friends, neighbors, coworkers and more. Ruffino and his team also became frequent attendees at local farmers’ markets, setting up their own booths and selling their goods directly to consumers.
After a while, Ruffino’s cookies were sold in retail stores across Alabama, and ordered in bulk for weddings, gifts and an array of different events. Love and demand for the cookies grew, and quickly after its formal conception, Italian Cookie Company had to expand out of the family kitchen and into a commissary kitchen located in Alabaster.
“We’ve been in Alabaster for three years but weren’t open to the public, it was just a commissary kitchen across the street,” Ruffino said. “But now we are on the corner of 11 St. SW, near the new police station and we are super excited to be open in the Alabaster community.”
Dining and Cooking