Kota & Krumb Brings Homemade Sweetness to the Elk Community

For 20-year-old Dakota Girton, what began as a childhood love of baking has turned into a new business venture – one cake pop at a time. Girton officially launched Kota & Krumb on Aug. 24, offering homemade cake pops and other dipped treats from a pop-up cart at the end of her driveway in Elk, near Chattaroy. The business gives Girton a creative outlet and a way to share her baked goods with the community while she works toward her real estate license. Her love of baking developed over the years, particularly through holiday traditions with her mother. “I love baking with my mom. It was my holiday cheer,” Girton said. “Every year, we make treats together that are fitting for the season. In the fall, we make pumpkin bread, and at Christmas, we make a plethora of Christmas cookies.”

Although her family had long encouraged her to attend culinary school, Girton decided she did not want to turn something she loved into a daily obligation. The idea for Kota & Krumb came from her boyfriend, Kyle Broesel, after a year of major changes for Girton. He suggested that Girton start a small stand. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was a little girl, so him helping make this little dream come true means the world to me,” Girton said. Girton said she chose cake pops because they offered a way to combine creativity and baking without requiring her to spend every day in the kitchen.

She wanted a business that could fit into her schedule while studying for her real estate license. “I wanted to start this business because I wanted to share my baked goods with people without having to dedicate every waking moment of my life toiling away in the kitchen to have product to put out,” she said. “This is just something I can devote a few hours to, and it’s a lot of fun for me.” The name Kota & Krumb is a nod to Girton’s nickname. Her family and friends have long called her “Kota,” and she wanted a name that would reflect that nickname while fitting the theme of her business. “I wanted it to kind of rhyme and have a theme together, and I just felt like ‘Krumb,’ but spelled with a ‘K,’ fit really well,” she said.

Kota & Krumb’s cake-pop offerings include Reese’s, Biscoff, Fruity Pebble, Cosmic Brownie, and Dirt Cake. Girton said Dirt Cake has been particularly popular among customers, while Reese’s cake pops have also been selling quickly. The Dirt Cake cake pops feature crushed Oreos as the “dirt” and a gummy worm, while the Reese’s variety includes a peanut butter drizzle and half of a Reese’s cup. While she enjoys experimenting with different flavors and designs, Girton said she especially likes working with drizzles because each treat turns out a little differently.

Girton also makes a variety of other dipped treats, including cookies, pretzels, caramel-dipped pretzels, Rice Krispies, and strawberries. Cheesecake shooters are available by special order. She said she plans to expand her menu with chunky cookies, additional baked goods, and seasonal flavors. “I have hundreds of recipes in mind that all require different toppings and designs,” Girton said. “I will be appearing as a vendor at some local events here this fall, and I plan on bringing a few flavors catered to the fall taste.”

Girton accepts custom orders for events such as birthdays, weddings, gender reveals, showers, and gradu- ations. She also hopes to provide ca- tering and offers party packages and products by the dozen. Customers interested in custom orders should generally place them at least two weeks in advance. For larger events, Girton recommends allowing approximately three weeks, especially when specialty supplies or decorations need to be ordered. When she first started, Girton was unsure how much traffic the stand would receive because of its location.

She expected that only a few people might stop by each week. Instead, the response has exceeded her expectations. “Since I’ve been open, I’ve sold out more than once. I’ve had people stop in the pouring rain, I’ve had delivery trucks stop, I’ve had multiple repeat customers, and lots of new faces weekly,” she said. Girton said she has been especially touched by the kindness and encour- agement of customers and members of the community. She regularly shares updates on social media and said the support she has received has been meaningful.

“I love it when people tell me that they and their kiddos love the cake pops,” she said. “That’s the exact reason why I do it. I love to make people happy.” Girton said she has also received handwritten messages from custom- ers through her payment box. While the business has been re- warding, Girton said one of the big- gest challenges has been staying motivated when sales are slow and managing the time required to make each batch. Cake pops are prepared in her kitchen, and even a single batch can take several hours to complete. “The fastest I’ve done has been about three-and-a-half hours,” Girton said.

“And I believe the ones I’ve spent the most time on took six hours, and they weren’t even that crazy of a design.” She said the time and care involved in preparing the treats is something customers may not always realize. Still, she enjoys the process and often listens to music or watches a show while she works. Girton said her biggest accom- plishment so far has simply been opening the business. “I’m so happy