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Hyde Park, Vermont - March 18, 2011

It's easy for the Sweet Crunch Bakeshop to stand out in Hyde Park. It's the only place in the village to grab a bite to eat. But owner Debbie Burritt has fans from all over. "We've had people drive an hour just to get them," she said.

They are her signature desserts-- maple-glazed maple cookies.

"I think everybody who's from Vermont is just used to maple syrup being part of their life. As they say, it's in their blood. It's liquid gold," Burritt said.

The trained chef closely guards her secret cookie recipe. "In fact, none of my staff even knows the recipe!" she chuckled.

But she will reveal the key is using dark grade C syrup.

"Some people think of it as the bottom of the barrel, but I think it's the best. It's thick and dark and it has the most flavor," Burritt said.

The result-- a modified sugar cookie-- thin and crunchy-- is coated in a rich glaze.

"This is kind of like maple candy-- if it cools, it hardens," she explained, glazing the cookies.

The treat even attracted the attention of TV food queen Rachael Ray who sampled it on her show.

Twenty-thousand of the leaf-shaped cookies flew out the door last year. And while catering weddings is a more profitable area for Burritt, the 75 cent cookies represent something important.

"We need to support the community and the community will support us," Burritt said.

She wants to keep her neighbors working by sourcing as many ingredients from Vermont producers as possible and hopes a statewide consumer base will shop with her, too. She'll soon start selling her famous cookies in designer boxes in co-ops and specialty stores around Vermont.

"We don't use preservatives. They do have a pretty good shelf life, but I'm not sure we'll take them outside the state," she said.

Debbie Burritt hopes with each of her treats Vermonters will think of the pride that comes with the state's signature flavor and with products that are "Made in Vermont."

"If it's made here, it keeps the money right here in our backyard, where we need it," she said.

A dozen of those cookies costs only $6 at the shop in Hyde Park. Debbie Burritt hopes Vermonters check out their local maple sugarmakers at this weekend's Maple Open House Weekend.

Jack Thurston - WCAX News