Mount Kisco woman is going against the grain

Ali Pugliese has created a brand of organic, grain-free crackers and granola

Alexandra Pugliese, who launched the organic snack brand 7 Kitchen Road in Mount Kisco. Amy Sowder photos

By AMY SOWDER

A Mount Kisco food-merchandising executive and mother of two pulled up a stool to the marble kitchen island in her home. Family photos in matching frames lined the hallway, and nearby a soccer ball lay on the front lawn.

“I love food. It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do. It’s a big part of who I am,” says Alexandra “Ali” Pugliese, who launched her organic healthy snack brand, 7 Kitchen Road, in January 2024. “I love to cook.”

Propped up on the counter of her airy kitchen are Pugliese’s first two product lines of 7 Kitchen Road: Seeded Flats and Seednola, which both contain seven kinds of organic seeds — sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, flax, hemp, chia and poppy — and no preservatives. 

As an avid home cook drawn to more natural foods, she had noticed that even the better-for-you snack brands and milks were laiden with gums, fillers and artificial ingredients. And she wanted crackers chock full of even more seed varieties than she’d seen on the market already.

So, Pugliese started making crackers at home. 

She’d serve them on platters when guests came over, and people suggested she sell them at a local farmers market. One thing led to another, and now the 7 Kitchen Road brand is growing in online and in-person sales. 

“I wanted to do something sustainable, and they’re not a fad. They’re seeds,” she says with a shrug. “I’m not trying to be super trendy about it.”

The flats are crispy, light-yet-hearty crackers that come in three flavors: Original, Everything, and Za’atar. She uses a pie-press process to get the crackers really flat and even. Customers like to eat them out of hand as a quick snack, fan them out on charcuterie and cheese boards, use them as vehicles for dips like hummus and crumble them over soup.

The Seednola product line is grain-free granola born from the byproduct of the flats — a delicious way to use the crumbles that break off the crackers. This twice-baked granola has larger chunks and clusters than other types of granola, and it’s lightly sweetened with organic maple syrup. Current flavors are Almond Butter & Date and Maple Cinnamon.

The Seednola pairs well with yogurt, cottage cheese, and ice cream as a crunchy, nutty topping. Some customers love the Seednola as a quick, healthy way to satisfy a sweet craving.

Melissa Moskowitz, a Chappaqua mom, picks up the Original and Everything flavors of Seeded Flats and both Seednola flavors at her local farmers market.

“They’re clean ingredients. It makes me feel healthy eating it, and it’s great for my children,” Moskowitz says. “The seeds are organic, and I think it’s a really healthy snack.”

Journey to 7 Kitchen Road

Glance at the 7 Kitchen Road website, and it’s no shocker that Pugliese has accrued more than 15 years of e-commerce food merchandising experience. 

She worked at online grocer FreshDirect for more than 11 years, with her final roles as co-lead and vice president of merchandising strategy. Before that, she worked for Le Pain Quotidien, the international chain of bakery restaurants. And she has an economics degree from the University of Michigan.

Her prior work experiences helped her see how hard it is to run a fresh or frozen food business as a small vendor. She knew her product had to be shelf stable for the business to work.

“This has a six-month shelf life with no preservatives. I’m really cognizant of margins. Every penny counts in food,” she says, noting that it lasts longer in the customer’s pantry and is also more cost-effective for her.

She started selling her 7 Kitchen Road snacks the summer of 2024 at the Chappaqua market and Hastings farmers markets, part of Morning Glory Markets.

These days, she alternates selling at Pleasantville and Chappaqua farmers’ markets — and not every week at both — in between carting her children to their sports and activities. Her products are also sold at Mast Market in Bedford, a specialty snack market on Long Island, and online. Pugliese ships nationally and delivers locally.

Eventually, she’d love to expand into more retail stores, but in a careful, gradual way. “This is a very small business. I’m bootstrapping it,” Pugliese says. “I’ve watched so many brands expand too fast.”

Inside those ingredients

It’s really important to Pugliese that people read her ingredient labels. And she’s noticing that customers do care about what’s in her crackers and granola. 

The No. 1 question people ask about 7 Kitchen Road: What binds the cracker together, if there’s no egg or oil? It’s simple, she says. The chia seeds, ground flaxseed, and ground psyllium husk naturally act as a binding agent. “It’s like glue,” she says.

Psyllium is a natural nonfermented gel-forming fiber said to be good for gut health and more. There’s only a little bit of ground psyllium in the crackers, though, Pugliese says, careful not to overpromise.

“I think people are really starting to look finally at what’s in their food and making the connection between our food system and their own health and wellness. So I think it’s an exciting time to be in the food industry,” she says. “But delicious is the No. 1 priority. Always No. 1,” she says.

Pugliese’s two children, Luca, 8, and Eliza, 6, eat her creations. “They’re great cheerleaders, promoting my products in the lunchroom,” Pugliese says.

Luca, a second grader, likes the Everything and Za’atar flavors of the crackers, plus the original flavor with pesto. He eats Seednola at breakfast a lot, on yogurt and with waffles. “I like the maple cinnamon because it’s not too sweet but not too not — right in the middle,” Luca says.

Pugliese is thinking of a new Seednola variety for summer and is toying with the idea of adding more functional herbs and spices to the Seeded Flats, like turmeric, known for its antioxidant and polyphenol benefits.

Farmers markets are good for testing ideas. “It’s a great place to work out the kinks and get immediate feedback,” she says. “But ideally, I want this brand to be accessible to people, kids and adults alike.”

For more information, visit 7kitchenroad.com.