There’s been a rise of people increasingly concerned about
what’s in their food. This is due to the amount of additives, preservatives, and dyes often found in grocery food items and their links to
health issues such as increased risks of obesity and cognitive disabilities.
In Port Huron, businesses like Hancock Harvest and Boys & Buttons Bakery are bringing back the traditional approach to baking using simple, natural ingredients.
Hancock Harvest
1304 Hancock Street, Port Huron
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Jessica Csiki.
Sharing her baked goods with friends and family and being encouraged to pursue her passions, Jessica Csiki opened her home-baking business, Hancock Harvest, in 2024.
“I’ve always loved baking,” Csiki says. “I didn’t initially imagine I’d have my own business. It actually started as something I did just for my own family. I have four young boys who I love baking with. With the economy getting worse, I was looking for ways to save money, so I began making homemade bread and canning veggies when they were on sale.”
Hancock Harvest specializes in yeast breads, sweet breads like cinnamon sugar and pumpkin, and cookies. Her goodies contain no artificial ingredients as she sticks to the basics of flour, butter, sugar, and other staples.
Beyond baked goods, she makes homemade jams and butters, typically from locally sourced, in-season items from local farmers like
The Property Farms and McCallum’s Orchard & Cider Mill. She also grows sunflowers and other flowers, squash, pumpkins, and veggies in her garden.
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Hancock Harvest's Blueberry Jam.
“Incorporating seeds, flowers, and vegetables felt like a natural extension of what Hancock Harvest is about,” Csiki says, “connecting with the seasons and promoting self-sustainability. I enjoy gardening and believe there’s something special about sharing the beauty of homegrown produce and flowers with others.”
Csiki says she’s noticed a growing interest in community bakers and is happy to be part of that community.
“People are starting to value locally made and homegrown products more than ever, and there’s a real sense of connection in sharing those goods with others,” she says.
Folks can find her products at the stand outside her home, located at 1304 Hancock Street in Port Huron. She is content with the business thus far and has no plans to expand.
“The business has already fulfilled its original purpose, providing my family with a little extra income and allowing me to get to know the community,” Csiki says. “ It’s done its job, and I can’t imagine it getting any better than this.”
Boys & Buttons Bakery
2718 Electric Avenue, Port Huron
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Alexia Clark.
Alexia Clark, the founder of Boys & Buttons Bakery, is another local baker in the scene, opening up her business inside her home in September 2024.
Spending most of her early 20s as a single mom, she didn’t envision becoming an entrepreneur or business owner. When she had the chance to become a stay-at-home mom, enjoying experimenting with baking, she became intrigued by the idea through other home-bakers on the
St. Clair County Farm to Table Facebook page.
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Boys & Buttons Bakery Sourdough Everything Pepperjack loaf.
“It sparked my interest more that I could take my baking and creativity further,” she says.
Some of her items include sourdough breads, the current fan favorite everything pepper jack loaf, muffins, cookies, brownies, and other treats. It was also important to her that people could enjoy her baked goods without worrying about preservatives, dyes, or additives.
“I have four children, and buying your basic loaf of bread at the store, there’s 70-plus ingredients you’ve never heard of, so to know that people are getting products that are just basic ingredients that are good for you, I feel like people prefer that,” Clark says. “At some point, I would like to go all organic.”
Boys & Buttons also makes jams, jellies, and crocheted towels. Being in the baking business, she has also noticed a growing trend of home bakers in the area. And it’s only continuing to grow.
By attending local farmers' markets in Almont and Marysville and meeting with other bakers in the area, Clark has found a sense of community and hopes others feel the same.
She also sells her products at her roadside stand at 2718 Electric Avenue in Port Huron. Still operating inside her home, Clark hopes to grow and expand her business.
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Boys & Buttons market stand at Blakes Backyard in Almont.