FOREST PARK, IL — Silverland Bakery is celebrating its 40th anniversary as a wholesale bakery.
Athena Uslander established the bakery in 1983 and built the foundation of the bakery with a family brownie recipe. When the bakery opened, it was built on a family recipe, to meet the growing demand for brownies, seen as a rarity at the time.
Uslander is a civil engineer, immigrant and mother of three. She learned how to bake on the job with a friend and business partner, who helped create the business. When the partnership ended, Uslander’s talent and passion for baking helped her continue to succeed.
“I’ve developed thousands of recipes,” she said. “Things are constantly changing, and people are always asking for something new.”
To keep up with consumer demand for desserts that align with health needs, Uslander developed keto brownies, vegan rice crispy treats and a brown butter blondie.
While the pandemic brought challenges to the small wholesale bakery, it also brought new opportunities in the form of co-packing services for new businesses. Uslander is motivated by these new opportunities, even 40 years later.
