Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Cookie cake is a sweet supply
Fla. mom goes viral with Dorian-themed dessert from Publix
With news of Hurricane Dorian approaching Florida, Jessica Sullivan wanted to lighten the mood for her four sons.
When the Jacksonville resident saw a hurricane-themed cookie cake at Publix, she knew she had to buy it.
The chocolate chip cake featured the state of Florida with the cone of concern as the hurricane approaches westward. The Sunshine State is decorated with bright green frosting with a red cyclone against a bright blue sea. White icing outlines the cone.
Sullivan posted a photo of the cookie cake on Facebook where it hit a sweet spot among users.
“Publix has all your hurricane party supplies,’’ she captioned under the photo which also captured her feet.
“I thought it was cute and funny,” Sullivan told the Sun Sentinel Friday. “I mean hurricanes are nothing to joke about, but you have to find some humor during a crappy situation or you will go nuts.”
She bought the $10.99 dessert at a Publix store in St. Johns County, Florida for her family.
“I mainly got it for my boys so
maybe they’d have something to look forward to during the storm instead of being scared,” said Sullivan, who also bought a cake for her son’s eighth birthday, cupcakes for his class and some wine during the shopping spree this week.
After she posted the photo, it went viral, having been shared dozens of times on social media where the reaction is mostly goodnatured.
“The cookie cake does look yummy though,” wrote Amanda Lynn on Facebook. “Add some beer and you are set,” added Daisha Smith.
But some users thought the case was in bad taste.
“This is horrible to make light of hurricane!” posted Monica Oropeza-Fossati on Facebook.
Sullivan’s post also caught the attention of Florida and national media.
“I was completely surprised,” she said of the post going viral. “I made a post and then went on with my day. It wasn’t until after I had put my kids to bed and had a minute to myself that I checked my phone and had a message from a girlfriend telling me about all the uproar over my cookie.”
Whomever designed the cake at Publix seemed to nail the hurricane’s predicted path. Hurricane Dorian is expected to strike as a category 4 storm somewhere between South and Central Florida overnight Labor Day or Tuesday morning. Publix did not immediately respond for comment about the themed cake. In 2017, the Lakeland-based grocery chain also made Hurricane Irma-themed concoctions. The cakes read: “Go Away Irma” and “Hurricane Irma.”
Sullivan and her family haven’t eaten their Dorian dessert yet.
“We are eating it tonight. Had to get through the birthday cake first,” she said.