There's a bustling crowd in the gluten-friendly kitchen at Hope & Main in Warren; Rhode Island's first culinary business incubator. It's a somewhat unusual sight—most Hope & Main "makers" are solitary or partnered pursuits. But tonight the kitchen belongs to Sacred Cow Granola, and with a staff of six, not including principals Maureen Maloney and Deb Amaral, there's a veritable crowd in the kitchen.

There's a good reason for that—they've got quite a demand to fill. That's likely due to three factors: they're a little more established than many Hope & Main makers, with their product on the market since December 2014 and already in larger stores including Tom's Market in Warren, Clements Market in Portsmouth, the Eastside Marketplace in Providence and, most recently, Dave's Marketplace in East Greenwich.

They also have a built-in market in Monroe Dairy, which originally commissioned Sacred Cow Granola as a product to be marketed along with their milk. Maloney, who has worked in Monroe's marketing department since 2002—and also happens to be really great at making granola—was perfectly positioned to take on the challenge, for which she enlisted Amaral, a chef and trained food safety professional.

The third reason? It's really, really good. Can't-stop-eating-it-dry-from-the-bag good. They have a secret spice blend that reflects Maloney's fondness for the flavors of Indian food, and Maloney also notes that one of the secret ingredients is love—something that is clear, in the enthusiasm of the entire production crew—but there's something else, too. A quick perusal of the ingredient list confirms the presence of candied ginger, which, along with perfectly toasted coconut justifies Sacred Cow's subtitle: The Holy Granola Experience. Amaral admits their product has several passionate devotees. "They refer to it as 'crackola'," she laughs.

That flavor didn't come easy. "Deb and I worked a for a year on the recipe," Maloney admits. The process also took time time to nail down. They started off working out of The Cookie Place, a small bakery in Providence. But by the time they had both their product and process in place, it was clear they would need a bigger space in order to get a handle on production. That's where Hope & Main came in.

"The support you get here, the collaboration, it's huge," says Amaral. "People here held our hand at every step."

"And we want to help others, too," adds Maloney. "It's all about collaboration. And it's got to be fun. Then success follows." Indeed, their business has grown 79 percent in just the last 6 months.

It was, in fact, Lisa Raiola, the founder of Hope & Main, who came up with the Sacred Cow brand name. Maloney and Amaral cannot say enough good things about Raiola, and the community she's created. "She's amazing, and she deserves far more credit than she allows herself to take for our success," says Maloney.

With their 6-person crew working at executing their production plan, Maloney and Amaral have a little time to focus on research and development, and are looking to expand their product line with a gluten-free version, more seasonal flavors, and perhaps bars and trail mixes; as well as expanding their reach to other local, regional, and national markets.

No matter their next move, according to Amaral, one thing is certain: "We're going to keep selling this granola, because it makes people happy."

To learn more, visit sacredcowgranola.com, email info@sacredcowgranola.com, or call Maureen at 401/743-7299.