Esther Montalbano was born Esther Bartolomeo to Italian immigrant parents Guiseppe (Joseph) and Luiga (Eugenia) Bartolomeo in 1939. The Bartolomeo’s came through Ellis Island and eventually settled in the Bensonhurst Brooklyn section of New York City. After Esther, Eugenia gave birth to a second child Luigi (Louis). Esther had a normal childhood; she went to school got good grades and learned all the things a good Italian girl learns. After graduation high school Esther went to work as a switchboard operator until she met Gerald Freitas, her soon to be husband and father to her children. They married in 1960.
In 1961 Esther gave birth to her 1st child Joseph and then in 1963 her 2nd child Paul. It seemed like Esther would lead the life she expected, the doting Italian wife and mother, but in 1964 Esther and Gerald divorced. Granted people reading this today probably think no big deal, but in 1964 it was a big deal. Of all of Joseph and Paul’s childhood friends and classmates there was only 1 other family they knew that were from a divorced home.
And Joseph met them through the Cub Scouts when he was 8. This event totally changed the trajectory of Esther’s and her young boys’ lives.
Esther now faced being a single mom with very little job experience and no higher education that a high school diploma did as she would say ”pulled up her big girl bloomers and went to work”. Esther took a job at Chase Manhattan Bank as a clerk in the underground vault at Chase’s Corporate headquarters. Esther was also a doting mother.
She came home every evening cooked dinner for her and her boys, washed their clothes and spent time working with them on their reading and other schoolwork. Esther always made time to do the extras. Be a den mother with the scouts, take the boys to Yankee and Met games. She would save all year to make sure Christmas was awesome and also so that they could take a family vacation. Joseph shared her love of cooking and baking. She started teaching him to cook at the young age of 7. Paul never had an interest, but he learned enough so that he wouldn’t starve. Though just prior to her death Esther put Paul to work cutting the cookies and putting them together for a family event.
One thing Esther always had time to do was bake treats for the boys and for others. Whenever Esther was invited someplace, she always came, cookies in tow. Whenever someone helped Esther or her family she would always bake cookies for them as a thank you. One time When Joseph was walking with a friend, a dog that was tied to a parking meter jumped out and bit him in the butt. There was a Fire Station across the street and they called him over and cleaned the wound and called Esther. The next week Esther was back at the Fire House with Joseph and about a month’s supply of cookies.
In 1978 Esther met and married Joseph Montalbano, they lived together till his death in 2001. Esther was a very giving person. She crocheted blankets for anyone having a baby. Always had toys at the house for the little kids to play with. Her home was the hangout for Joseph, Paul and all their friends even after they moved out to start their own families. When Paul and Joe would come home while in the military there was always food cooking for them and of course cookies on the table in the cookie jar.
As the years passed Esther would get calls from friends and relatives alike to please make this cookie or that cookie for whatever event they were having. One day Esther thought maybe she could make a little extra money making the cookies. She made business cards and Aunt Esther’s Cookies was born. She never really advertised and mainly through word-of-mouth Esther made cookies for family and friends that others raved about.
Over the years Esther and her son Joseph who after military service spent 25 years in the restaurant industry traded recipes from her meals to her cookies and things Joseph came across from his experiences.
In June of 2022 after a long battle with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Esther succumb to her illness. As a tribute to her, Aunt Esther’s Cookies became Aunt Esther’s Cookies Company LLC. Utilizing the recipes that Esther taught Joseph and that she left behind we hope to keep the memories of Esther alive for many years to come.
We hope you enjoy our cookies as many have for years. Esther always took great pride in the enjoyment people took from her treats.