Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Easy as Epicure!

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!!!

I have re-entered the work field...but on my terms. I have been away from work for about 12 or so years because of my health but it has always been niggling at the back of my head that I could find a way to go back. I miss working. Well ok I miss money hehehe. I knew if I was patient I would be able to find a way to do both, work, make money yet take care of my health so I didn't over extend.

So I did find it or rather it found me. About 4 years ago on one of my many trips back home I was visiting with one of my cousins and noticed this beautiful spice shelf on her wall with these very unique spice jars that I had never seen before. I asked her about it and she was surprised I had never heard of the company as it is based out here. She opened up the spice jars so I could smell them.....oh man...you know when you first smell tomatoes you just picked from the garden? Or when you shell fresh peas and eat them before they even hit the pot, eat the first crop of corn on the cob with butter dripping down your chin and you think "oh yahhh this is what food IS supposed to taste like. These spice jars I was smelling had the same effect. The jar of basil smelled like my pot of basil on my window sill for example.

She talked to me about them about how there are no fillers, the products are all grown locally, no preservatives, no chemicals added, just the herb period. I came home, contacted the company and said I want to hold a show. I don't think they get too many calls like this hehehe. That same day a woman called me to say the company called her about me. We met, I booked a show in my home, held it, got all this product for free, got to taste all these new ideas (now where else do you actually get to taste the stuff that has just been demonstrated??) and started my love with my purchases. My consultant moved away after a bit then found the wife of one of my old school friends sold it so I stocked up again but then after a while she had to leave the company so I was out of luck again.

Then my cousin comes to my rescue once again as she had become a consultant by this time so every time I went back home I would stock up. This past May when I went back she talked to me about being a consultant and it grew from a planted seed in my brain (no pun intended) into a reality. As all of my friends and family know I work really hard at eating only healthy foods for the most part since I had lost all my weight and survived cancer. They also know I am a fanatic of sorts about the farm to table idea....buying foods locally as much as possible or at least within the 100 mile mark (except for bananas and avocadoes because you know there is always ONE exception to every rule hehehe) so for me this was a no brainer. What is the point of using fresh foods and then ruining it by using seasonings that are mostly filler and really have no taste?

I have 2 gardens that I stock with vegetables that I grow all year even in the dead of winter (one of the advantages of living on the west coast) and I love to be able to season these vegetables and the food that makes up the rest of the meal. I cannot even begin to describe the difference in taste when you use fresh products and seasonings.

But it took me several months after I had told my cousin I wanted to sign up till I actually signed up. I wanted this to be different.. I wanted to revolutionize the concept of "home shows". First of all I don't want to do these unless it is going to be very beneficial for me and for the people that would become my customers. I always feel that when a friend/family get that call of "Hey I booked a show with.... and would love for you to come. Don't worry about buying anything just come for a night of visiting". Yes I can see you nodding your head on that one! So you go over because you really do need something from them and then at the end of the evening when you hear the sales person say " Ok I am just going to go over to the table so anyone that is ready to order you can come on by." You just know you are going to get hit with" so when can I mark you down for your show?" ughhh I hated that part. I just hate doing shows in my home... I just hate having to call people and start the whole process all over again. And I know I am not alone in this.

Thus putting me in my dilemma. Until I came across a unique way of bypassing all that!! I am going to NOT do home shows, I will be doing my business almost completely online and once every quarter or so I will be doing my OWN home show to showcase the new products coming up for that next season. In my own life I like cooking by the seasons. We all know that you eat a lot of basic salads in the summer accompanied with whatever meat you happen to be barbecuing.. But what do you do with produce the rest of the year that are in season. Cabbage adds to coleslaw or cabbage rolls..but what else can you do with the cabbage...how do you benefit with fresh green beans or asparagus in the spring? I could go on for pages on this topic. Well now I can show you how.

We are linked to food much like our DNA. When we come together with family and friends we share not only conversation over the table but an enjoyment of the food that is before us. How many of our fond memories are tied to occasions where food was involved and are of helping put  a meal together?  To me what has made eating together even more special is the journey from idea to reality. It isn't about opening the fridge door and wondering for the bazillionth time what you are going to make for supper although I do have those days as well...but it is also the process of getting delicious creations to the table. I get very excited about planning a meal for guests that I know they will love and spending the time in my kitchen creating and cooking.

I try and capture that magic by using what is available that season. It is about cooking with fresh ingredients. It is the way our parents and grandparents before us cooked before modern conveniences made supper come from cartons and cans To cook with the seasons makes menu building simple since food that grows together goes together. When you buy food that is grown locally means buying food at its best meant to be eating right away without the need to add preservatives to keep it "fresh" while trucks drive thousands of miles at times to get it to you.

Where ever you live there are opportunities to source out local and seasonal ingredients. It isn't just about farmers markets. I hope to teach you how to use this knowledge of farm to table along with using the right seasonings to make. This is my "new" concept of home shows. It will take something I love to do, cooking, with something I am good at, talking, and combining them with a FANTASTIC product, Epicure Seasonings and together we will make it happen for each and everyone of you.

You can check out my website at http://sallyhaysom.myepicure.com/. Now this is a new venture for me so you will have to forgive me as I work with the website to make it better and easier for you to maneuver through it. If you have any questions please just ask away. I will be starting a new blog about my new venture so you can ask me questions about me, get recipe ideas, suggestions etc. I will be placing an order at the beginning of each month and will give everyone a heads up of when it is so if there is anything you are wanting to get you can let me know.

I also will let everyone know when I do my first big WELCOME TO MY WORLD show that you will all be invited to. And again you have no worry about being cornered at the sales table to be asked when you would like to book your show :)

If you live out of town you will still have the opportunity to "attend" each of these shows that I host and I will give you more information about that at a later date. Unfortunately though the people in actual attendance will have to eat your share of the food!!! Sorry :)

Enjoy yourselves and thank you very much for being a part of this new chapter in my life.

Sally