Finding inspiration...

It's easy to make excuses. I can say it's because I'm working full-time. I can say it's because our hours are so jacked up that we only have a few hours each evening for Debbie and Harry time. But I know in my heart those are just excuses. I have plenty of computer time every single day. I've been up for a little over two hours. I've just kind of fallen into a (bad) habit of just surfing each morning until its time to go to work. On the weekends, we'll sit beside each other and surf, pointing out cool things we find.

And then this happened:

I have been wanting to do a weekend runaway to Cleveland (yes, Cleveland, Ohio) for ages. I finally pouted long enough that Harry agreed. On the agenda: The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, lunch at Bahama Breeze (don't judge me), a winery or two, the casino and B Spot, and Nirvana.

So we planned a weekend in October, found a hotel within walking distance of the rail station and headed north. Friday night, we took the train to the Horseshoe Casino and had burgers and fries at B Spot. Google it. It hurts my heart that we were not impressed. I'll still try a stand-alone B Spot and give it one more shot.

Saturday morning was the day I was waiting for: Cleveland's West Side Market! Our primary mission was all about the sausage. But, which stand to choose? We made a circuit of the entire market looking at the options. Our first stop garnered butter, cheese, gnocchi, and pierogi. We picked the shop we would buy our walleye. And then, and then...we bought NINE different types of sausages. Smoked, double-smoked, hot, mild, fresh.

We visited Great Lakes Brewing Company, Bier Markt and Market Garden Brewery. I posted pictures to Facebook via my smarter-than-me-phone of our travels and finds.

It was fun. I wanted to do more.

We did this:

And we did this:

Then we did this:

Which was part of this:

And I even had a burst of creativity with the labels:

A few other things happened that kept reminding us of what we used to love to do: play in the kitchen and create food. In the real world we live in right now, it's impossible to jump back into the farmers market thing. It just won't support us anymore. But, over the last couple of months we've had many discussions about how to take it to a level that we can sustain while still working full time.

I'll go into more detail in the coming weeks. I'll also do full posts explaining the pictures. Debbie & Harry's Kitchen needs a makeover and some love for the old posts. It feels very good to be writing this. Oh, how I've missed it all.

Yes, The Wright Taste is going to try it again...

Hopefully, without killing ourselves. At the end of the farmers market season last year, I decided I'd had enough. The market had changed and our profit margin was abysmal. After returning our kitchen to its normal winter "fun" condition without all the evidence of a business kitchen, I was able to think with a clear head.

New rule No 1! (Thanks Bill Maher!) No more than one market on any given day. This means that we'll only do 3 markets a week at the most. We've picked our three most profitable - Delaware, Pataskala and Mount Vernon. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday - I can do this without spending 80 hours a week in the kitchen.

New rule No. 2! Stick to the basics. I let my home bakery license expire last fall and have no intention of renewing it. Most of the products we sold at the markets fell under Cottage Food guidelines (more on that later). Even our special orders almost always fell under cottage foods, so less stress.

New rule No. 3! Get back to the shelf-stable items. That means working my tail off writing in April so I can afford all the ingredients and supplies for our spices and mixes. Yes, Buffalo Dust, Fiesta Dip and more!

Not a rule. Well, maybe. If all goes according to plan, the first two cookbooks from Debbie & Harry's Kitchen will be ready by the start of the market season. One will include recipes to make the best use of the market season bounty. The other will feature, well, the recipes of The Wright Taste. In the past, I was reluctant to share those recipes but we had a lot of discussions this winter and decided it was definitely the way to go. There's a lot of products that we aren't going to make anymore and hopefully, I'll still hear "but why don't you make this anymore" from customers.

So, hello spring. Looking forward to summer and a successful market season for The Wright Taste.

If you're looking for a way to make some extra money in the summer, follow the links to learn about Ohio's Cottage Food and Licensed Home Bakery regulations. Good luck!

Cottage Foods in Ohio: Low-Cost Home Business
Licensed Home Bakeries in Ohio: Homemade Business that Works

See you this summer!

 

If you decide to open a cottage food business or licensed home bakery, the best investment you can make is a digital scale. Labeling requirements include an exact product weight.