Appalachian Kitchens is a silver lining that came out of a very dark cloud. A personal health tragedy took me out of the public sector workforce, and as I struggled with chemo and radiation in my recovery, most days I was stir crazy wondering what to do with myself. What did I know how to do with which I could hit the ground running? With a background in hospitality, and the wind of mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and aunts beneath my wings, I decided to try my hand at taking home canned products to the local farmer's market.
HOWEVER, I knew that I would get lost in a sea of similar products if I did not find a way to set myself apart. Pondering the thought one night while making dinner, I split open a pork roast, stuffed it with apple, onion, and peach, poured muscadine wine over the top, covered it up and stuffed it in the oven. What came out was a beautifully flavored roast with a beautifully caramelized jam in the bottom of the pan. Eureka! Spirit infusions crept into the mix - and I have never looked back.
Starting with wine, an entire line was born, and gradually hard spirits, beer, mead, and moonshine have found their way into the kitchen.
