What if we could go back to the days when we could trust the food we eat. The days before we had to worry about canned foods tainted by the can, packaged food with ingredients we can’t pronounce, animals treated with hormones, genetic modification, and garden soil and water contaminated by pesticides. This is a short list of the things we hear about, but what don’t we know?
In reality, there is no way to be 100% sure our food/water is free of harmful ingredients, but we can make the best choices possible. What seemed to be the most logical first step, for me, was to eliminate highly processed/packaged foods. Why? Because the labels provide enough information to scare me. Have you ever read a list of ingredients and asked yourself, “What in the world is that?”
Since breakfast foods are my favorite, I started by eliminating bacon and pork. The problem is the only healthy option I found available is the turkey sausage found in the meat department, which tastes somewhat bland in comparison to Jimmy Dean’s and Eckrich, which are my favorites. So I decided to create one of my own. I spent a couple of months trying different spices/herbs until I found just the right combination.
A year later, I attended an annual Women in Business conference hosted by Doris Symonds. The VP of Excalibur Seasonings, Tom Hornstein, was a speaker. He briefly described how Excalibur works with customers to develop blends, and I had an ah-ha moment. Maybe others would like my turkey sausage seasoning too.
I contacted Excalibur in January 2019, created the recipe, and Excalibur blended and packaged the seasoning for me. I started JB’s Basic Seasonings, LLC, (aka Basic Seasonings), which is, still in the development phase. The company’s focus is on healthier options. Healthier vs. healthy because what’s healthy (or unhealthy) for one person may not be for another. The Art of Cooking represents my perspective on cooking. No two people cook exactly the same. Creating great tasting foods is a form of art.
What’s next? – Exploring the possibilities. Based on many conversations I’ve had recently, I learned (and I’m baffled) that a lot of people don’t cook. The reasons vary—they never learned, they don’t have time, or they were raised that way. I personally like to cook, but I don’t want to come home and cook every day. So I can identify with people who feel they are too busy to cook. We are all challenged with eating healthy. So the goal of Basic Seasonings will be to collaborate with people who don’t cook to explore ways we can help each other eat healthier meals at affordable prices.
We probably can’t go back, but I believe we can move towards healthier, affordable options. If you don’t cook, let’s connect. Text “I’m interested” to 309-245-0805 or e-mail jannise@basicseasonings.com.
The Traveler Weekly 