***** LISTENERS RECEIVE A 10% OFF – USE PROMO CODE: TRB10 @ www.weecanshop.com *****
My guest is Kimberly Foley, owner of Wee Can Shop. Wee Can Shop is a were gift shop designed for children so they can shop for their loved ones. It is a unique storefront location where everything is built to scale for the little ones shopping experience. The host birthday parties, also. There is a web presence through http://www.weecanshop.com and they ship throughout the US and Canada. There gifts ideas for children and adults, pets and eco-friendly. Kimberly accepts inquiries from artisans that would like to see their products in her Wee Can Shop enterprise. Although, their appearance on the ABC show, Shark Tank, did not net them any investment dollars. Kimberly is determined to prove them wrong!
My interview with Leslie Haywood and Heath Hall was great. Leslie is a stay at home mom and inventor/CEO of Grill Charms. Heath Hall and his partner Brett Thompson are lawyers on Capitol Hill and founders of Pork Barrel BBQ.
Both of my guests received venture capital from investors on the ABC hit show, Shark Tank. We discussed some the challenges they encountered while bringing their products to market and what it felt like behind the scenes with the sharks.
One thing that stood out during the interview was Leslie’s answer to my question,”What kept you going?” when she was trying to develop a successful prototype of her product. Her answer, “Fear.”
She was afraid that one day she would see that product on the shelves in a store and someone else would have created it. She did not want to live with that regret.
Wondered how many entrepreneurs feel that way. Your thoughts?
Looking for GREAT Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Foodies? My guests and their innovative products have appeared on ABC’s knock-out show Shark Tank. You will definitely want to add them to your list!
Leslie Haywood, is the inventor of Grill Charms™, the newest phenomenon in grilling products. Created by Charmed Life Products, a company formed by Haywood in 2006, Grill Charms™ are similar in concept to the wine charm. Once affixed to your chicken, fish, steak, pork or even vegetables, Grill Charms™ allow individuals to differentiate their item from others on the grill.
Pork Barrel BBQ was founded by Heath Hall, President and Brett Thompson, CEO in late 2008. Pork Barrel BBQis a Washington, DC based gourmet Dry Rub and BBQ Sauce company. Their first product, the All American Spice Rub, was created in December 2008 and sold over 350 units in the first week. Made of all natural ingredients with no preservatives or MSG, the All American Spice Rub has a smoky and slightly spicy flavor created from a combination of spices, chilies and herbs. Join us to hear about these fun new products, what’s next for their companies, and what it was like swimming with the sharks!
Halloween treats that you won’t be frightened to feed to your kids! Chef Jill Houk of Centered Chef Food Studios will share fun recipes you and your family make together. www.centerchef.com
Bonus: Cookbook author, Kris Holechek will be here to discuss The 100 Best Vegan Baking Recipes cookbook. www.nomnomnomblog.com
Surviving Halloween—Tips and Recipes
Tips
It’s the time of year when kids (and adults) begin over-indulging on sweet treats. The holidays, starting with Halloween and going through New Year’s, are prime times to eat candy, cookies and other empty calories. How can you reduce your children’s (and your) sugar consumption without becoming a monster? Here are some tips and recipes so that everyone has a sweet Halloween without going into sugar overload.
Halloween Trick or Treating
Create a trick or treating game plan that has limits. By setting a limit for the amount of time or the area that your child can trick or treat, you are limiting his or her “haul” of goodies. Your child is unlikely to notice that you are setting limits strictly to reduce candy intake, but will just be overjoyed about trick or treating in general. Also, by setting to limits and having your child agree before you set out on your escapades, you are less likely to experience resistance when you stick to your limits.
Ensure your child takes only one treat at each home. Many families will give out more than one piece of candy. In this case, you are flirting with disaster—because your child may double or triple his booty of candy. Tell your child that one piece is sufficient. This way, your child also learns moderation. Likewise, buy less candy per year and hand out only one treat per child to set a good example.
Make sure your child has a healthy snack before going out to collect candy. Feed kids a light lunch or afternoon snack of healthy protein, produce and whole grains and he or she will be full enough to avoid snacking on candy while trick or treating. If your child becomes hungry on the way, either head back home for a healthy snack, or bring a healthy snack to eat on the road.
After Halloween
Set limits for how many pieces of candy your child can eat per day. Two to three pieces of Halloween candy is enough to satisfy most kids without adding too many calories, and is a good pace for getting rid of Halloween candy by Thanksgiving.
Create an expiration date for candy. By limiting how long candy is in your home, you can control how much your child eats, as well. My rule of thumb is Thanksgiving. By then, most children will have consumed the candy they like the best, and are down to the dregs. This way, you also avoid doubling up on treats. For example, your child will not be eating Halloween candy with pumpkin pie, chocolate Hannukah gelt or candy canes.
Keep the candy out of sight. By keeping the candy in a closet, you force a situation whereby your child must ask for it. Out of sight is often out of mind, and you may find that your child forgets about the candy one or two days.
Buy candy back. If your child has received an unusually large haul of candy, consider buying it back at the same price it would take to buy the candy from the store in the first place. This way, your child can save to money to buy games, stickers, novelty clothing or video games.
Make healthy alternatives fun and delicious. Create tasty healthy snacks like popcorn trail mix, which is chock full of vitamins and fiber, with a sweet kick. Or give regular foods Halloween-type names to make them fun and interesting. For example, to encourage your child to eat whole-grain spaghetti, call it “blood and guts” or something seasonally creepy.
Mix candy in with healthy foods. For example, melt caramels or chocolate candies and serve as a topping for strawberries and apples. Or make the banana “ice cream” and serve a scoop with one fun-sized candy bar.
Has anyone ever said to you, “Your baking is so delicious, or your cakes are so beautiful…you should go into business!?” Have you ever taken a cake decorating class and thought, “How could I turn this into a career?” Maybe you’ve been to a wedding, seen and tasted the cakes or cupcakes and thought, “I can do this!” Perhaps you just enjoy working in the kitchen and want to learn how to start a real home-business.
Starting a Cake Business at home is a relatively straight-forward and inexpensive process compared to starting a commercial bakery or buying a franchise. However, the process is still time consuming and intimidating. There are legal issues as well. Simple mistakes or trial and error cost you in time and money. Once your business is up and running you’ll begin to achieve the things you’re hoping for.
What are the legal ramifications of operating a food service business from home?
What are the best cake recipes?
How can I start with very little funds?
How can you build a portfolio of cake options to show clients when just starting out?
What kind of insurance do you need? How do you build a tiered cake?
What is the best way to make rolled fondant, buttercream, gum paste flowers?
Where will I find customers?!
What does a contract need to stipulate ?
I am the only one in the house who really drinks wine, so whenever I cook with wine, I have a glass then have about half a bottle left. To keep the freshness of the wine and be able to use it for cooking in the future, I pour it in an ice cube tray and freeze it. Then when I need wine for cooking, I just take a cube or 2 from the tray - no need to buy anothe […]
I recently watched my mom get hundreds of dollars knocked off of medical bills because of inaccurate billing. It wouldn't surprise me if up to a quarter of all medical bills contained errors. So it was with interest that I read a recent post by Jen at Bohemian Revolution about a simple medical billing mistake that left her entirely responsible for a la […]
Babies are big business in this country. There's cribs, clothes, car seats, strollers, you name it. SimpleMom is out with a list of 8 Things you don't need for a new baby, but they say you do. Here's a couple items from their list: 4. Diaper pail We had a Diaper Champ with our daughter, but with our son, we just have a standard trash can that […]
We reserve the right to edit and make suitable for publication, if necessary, any articles or content published in this blog or in the podcast. We reserve the right to publish all reader comments, including the name of the writer or speaker. The views and opinions of guests appearing on The Recipe Box Show are not necessarily those of Barbara Howard or Vigilant Communications.
