Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a cooking event, hosted by, mom blogger, extraordinaire, Cheryl Leahy from All Dressed Up and Nothing to Drink. She has the knack of exquisitely bringing together mom-favorited brands in an intimate setting, to share, inspire, and connect great products, ideas, and things moms need to know. Her most recent event headlined by, The zen of slow cooking, was impassioned and delicious. I came to the event thinking, What else can you really cook in a crock pot? Boy, did I learn a thing or two--can you say, luscious cinnamon French toast? Pleasantly surprised, I left with several great new ideas that are quick, easy, and tasty. I should have known it would be fabulous after peeking at their website header, tagline: Mindful~Nourishing~Relevant~Simple~Delicious. The packaged approach to seasoning food, coupled with the ease of popping it in, to the slow cooker, really encouraged me to give it a try. The seasoning packets come in a wide variety of flavors, so to speak, and their website it chocked full of easy-to-follow recipes to pull it all together. I'm motivated to use these spices because there are no chemicals, preservatives or other junk you can't pronounce. One of the lip-smacking recipes we sampled at the event was their perfectly flavored version of Chicken Tortilla Soup. When I made this at home, I cut back a bit of the liquid to give it a more chili feel, but the soupy-er version the recipe suggests is spot on. The flavors perfectly marry with the seasoning blend, chopped onions, black beans, diced tomatoes, and chicken. If you live in an area where Peapod delivers groceries, you can conveniently order a Zen of Slow Cooking branded meal kit directly from them, with all of the ingredients included in the bag. How simple is that? You can also order their seasonings packets and more on their website, or purchase them at Whole Foods or other local grocers. The site offers information on upcoming classes, stocking the kitchen, useful kitchen tools and crock pot reccos, and an online form to contact them to present and demo, for your group, school, or organization. What I love about these gals is their mission and purpose. Oftentimes, moms will create something special in the business world because of their love and connection to influences in their lives. This story is nothing short of fabulous and follows that same ideology. In 2012 Meg Barnhart, founder and co-creator of the zen of slow cooking, wanted to create a business that could employ individuals with learning challenges- adults like her son, Doug. When she started slow cooking in 2006 to ease her mom-guilt and get a healthy dinner on the table she never imagined the slow cooker would be a vehicle for change. With her vision in place, she began looking for a partner to help turn her dream into a reality. . Her friend Joanie called a few months later to say, “I met a young mom named Jane McKay, I think she's the person you’ve been searching for." Jane had just moved to Chicago from the UK and was developing recipes and writing for a local food artisan. When they met a few weeks later it was clear that they were meant to build Meg’s dream together. . With Jane’s food writing background starting the blog made sense. In the Fall of 2012, they launched the zen of slow cooking food blogsharing Meg’s passion for helping people find a little more Zen in the kitchen with Jane’s desire to create whole food recipes for the slow cooker. As their subscribers grew in numbers, drawn by their contemporary twist on slow cooking, Meg and Jane knew they were onto something. The gorgeous photography on the website and packaging is the result of the artistic eye of photographer, Kerri Sherman of Bloom and Focus. The night of the event she shared some wonderful iPhone photography tips and ways everyone can create fabulous photography. Contact her to photograph your next event or product launch. If you check on the back of the recipe envelope, you'll find a shopping list for the recipe, instructions, and ingredients list. Easy Peasy. What are you waiting for? Let's get cookin'.
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