Food & Family

This is a little bit of History about my love of cooking.

I have always believed that the best gift you can give anyone is to Cook for them.

Mum & Dad on their wedding day
 

My first memories of home life are the SMELLS. 
Some were weird.. some made you want to take a bite out of thin air… and others made you wretch, but all had a story and were made by my Dad

Here are some of the smells that have left a lasting dent on my brain…

Freshly caught fish being gutted and filleted on old news papers, down in my dad’s shed.  This always started out ‘stinky’ but ended up so delicious.

Baked Beetroot,  until I was in my 30’s I never even tasted freshly baked beetroot.  The smell from home always put me off, but now I’m a big girl I love it.

Saturday night was always Jam night. Dad seemed to have the biggest pot known to man (then again I was small) and he would fill it with delicious fresh fruits from the garden, add suger and leave to boil and set for what seemed like a week.  The only one that made my nose twitch was the gooseberry jam which was a little ‘spikey’ for me. 

I was brought up in a Catholic family, and my mum would insist that we attended mass each week.  I would choose to go on Saturday night which meant I could spend Sunday morning in the kitchen with my Dad cooking the Sunday dinner.   That is were my love of cooking started and I still love to bake and cook and find it so theraputic.

 
 
So now you know who to blame for all my kitchen trials and tribulations.
 
I still ring my Dad on occasion looking for advise, and he is high on my list of tasters. Only second to the hungry Husband & Kids
 
Here I am with 1 of my 6 sisters, mucking about as usual. I’m the one trying to escape. x

 

In the Beginning

Everything has a starting point….

So who, what, where and when was Kookees’

Don’t panic, I’ll keep it brief,  well brief and factual (If I can remember that far back)

WHO
I confess, I’m an Irish country lass from a big family. Need I say more.
Did the school thing, always had a summer or weekend job but got my first permanent role at 19. From there I worked hard and got to the top of my profession over time. During all this I got married, and was now waiting on baby #3 to arrive.


WHAT
What happened to bring about the Birth of Kookee? Well, Baby #1 (now 4) was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome.  So my path altered, I gave up work, I became a fulltime carer and so my new journey began. Family activities changed to help #1 join in with family fun. So one Saturday I made some cookie dough and split it between the kids, they cut out all sorts of shapes and we baked them and had such a fun day.. Turns out THAT was the Birth of Kookee.

WHERE
Over the next few years I set up production from my HSE approved kitchen. I narrowed my product line, focused on my business goals and set about putting it all in motion. Time, determination and a Salesman for a husband finally made the dream a reality.

AND WHEN
That is on going….. now we produce a range of Artisan Cookie Pellets which we supply into Coffee shops and Deli stores. To complement this I also produce a range of Bake at Home dry cookie mixes. All our products have the highest quality ingredients and are available in Standard and Gluten Free. We source, produce and distribute nationwide, and in the not too distant future we aim to export too.


And Now…well the Saleman husband continues to drive and support me & Kookee, my now 4 children keep me busy, tired, exhausted, laughing (well what else can you do) and I look to the future, for me, my family and my ever growing business.





That’s the Kookee story.

…so far