delivering fresh or frozen meals right to your door in blacksburg,va.
how did the dream for the cottage kitchen become a reality?
the dream for the cottage kitchen included a host of factors that got me started taking baby steps to make the dream a reality.
one factor in the dream for the cottage kitchen
one factor was growing up in a large family. i was used to cooking for 8 people (3 of which were teenage boys) so my portions were geared to feed a small army.
after getting married i could not quiet that voice in my head while cooking that said “that’s not enough!” so i usually made way too much and ended up freezing a good portion of it, that was when i started into freezer cooking.
a second factor in the dream for the meal deliveries
was the birth of our first daughter, i had a complicated pregnancy (my appendix was infected throughout the pregnancy but the doctors couldn’t tell because of the pregnancy). she ended up being born 10 weeks early and after a short stay in the nicu we came home, and our church brought us a few meals.
i had never had anyone bring me a meal before (or been as tired and drained as i was postpartum with a preemie baby). those meals were such a ministry to us as a family and started a love of bringing meals to families with a new baby or in a difficult circumstance. sharing a meal is such a real way to show love.
the final factor in making the dream of the cottage kitchen a reality
the final factor that kickstarted the cottage kitchen was when one of my younger brothers moved out to go to college. he came over for dinner one night looking pale and generally terrible and when i asked if he was sick he said, “no, i’m just starving, i keep forgetting to cook, it’s a lot harder than mom made it look.” after that i would (and still do) make him snacks weekly in case he needed something in a pinch.
word of my sharing food with him spread to a few other family members, then a few friends and pretty soon i was sending out a weekly menu of what i was planning to make for our family and allowing our friends and family to request different meals, snacks or extras from that list. i’ve been sharing our family’s meals for just over six years now, passing it off to a good friend for a while and adding two other good friends in the last two years. i’ve continued because it’s something i can do at home with all of our kids around, in the midst of homeschooling and gardening. it’s also been a great way to always have food on hand to share with friends or people at church that might need it.
mostly though, i love the intimacy of being able to share my family’s food with others. being a stay at home mom can feel isolating sometimes and having a connection to others and sharing our meals with them has been really special.
right now the cottage kitchen isn’t a business (although we have dreams to make it one) for now we (myself and emily and erin worrall) cook out of our kitchens, with our own garden produce as much as possible, and share the food we are making for our own families. we run off a donation basis and are sharing our food as an act of hospitality.
donations for meal delivery
the donations for fresh or frozen meals have let me save up for and be able to buy bulk grass fed organic meat, something i’ve been wanting to do for ages but can be cost prohibitive, i love being able to share our food, knowing that it’s the best i can source and truly nourishing.
because we aren’t a business yet we stick to word of mouth to find families to share with, which has been really special because everyone that orders regularly is or has turned into a good friend. emily worall is on maternity leave now, but we are looking for 3-5 more families that might be interested in our meals on a weekly basis.
we love to meal share for specific needs, like bringing a big stock of freezer meals, prepped food and snacks after a baby is born. all of my kids love to cook! my oldest daughter, mya, has been making muffins for 2 years now and charity is chomping at the bit to be able to offer something on the menu as well. i love that it brings up great conversations about food safety, measurements, and listening skills. while i don’t usually let the girls hop in to help if i’m making someone else’s food, they love to help make breakfast, lunch, and dinners on the days that it’s just for us.
for more information
contact the cottage kitchen for meal delivery or pick up
