Recipe for Success

♪ <Angie> All right now the fun starts.

<Libba> Creative process at work here.

[camera shutters] <Angie> Keep doing that.

<Carrie> My recipes reflect where I'm from and what I do.

I love it.

I've known Rodney for over 6 years.

Ahh, that is so magical.

<Rodney> From a chore, to a passion, to a career.

<Carrie> Texture, crunch, extra flavor, spice.

You're right.

Every day is a good day.

<Rodney> Every day.

<Carrie> I took my mom's best recipe and started selling handmade Southern biscuits.

Now I'm balancing a family, a business and biscuits every day.

Thank you so much.

I'm Carrie Morey.

And this is how I roll.

♪ [slow bluegrass music] ♪ <Carrie> This a possibility, definitely this, not so much of that.

Well, I certainly wasn't expecting to get a cookbook deal in the middle of a pandemic.

Alright, spring, weeknight.

<Producer> Tell us the process you're doing.

<Carrie> Just trying to figure out what recipes go into the cookbook.

And it's a culmination of really recipes over the last 7 or 8 years.

<Libba> Whoa, creative process at work here.

<Carrie> I know.

This was in an effort to make it more organized, but I'm feeling like, there's just too much and I need like a little help.

The colors represent, the seasons, but I just almost feel like I have too many.

<Libba> Do you want to prioritize the recipes that have like the really good stories behind them?

<Carrie> Yes, I totally want to do that.

<Libba> - like the naans.

The salmon.

<Carrie> Yep.

<Libba> I think this is great with the colors.

But I think having it this spread out is overwhelming.

<Carrie> Yeah.

All right.

Well, then let's get this on a board and then just start pulling things that we think are definites, maybes, and categorize them.

<Libba> Yes.

<Carrie> I already feel better.

<Libba> I do too.

♪ [music] ♪ <Lindsay> Hello.

<Carrie> How are you?

<Lindsay> Good.

How are you?

<Carrie> Lindsay is amazing.

She is our recipe tester.

And she takes all of our photographs for our blog.

And now that we have a new cookbook on the way, we're trying to put together the outline and figure out what should go and what should stay.

So, she has been working like crazy.

<Lindsay> I'm about to do the roasted poblano mushroom quesadillas and then the fried squash - <Carrie> Okay.

<Lindsay> with pimento cheese.

<Carrie> Roast the poblanos and clean them, seed them, chop them.

<Carrie> I was looking for somebody that could test my recipes and be okay with getting it in a crumpled sticky note or a voice text.

<Lindsay> How much cheese?

Like a quarter cup probably cheese?

<Carrie> That's just not the way my brain works.

I don't measure anything.

Then to have to go back after you've cooked and think about - kind of takes the fun out of it.

<Carrie> I would guess it's probably a cup somewhere in that, maybe three fourths.

<Lindsay> Okay, that sounds good.

<Carrie> I'm hungry!

How long?

<Lindsay> Well, come on.

I'll be ready with your food.

♪ [upbeat music] ♪ I think my part is making it relatable for everybody.

We're doing it, you know, step by step.

I have to roast the poblanos.

Since I have a gas oven, I'm going to fire it up.

♪ That's what you want it to look like.

♪ That one's almost ready.

All charred.

And we seal it up for maybe 10 minutes, and then all the skin will get all soft and we'll be able to scrape it up.

Take your knife and you just scrape the skin, It comes right off.

This is a very simple recipe.

That's a half a cup of cheese.

Carrie said don't skimp on the cheese.

[giggles] It comes together pretty quickly.

Poblanos... the mushrooms.

♪ Still hot.

Good ole flip.

[sizzling] There's your quesadilla.

There you go.

<Lindsay> I started my own Food Instagram, posting pictures, and that's how Carrie and I got connected.

I'm living the dream, get to work from home and cook food and eat it.

♪ [steady music] ♪ <Carrie> The fried squash is definitely a nostalgic recipe.

[sizzling] I grew up with my dad raising me.

He would take me to Miss Kitty's which was a meat and three on Morrison, and I would always get fried squash, macaroni and cheese, fried okra and probably fried pork chop or fried chicken.

♪ <Lindsay> Come on in.

<Carrie> Smells good!

<Lindsay> Cooking all your food.

I hope I did her proud.

♪ [steady music continues] ♪ Fresh chives make it definitely pop.

<Carrie> Just like Miss Kitty's.

So good!

Crunchy, creamy.

It's like a perfect little marriage.

Well done.

<Lindsay> Thank you.

♪ [upbeat bluegrass music] ♪ <Rodney> My name is Rodney Scott.

And we're at Rodney Scott's Whole Hog Barbecue.

♪ [upbeat bluegrass continues] ♪ <Carrie> I've known Rodney for over 6 years.

<Rodney> Today we're going to walk through, I'm going to show Carrie a few things here in the pit.

A couple of hogs maybe.

We're going to definitely discuss those biscuits because I got to get one.

[laughs] <Carrie> Being a small business owner, there are so many ups and downs and to be able to have a collaborative friendship, relationship is super important.

<Carrie> Hello!

<Rodney> Hey, Hey!

How are you?

<Carrie> I'm great!

How are you?

<Rodney> Good!

It's been too long.

<Carrie> Are you surviving this craziness?

<Rodney> Slowly, day by day, but every day is a good day.

So we're going to get through this.

<Carrie> I feel like, whenever I visit another entrepreneur like me, you always learn something, <Rodney> Yes.

<Carrie> There's always something you take away from that.

<Rodney> All right, why don't you say we take these and heat these up.

<Carrie> I like it.

Put them on the pit.

<Rodney> Let's get this day started.

♪ [slow bluegrass music] ♪ <Rodney> So..

Here's our pit room.

<Carrie> It smells so amazing.

Oh..look at that fire.

<Rodney> That's our main heat source right here.

We like to use oak and hickory blend, hardwoods, we take all the coal, burn the wood down and sprinkle it under the pits.

When the coals drop down, it tends to get a little bit more cleaner, white-ish smoke, a lot better on food.

<Carrie> So, all of these have whole hog in them right now.

<Rodney> The one thing that we're known for, whole hogs.

<Carrie> Oh, that is so magical.

<Rodney> When you use a whole hog, it adds to the experience of tasting the loin, the belly, the shoulder and the ham, all of those bits and pieces and parts, different textures, different flavors.

One of the best pork sandwiches ever.

<Carrie> I cannot wait to eat this.

♪ [steady music] ♪ <Rodney> So, we got them on wire.

This is how I grew up, what I saw them do.

Had no idea what it was for.

<Carrie> Just ingenuity right here.

<Rodney> Just ingenuity.

<Employee> This is the mop.

It's got special vinegar and seasonings in it.

They season the meat and help break it down a little bit.

<Employee> It's pretty simple.

But it just takes time.

You can't rush it.

<Rodney> Great job, guys.

Great job!

<Carrie> What's the learning curve?

<Rodney> We use thermometers for the new folks that start.

I know how to do it but I want them to understand how the touch compared to the temperature, so like here.

It's getting there, but it's not there.

Yeah.

<Carrie> It's less about a recipe and more about the touch and the feel and the look.

<Rodney> Yes, yes.

<Carrie> It's very similar, our businesses, because I'm horrible about telling our staff to measure because I know how to do it without measuring.

That's really when you get it and you understand.

Okay, now it's time to go on to the next step.

<Rodney> One of the crazy things is I had to learn how to teach.

<Carrie> Right.

<Rodney> The things that I've been doing forever.

And it's hard.

<Carrie> It's very hard.

That's a craft.

<Rodney> Yes, it is.

It is.

<Carrie> Look at the char on those... <Rodney> I like the char, personally.

<Carrie> I do too.

<Rodney> When I'm cooking at home for myself, I tend to let my food get a little bit more charred than I would here in the restaurant.

<Carrie> Me too.

I like char, I like brown biscuits, browner than most people would like.

I like that texture and that crunch.

<Rodney> So this is our hog seasoning, I'm shaking on now, Again, took the family recipe and kind of tweaked it and it makes it easier for them to shake this amount on the hog rather than this much salt, that much pepper.

They can just go grab it, shake it, they feel a lot more confident.

Knowing that they're doing it right.

<Carrie> Taking a home recipe and scaling it for a business is a whole other animal in itself.

<Rodney> A whole new animal.

♪ [upbeat bluegrass music] ♪ <Rodney> From a chore, to a passion to a career.

♪ <Carrie> It's amazing, Rodney.

♪ <Carrie> Ahhh...

I have like a lot of things going through my brain right now.

What is your key to success with managing multiple locations?

I'm really struggling with that.

Honestly, I am.

So I would love to see, You have an answer?

<Rodney> A lot of people.

<Carrie> A lot of people.

<Rodney> Yeah.

We have - <Carrie> - experts helping you?

<Rodney> Experts that help us in the finance, the recipes, the retail, everything down to T shirts, hats.

<Carrie> We've got a great team.

We're just starting to put people in the team and I feel like there's never enough people, like we always need more people.

<Rodney> Always.

<Carrie> You know!

<Carrie> Ahhh, <Rodney> Yeah!

<Carrie> My favorite part of the day.

All right.

<Rodney> You going to put some pork on there.

<Carrie> Okay, pork.

<Rodney> Yeah.

<Carrie> All right.

<Rodney> Then you would take a pork skin.

<Rodney> Oohhh <Carrie> Yes.

Texture, crunch, extra flavor, spice, all the things.

<Rodney> There you go.

Perfect bite, right there.

[crunching] <Carrie> Mmmm...But I also want to do this.

I don't know how that works out.

<Rodney> Yes.

<Carrie> Maybe I just pull a little of that rib off <Rodney> There you go.

<Carrie> I got to sneak a bite first.

[Rodney laughing] <Carrie> I mean, I don't even need the biscuit.

Mmmm <Rodney> I'm Southern.

My mama don't let me eat with my hat on.

<Rodney> Mmm <Carrie> Ahhh...

When are you going to start shipping your pork and chicken and ribs?

<Rodney> That's a good question.

<Carrie> I can help you.

<Rodney> How do you handle that?

<Carrie> Shipping, I think for you would be easy.

You have this down.

And then vacuum seal is how I would ship it.

<Rodney> Make sense.

Never thought about that.

<Carrie> I mean, people would kill to get this on their doorstep.

I don't know that it gets any better than this.

♪ [slow bluegrass music] ♪ <Ali> Thank you so much and enjoy your day.

My name is Ali Patton and I reside in Scottsdale, Arizona.

I recently have launched my own business.

It's Mama Mitchell's Famous Pound Cake recipes.

And it was inspired by my grandmother, Mama Mitchell, who took up a huge piece of my heart.

♪ [slow bluegrass music] ♪ I have been following Carrie for years now.

There she is!

I launched my business in the middle of COVID and I reached out to Carrie on Instagram.

And I briefly gave her some tidbits about my journey so far.

<Carrie> So I decided probably 12 years ago that if there's any way that I could help people like me starting a specialty food business that I really wanted to take time out of my days to do that.

<Ali> It was not even an hour later she wrote back and she said "I'm willing to help."

♪ [slow bluegrass music] ♪ I'm definitely not in Arizona anymore.

I cannot wait to see in person everything that she's been able to accomplish.

<Carrie> Hopefully, I can help give her some good advice.

<Ali> Hey Carrie.

<Carrie> Hi.

Ali?

<Ali> Yes.

<Carrie> Nice to meet you.

<Ali> So nice to meet you too.

<Carrie> Elbow Bump <Ali> This is Mama Mitchell's Pound Cake.

She was my grandmother who I absolutely adored.

And this was her 100-year-old Pound Cake recipe.

<Carrie> And now you're going to carry on that tradition.

<Ali> That is my dream.

<Carrie> Well, I can't wait to taste this.

I'd love to give you a little tour.

And then maybe we can sit down and have cake, and talk about how I can help you.

<Ali> That would be amazing.

This is so great.

<Carrie> This is where we do the main part of our shipping.

We ship for our online, we ship all of like, we build pallets here.

We take them to an off-site frozen storage.

The right side is the kitchen.

and everything's made by hand.

<Ali> Now how many biscuits do they do a day?

<Carrie> Somewhere between 10 and 13,000 a day?

<Ali> Oh, my goodness.

<Carrie> It's crazy to think, when we first started, it would take us all day to do 3000.

<Ali> Well, when it comes to the pound cake, do I ship it frozen, and it gets there in two or three days?

Or I don't have to ship it frozen.

<Carrie> My gut is you need to ship it frozen in maybe an eco-cooler or even an insulated bag.

<Ali> I'm learning so much already.

<Carrie> Well, just so you know, we're still learning.

And this is our 15th year and we're still always improving our shipping methods.

<Ali> I do have a question for you.

<Carrie> Yeah, <Ali> I'm baking the cakes out of my oven in Scottsdale, one at a time.

So, for me eight cakes in probably one day is the max for me right now.

At what point you know, do I know that it's time to move into the commercial kitchen to be able to get you know, 20 or 30 cakes made in a day.

<Carrie> Okay.

So my advice to you, don't spend money until you absolutely have to.

Right?

And until you get to that point, spend the least amount.

So, the next step would be to find a rental space, <Ali> Okay, <Carrie> that you can go in one or two days a week.

The great thing about your cake is that it freezes so you can stockpile, bake one day a month, and you make your whole pile for the month.

<Carrie> And then as your sales increase, you increase, right?

<Ali> This is such great advice.

<Carrie> My dad always taught me you do whatever you can to help anybody no matter what.

I'm more than happy to help.

<Ali> Wow, I truly couldn't ask for anything more.

Thank you.

<Carrie> You're welcome.

<Ali> You're amazing.

<Carrie> Let's eat some cake.

<Ali> Okay, let's do it.

<Carrie> You don't find that crust with every pound cake.

That is delicious.

<Ali> Yeah.

<Carrie> Absolutely delicious.

You have a winner.

<Ali> You think so?

<Carrie> It's really good.

And you know what's - product, packaging, passion.

<Ali> Yeah.

<Carrie> If you have those three.

You got it.

You got it.

<Lindsay> Hey, you're ready to wrap up this cookbook?

<Carrie> Yes.

Let's get it done, I'm ready.

<John> When Carrie is working through the cookbook.

She puts her head down.

And she does not stop until it's finished.

<Carrie> Have you made the beer bread?

<Libba> No.

But my grandmother used to make beer bread all the time.

<Carrie> It's so good, and perfect for pandemic because It's so easy, if you can find flour.

<Libba> If you can not drink your beer.

<Carrie> I don't know Maybe leave that for the blog.

<Libba> Wow, you're going to give away the recipe for the biscuit crackers, huh?

Uhhh... <Carrie> I'm still not certain about this.

This is a buttermilk biscuit cracker.

I mean, it's easy and approachable.

Mmmm...highly addictive.

<Libba> People are going to go crazy for those.

I think too, you know, I mean, I loved the old cookbook and all the classic recipes but this just, it's you.

It's the way you live and all the colors represented up here.

<Carrie> Well, thank you for your help.

I think it's ready.

Now the fun part.

<Libba> Yes!

<Carrie> Yay!

It's done.

♪ [upbeat music] ♪ <Carrie> We got some chicken.

♪ You have Margaritas?

My recipes reflect where I'm from and what I do.

So, today we're going to go down to Shem Creek and take some lifestyle photos with some of my friends for my cookbook.

<Carrie> Cheers!

<Group> Cheers!

<Angie> Do it one more time.

My name is Angie Mosier.

I am a cookbook photographer from Atlanta, Georgia.

Here's the thigh, Carrie.

Awwwe.

Cute.

Keep doing that.

Okay, love it.

<Carrie> I'm lucky enough to have an incredible cookbook photographer.

So, she's here for the entire week.

So, we will have shot five days when it's all over.

<Angie> All right.

Now the fun starts.

<Carrie> You have to make the recipes again, and then photograph them and change clothes 10 different times, so you don't take the same shot in the same outfit every time.

[camera shutters] Krysten, my best friend, she is really good at this.

[camera shutters] <Carrie> I think we're great for each other because she's really exact and particular.

And I need that, because I'm kind of all over the place.

<Krysten> She will tell me, I need you to do this, put parsley, put garlic put in, she'll name 10 things.

I'll say I need a list, I need a list.

<Angie> What kind of stuff is in there?

How many spices are in there?

<Krysten> Probably 15.

<Carrie> At least a dozen.

<Krysten> All the ingredients are listed and I just kind of prep them and put them on a sheet tray.

She can take it out and make the recipe quicker so they can take a photograph of it and move on to the next one.

<Carrie> Okay.

So, these are getting ready to come out of the oven.

I'm just going to pour them and toss them.

I don't know if you want to shoot that or not.

<Angie> I do want to shoot that.

The whole idea of shooting this stuff here is to get little glimpses of her in her element.

I love seeing the dogs looking at that.

<Carrie> They're like, "”Am I going to get it?

"” [camera shutters] <Carrie> Today we've made herb roasted potato salad, chicken tikka masala.

Everything slaw with fried chicken.

[sizzling] And what else are we making?

Salmon with the naans.

<Angie> A cookbook needs to look real life.

It's an aspirational kind of publication.

So people want to look at that and say, I think I could do that.

<Carrie> I love it.

[camera shutters] <Angie> It looks great.

[crickets chirping] <Carrie> We need to skewer the shrimp.

Ask John to light the grill.

Oh, um.. <Angie> Skewer the shrimp?

<Carrie> I'm getting, I'm getting crab toast.

I'm sorry.

I'm getting shrimp toast mixed up with lemon crab pasta.

Sorry.

It's the last recipe I'm kind of done.

<Krysten> How many are we going to end up doing this week total?

<Carrie> 33?

<Angie> Yes.

<Carrie> I feel like we made one more thing that wasn't on here too, but maybe not.

<Krysten> Avocado salad.

Grapefruit salad.

<Carrie> Yep, that wasn't on there.

So what is that?

34?

<Angie> Nice.

<Carrie> Not bad.

<Angie> Today is basically the last day of full day of shooting and we are going to attempt to do the cover shot.

Okay, I'm thinking something like that.

<Carrie> Okay.

<Angie> Okay.

We'll have you more like here, standing.

<Carrie> So we're going to try to do a family photo that possibly might make the cover.

Krysten, can you check that pasta?

<Krysten> We got it.

<Producer> John, is this fun for you?

<John> It's so much fun for me.

<Angie> John can be in the back making a cocktail.

<Carrie> Yep, we already have his station set up.

So you have to decide who goes where.

And we literally have a 10 minute window where Cate and Sarah will come home from school before Caroline will have to leave for volleyball practice.

So Angie and I are going to just go for it and see if it works.

<Angie> It's always the ones that are like casual and super easy that end up being the cover.

So, I'm excited about it.

I feel optimistic.

<Carrie> Is Cate home?

<Angie> Sarah came in.

I haven't seen Kate yet.

Is that for the cocktail?

<Carrie> Yeah, I might have to have one.

<Angie> Do it.

<Carrie> Where's Cate?

I might go get on my bike and try to find Cate.

♪ [dramatic music] ♪ Oh, I was looking for you.

We're waiting.

Good.

All right.

You ready to get your photograph taken?

♪ [dramatic music continues] ♪ <Angie> Yes, yes, yes.

Yes.

It's coming together.

It's coming together.

Here she comes.

♪ [soft music] ♪ Cute.

Cute.

Then let's see Caroline, look at your mom and kind of yeah and Carrie, look at me.

She's looking at you lovingly and adoringly maybe a shaker some shaky situation.

<Caroline> Shaky, Shaky, shaky!

<Angie> Yes.

Nice.

Okay, let's mix it up a little bit.

Caroline, since she has jeans on could come up here.

And squish in just a little bit, John, like on the edge of that stool.

Yeah.

<Carrie> Cookbooks are an overwhelming project for me, but this one went so much better than the last.

Everyone worked so hard and I'm really so proud of the team.

We will not see the finished book for another 6 months, so I cannot wait to see it.

♪ ♪