Good Season'n With Herb'n Renewal

With it being National Farmers Market Week, I thought it might be the perfect opportunity to let folks know how Herb'n Renewal and our association with a farmer's market came about.

I guess it was our love of food that brought us together. Drew had many (and, I mean many) years experience in kitchens...he started at his grandpa's side when he was only four years old! And, he and his love of food just grew from there. Karin on the other hand, was more into the marketing and promoting of great food. She had a small business that provided catering personnel to local caterers, businesses and just plain folks who liked to entertain. Lo and behold, Karin needed a recipe to make enough Sloppy Joe's for 250 people...not a problem because she could go to the library but why bother when a chef named Drew was sitting right there...just ask him. Okay, so he was sitting with four young lovely ladies...but who cares when you need a recipe! Lol He quickly wrote one out on a cocktail napkin, Karin prepared it as written, the crowd loved it and when Drew stopped by to see how things had gone...let's just say the rest is history! Twenty One years of history and 17+ of them have involved a farmers market or two.

Our first venture was at a farmers market in Lexington, Kentucky that we frequented on Saturday's. We noticed that nobody sold fresh cut herbs and we were both avid users of them. A brainstorm hit and a way to earn a little extra cash....always a good thing. So, we joined the Lexington Farmers Market in 1997 and started selling our herb plants on Saturday's. It was great...we loved talking herbs and the customers appreciated our knowledge. By the end of the season folks were coming back and asking how the heck they should be using them because they were growing so well. Poor Drew went home hoarse each week after trying to explain recipes, ways to utilize their bountiful herb plants. Lol

Once the market season ended I told Drew that he need to write a cookbook using herbs. “That is not gonna happen” was his exact quote...he said he doesn't spell well enough. So, we had to come up with something else and that's how Herb'n Renewal was born! He worked that whole winter on our original six herb seasoning blends...the Rub'n Season line which has a little bit for just about everything that you want “herbie” or should it be “herby?”

We started our second year with herb plants and our new line of herb seasoning...it was a hit! Of course we couldn't settle for just the common herbs that folks grew and the research began...we were the first to offer Stevia plants at the market, who the heck had ever heard of “cutting celery” in Lexington, let alone Epazote! Well, we had and we sold the plants...here goes the “how to use them” thing again. Lol Needless to say, that winter of 1998 brought some big changes to Herb'n Renewal...our dried herb seasoning line began to grow over the winter months!

Fast forward a few more years and we realize that we need a commercial kitchen to keep up with the demand. And, unfortunately, we no longer have time to grow our herb plants. Truth be known, our customers loved having them already dried, blended and ready to use. Yes, Herb'n Renewal was a hit!!! :) But, one down side was the fact that “our” market was becoming more commercial rather than a farmers market and we felt like our love had become a job and a chore...not what we wanted. So what do you do when you dread going to the market each Saturday because you see that things have really changed? You gather with a group of other members and form a new market!!!

In 2007, the Bluegrass Farmers' Market was formed with four founding members of the “old market” and we quickly got applications for new farmers to join. Yes, this was going to be a true farmers market...you had to grow or produce what you sold at the market! We were in seventh heaven knowing that we were amongst “real” farmers and producers again. :) And, once again...it's history because we are Kentucky Proud members of the Bluegrass Farmers' Market and yes, we still sell our 28 varieties of hand blended herb seasonings along with Karin's handcrafted soaps and her latest crowd favorite which Kentucky so wisely allows farmers to bake and create in their home kitchens provided they grow an ingredient. Our ingredient would be zucchini and the crowd favorite Zucchini, Apple'n Oat Thingies is now available each and every Saturday at the Bluegrass Farmers' Market in our new location (we lost our lease last year) at the Liquor Barn in the Hamburg area.

It's been a great ride and we continue to enjoy the thrill! :)