Kassandra’s Natural Kitchen area, a holistic, natural meal planning assistance, is serving up some of the very best eats in St. Pete.
Eight months ago, 26 calendar year-old Kassandra Reyes dropped her company position. Like hundreds of thousands throughout the nation, the eager younger skilled had fallen target to a sequence of COVID-period layoffs. The change in between Kassandra and most other people, nevertheless, is that the previous wasn’t upset.
“It was a blessing in disguise,” Kassandra recalled of her sudden unemployment. “I was operating in genuine estate at the time, but I was so unsatisfied. I have constantly cherished to enable persons, mend people, and serve people, but I was not executing any of that. I felt like I experienced missing my sense of goal.”
Kassandra’s Organic and natural Kitchen area is a passion undertaking in the ‘Burg
Standing beside her in a heat, communal kitchen, I watched as she sliced mango in excess of deep, pink filets of salmon. The room was pleasant and inviting, and the meticulously prepared trays of meats and veggies were brilliant and fragrant. From the way Kassandra explained her outdated position, this new ambiance appeared to be the polar reverse.
“After I received laid off, I was capable to just take a instant and say, ‘Ok, so what does Kassandra genuinely like to do?’—And I straight away considered of cooking. I went to a culinary vocational superior university and very considerably grew up observing the Food stuff Community.”
Laughing, she laid down the fruit and went out on a slight tangent.
“It was because my mom cooked the same damn factor each and every day. Hen, rice and beans. I employed to enjoy those Television set reveals and envision I was taking in something far more interesting.”
Noticing her intellect had drifted, she reduce back to the chase.
“But in any case, it was in that second that I understood I could mesh my enthusiasm for cooking with my function of aiding men and women. And that is how Kassandra’s Kitchen area was born.”
A “holistic, organic” meal planning services
In the beginning phases of Kassandra’s Kitchen area, which formally defines alone as a “holistic, organic” meal preparation assistance, Kassandra one handedly ran all operations. Starting with only a person customer, the business was fully commited to not only building tasty, convenient foods, but also to encouraging folks reinvent their life. Due to the fact day a person, Kassandra has strived to assistance her shoppers journey to a “happy, healthful, and healed life—both mentally and physically.” The “healing” needed to accomplish this exceptional condition, Kassandra argues, need to start out with a nutritious diet plan.
Quickly forward to today, and Kassandra’s enterprise is booming. Her client list has grown exponentially, and catering requests for multi-working day situations have started to fill her inbox. Underneath the rising need to have for excess fingers, Kassandra not too long ago included sous-chef, Rachel O’Neill, to the kitchen, and is planning to retain the services of at minimum two more crew users. The requirements for work, nonetheless, is incredibly precise.
“I place enjoy and intention into every single one dish I make,” Kassandra shared as she pulled a tray of coconut almond crusted brussels sprouts from the oven. “So I assume my workers to do the same.”
She glanced above at Rachel, 22, who stirred cilantro into a creamy, lemon vinaigrette.
“Rachel is incredible, mainly because we’re entirely on the very same wave duration. She is so caring and committed to making quality for our shoppers. I am wanting to employ the service of much more help, but I’m not hurrying the method. It’s not about the dollars, it is about healing and aiding individuals, so we’re willing to wait for the right staff who in shape that vision.”
Juicy meats and shiny, creamy vinaigrettes
Immediately after chatting for a bit with the pair about non-foodstuff connected youthful men and women items, my stomach commenced to audibly growl. On the wall, the fingers of the clock slowly and gradually approached 8pm.
Keen on non-verbal, interpersonal cues, Kassandra found my focus shifting to the vivid tray of salmon which had lastly completed roasting in the oven. Soon after delicately plating the fish with coconut ginger rice and maple glazed carrots, she offered me a fork. Salivating in excess of the several scents of nature’s best components, I tore into the wild-caught meal.
On my to start with bites of the tropically encouraged dish, I felt as if I had been transported into a high-quality eating cafe. The flavors ended up bold and dynamic, with the tender salmon basically slipping aside into easy, juicy flakes at the touch of my fork. For a meal-planning provider, I was thoroughly impressed.
Kassandra appeared at me, expectantly awaiting an impression.
Wiping sticky maple marinade from my chin, I advised her, “I just can’t feel there are individuals who get to eat this for supper every night. Like, they actually really do not have to do any perform, and get to truly feel like all of their foods are coming straight from a cafe.”
“And—” she additional, “—They also get to know that all of their meals is sustainably sourced, natural and organic, dairy-free, soy-no cost, gluten-free of charge, and 100{d6946d8e93e220fb826a5a61d02cb1f8c03cf448263114bedc027d74cc4fbc9e} clean up. They get to truly feel proud that they’re executing anything wholesome for their bodies.”
Grabbing a menu, which was loaded with merchandise these as “mojo” hen and curried chickpeas, I had a sneaking suspicion that I just could possibly develop into a single of individuals people.
Setting up a healthier local community
Interested in introducing extra delightful, holistic meals to your daily life? Kassandra’s Kitchen area provides 4 diverse menus for hungry people today and households. For animal products-totally free diners, two of the programs are fully vegan. In addition, all four menus are gluten-free, and any weekly production leftovers (vegan or non-vegan) are donated to the local homeless community.
To explore all of Kassandra’s present-day food designs (which include brunch!), diners can stop by http://kassandraskitchen.com/ .
Oh—and make absolutely sure to stay up to date on their social media, since rumor has it “healing” desserts are coming quickly.
Hungry for extra nutritious foods pictures? Kassandra’s Kitchen area is followable on Instagram: @kassandras.kitchen, and Facebook: https://www.fb.com/natural.kitchen area.stpete.
