October 29, 2025 • 17 mins
Today's guest went from baker and foodie content creator to author. In this milestone 100th episode of the Baking For Business Podcast, I spoke with influencer, blogger, and author Toni Chapman to celebrate the release of her new book.
Toni opens up about her personal journey—how she started creating content, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and what inspired her to finally put her story into print. Together, Toni and I discuss the power of storytelling, staying authentic online, and the importance of showing up for your audience even when you’re still figuring things out.
This episode is filled with inspiration, creative wisdom, and a reminder that your story is worth sharing.
✨ In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How Toni’s journey as a content creator led to becoming an author
- Why storytelling is key to building a lasting brand
- Tips for showing up authentically on social media
- How to balance creativity, consistency, and community
📚 Follow Toni here: https://tonisrecipes.com/
Pre-order the book here: https://everythingsgoodcookbook.com/
Two ways I help my students earn $2-10k monthly👇?
1.) Grow your home bakery business inside The Entrepreneur Community by clicking here
2.) Learn to sell digital products inside Digital Product Community by clicking here
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:02):
Hey sweet friends, my name is Jeff Schomberg.
I started my baking businesswith a bottle of Di Solano and
one buttercake fan.
Fast forward to today from newsto magazines, speaking on
national stages and more, I cantruly say that baking has
changed my life.
So now, as a bakery businesscoach, I get to help others have
the same success.
(00:22):
I've helped hundreds of mystudents across the world in my
global membership program createsix-figure businesses, mainly
from home.
The Baking for Business podcastis an extension of that, from
actionable tips to valuabletools and resources that can
impact you as a business owner.
I truly believe, y'all, we wouldnever have been given a gift if
we couldn't profit and prosperfrom it.
(00:42):
So come on, darling.
What are you waiting for?
Hey, what's going on, you guys,and welcome back to the Baking
for Business Podcast.
I'm so excited to be here withyou guys today.
Today we have a special guest inthe house who has a book which
is on the way, Tony Chapman,who's also known as the Moody
(01:05):
Foodie.
She is a Miami-based culinarycreator, a social media
influencer, an author, as wellas an entrepreneur.
And she's known for her bold yetcomforting recipes inspired by
her Afro-Latina heritage andhome style cooking.
And so today she's here to talkall about her journey, her
beautiful content that shecreates, and what you can expect
(01:27):
from her new books.
So without further ado, welcometo the podcast, Tony.
SPEAKER_00 (01:32):
Hi, Amanda.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to be chattingtoday.
SPEAKER_01 (01:37):
Absolutely.
I'm so happy to have you here.
And so, real quick for those whomay never have heard of you, how
did you get started with yourroad to just content creation
and putting yourself and yourfood out there?
SPEAKER_02 (01:52):
Yeah, great question.
Um, so I started contentcreation about seven years ago
formally.
I had always loved cooking.
I started a business when I was19, and we were selling like
these really colorful lunches inmy neighborhood.
So I come from a food businessbackground.
But in terms of like actuallycreating, it kind of started a
(02:13):
little bit before COVID as ahobby.
Like I had a lot of free timeand I would just be cooking, and
I was taking photos of thethings that I was making and I
was taking videos, and peoplereally liked what they were
seeing, and it kind of inspiredme to continue to do it.
And then over the years, it'sbecame a career, but it's been a
fun and unexpected ride.
SPEAKER_01 (02:35):
I love that.
And I noticed that you don'tjust share cooking.
There are times where alsoyou'll share uh baking recipes.
So, in regards to just loving tocook, how did you decide on a
niche when it came to justbranding yourself and putting
yourself out there?
SPEAKER_02 (02:50):
Oh, wow, that's a wonderful question.
I think for me, that's somethingthat I actually struggle with,
right?
Because I don't ever want to beboxed in.
My cookbook is calledEverything's Good, because I
would like to imagine that likeI kind of cover everything.
Like I have this culturalemphasis, but I like you said, I
bake.
I make southern recipes, I domeal prep, I do takeout, I do
(03:11):
like appetizers that areimpressive.
You know, there's lots oftechnique.
Um, love to bake, definitelybecame a better baker with
practice and over time.
So, in terms of like a niche, Itry to always like represent my
culture where I can, but I dolike to cast a wide net because
I love to cook everything and Ijust love all sorts of food.
So I want to represent as manycultures and cuisines as
(03:33):
possible in an approachable way,of course.
SPEAKER_01 (03:35):
I love that.
So take us back to the earlydays.
What did it look like when youfirst started putting your
content out there?
Did you have like a contentschedule?
Did you know, okay, I'm gonna doone recipe a week?
Did you go by the seasons orwhat did that look like in terms
of just creating the content?
SPEAKER_02 (03:53):
Yeah, in the beginning, I was actually
creating for about a year and ahalf before I actually entered
the creator economy.
So I didn't know that you couldmake money being a creator.
I had no idea.
I just knew that I really lovedto make videos, I love to cook,
and there were people that werewatching me and they were
commenting.
And I was really inspired andempowered by that, even though I
(04:15):
wasn't earning.
So I just stayed consistent,even though I had a business at
the time and I was like the CEOof that business.
I was still committed toscheduling time to make these
videos for people that wanted tosee them.
And I was just reallyconsistent.
So, no, I didn't have like acalendar and I wasn't super
intentional about the thingsthat I was making, but I made
(04:38):
sure to always like just beconsistent.
I was like, I have to do two tothree videos a week.
I have to, I have to, and Iwould do it, I would sacrifice
plans, not knowing that it wouldturn into a career.
So it was just consistency inthe beginning.
SPEAKER_01 (04:53):
I love that.
And I read that you're also avideo creator for BuzzFeed
Tasty.
Yes.
That's really wonderful.
So tell us about uh thatjourney.
Like, what does the jobtypically entail when it comes
to your content?
SPEAKER_02 (05:09):
Yeah, so I work freelance for BuzzFeed Tasty.
I started working with themabout four, almost five years
ago.
Um, BuzzFeed has like this supermassive audience of like a whole
bunch of people who really lovefood.
And when I started working withTasty, their brand was really
about teaching people how tomake uh the classics, right?
(05:29):
So Tasty had a huge YouTubeplatform where they would show
people how to make chocolatechip cookies and that had over a
hundred million views, and sothey were kind of known as like
for their resources.
Um, and so obviously theyrebranded throughout the years,
but I was brought on to kind ofadd some like fun and vibrancy
to what they were already doingon my short form platforms.
(05:49):
So it was we would have meetingson a weekly or bi-weekly basis,
we would come up with ideas andcon uh concepts, and then I
would like create uh videos forthem.
And we we started off by doingthis uh series around
affordability because that wassomething that was really
important to me.
So we would create these videoswhere I would take$20 and go
(06:10):
into the grocery store and tryto make something special and
impressive with it.
And these videos went so viral.
I mean, at the time I had onlyhad maybe a hundred thousand
followers, and now I have likefive million.
And so Tasty really, reallycatapulted me into success
because people really love tosee what you could do on a
budget and how you can makethese elevated dishes on a
budget and these impressivedesserts on a budget.
(06:33):
So it was a really great timeworking with them, and I'm still
a part of the family, and youknow, it's just been a great
experience.
SPEAKER_01 (06:39):
I love that.
As you're saying that, I noticedthat's actually how I like
content.
I like content that kind of hasdifferent themes, you know, like
uh I made this for$10 or thisfor less than five ingredients.
So, you know, there's alwayslike that one thing.
So, like you said, on a budget.
I love those videos.
I'm always scrolling and lookingthrough them.
And you mentioned all themillions of views with BuzzFeed,
(07:02):
but looking on your content,your stuff always looks
delicious and it's the same, ithas tons of millions of views,
and I love that.
So, from creating your contentand building, and now you have
the book coming out.
What inspired you to write thebook?
SPEAKER_02 (07:19):
Wow.
I mean, I think it was just thethe next natural step, right?
Like I had garnered theaudience, people really were
asking me for, you know,something physical that they
could have.
And especially since most of myrecipes are centered around
holiday and entertaining, Ithink it meant something for
people to see it physically.
Christmas morning, people wakeup, you know, Thanksgiving
(07:41):
morning, people want the book.
They want something that theycan feel, that they can pass,
that they can see.
And so, you know, my supportersstarted asking me.
They started saying, Hey, youknow, Tony, when is a book
coming?
I would love a cookbook.
And so I said, okay, I I'm gonnawrite this book of kind of like
my my most viral bangers, right?
And so these are the dishes thatI'm really known for.
They're the dishes that I wantpeople to like come back to and
(08:03):
cook all the time.
And so uh I was inspired to makethis book that was kind of like
an introduction to comfort foodfor people.
So you have like hallmarkfavorites in there that you'll
cook for the rest of your lifeand you'll nail them.
And so I spent two years likeworking on it and perfecting the
recipes, and obviously now it'sfinished, but I was really
(08:25):
inspired by my supporters.
SPEAKER_01 (08:27):
That's awesome.
And you're right as you'resaying that, because I always
ask for cookbooks, like forChristmas.
So I love just always getting abrand new book.
So, what were some of thememories that you had in
creating this new book?
Anyone in particular?
SPEAKER_02 (08:44):
So I think one of the things that stood out to me
is, you know, uh, I've been veryfortunate, right, to work with
an amazing publisher.
I think the cookbook space islargely underrepresented.
And so I felt that when I waswriting the book, so many of my
experiences were new, not justto me, but to the people that I
was working with.
(09:05):
So I remember when we went to gofilm and do the photo shoot for
the book, and I was making allthese cultural dishes or all
these southern dishes, that itwas hard for people to like
sometimes capture the beauty andthe essence of a stew or like
red beans and rice or black eyedpeas.
And that was really interestingto me.
And that really inspired me andpushed me to want to find a way
(09:30):
to capture cultural food in away that's really beautiful, and
it was definitely difficult, butthat's what kind of stands out
to me in the process.
I saw an opportunity to do that,and so like one of the recipes
that I have is like a cremebrulee sweet potato pie.
It's pretty impressive for likeThanksgiving.
It's like just another layer tolike make it like, you know,
(09:53):
ooh.
And they were having a hard timecapturing this because like
sweet potato pie, once it'sbroken into, like it may not
always look like the mostgorgeous.
And we worked on it for a wholeday.
Like I would not stop.
I was like, let's make it againand again and again.
I wanted to get it right.
And I think I challengedeveryone on set who was new to
(10:14):
this cuisine and who may havenot ever made this type of food
to get creative and we got theshots that we wanted.
But it was, I that was a veryunexpected experience.
You know, I didn't know what toexpect, but I didn't expect
that.
And it kind of like shaped me asa chef, as a creator.
And so I'm really proud of thephotography.
We worked with BrittanyCornelly, she's a black
(10:35):
photographer in the space.
She's done some incredible work,and the photos are absolutely
stunning.
And it took us a long time, butwe got to where we wanted to be.
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
Oh my gosh.
And that sounds so delicious.
The minute you said that, I waslike, what?
Like, that's such an amazingmashup.
That sounds so good.
How did you decide what recipesfrom your blog would go in the
cookbook?
I know you said you filled itwith viral bangers.
Did you add any new ones or isthere a certain percentage?
SPEAKER_02 (11:05):
I would say that the cookbook is mostly new recipes.
Like they wanted it to be likenew things that people had never
seen from me.
I think my blog is reallyimportant to me.
So I wanted to kind of keep themseparate because it is a stream
of income, if I'm being honest.
So what I did was I createdthere were recipes that I wanted
to be free, that I wanted peoplethat supported me, that even if
(11:26):
they couldn't afford to buy thebook or they weren't ready, that
they could go online to my blogand they could search and find
those recipes.
So those recipes eitheroverlapped in the book or I just
left on the blog.
And I think that the cookbookwas more like um kind of like
little spins and twists onthings, right?
And so I would take somethingthat was like maybe super
(11:48):
popular, but like add my ownlittle twists.
Like, for example, I have ashort ribs recipe on my blog.
It's your typical red winebraise short ribs, like everyone
loves it.
But I added a new recipe in mycookbook for short ribs, which
is a Coca-Cola braise shortribs, and it's sweet and it's
sticky, and it has like thisdelicious sauce that like is
very different from the red winereduction.
(12:09):
So I found that like thecookbook was a little bit more
creative.
And although these are like cozyclassics, they're they still
have like my own little personaltouch.
SPEAKER_01 (12:19):
I love that.
Do you have any particulardessert that's your favorite
that went in the book that youcould tell us about besides the
creme brulee sweet potato pie?
SPEAKER_02 (12:27):
Yes, my favorite dessert in the cookbook is a
it's my brioche bread pudding.
And I love bread pudding.
And there was a restaurant thatis, it was Frank Sinatra's
favorite restaurant, and it'sone of the only restaurants in
the country that still has acoal brick oven.
It's in Hoboken, New Jersey.
It's called Antique Bakery, andthey make their breads from
(12:49):
scratch.
Phenomenal.
If anyone ever gets in that areain New York City, New Jersey,
it's wonderful.
And so I loved their breadpudding because it was like
these big chunks of likehomemade bread, and it had this
like delicious rum sauce, andit's like served so beautifully.
And I'm like, oh my goodness,like there's no place that
serves anything like this.
(13:10):
Everyone needs to try somethinglike this.
People don't have access tothis.
So I made like my own version.
Their version is like out ofthis world because it's made in
a cold brick oven, but I try toreplicate that as much as
possible.
And that's like my favoritedessert.
It's like easy.
It's, you know, you get thebread, you know, chop it up, you
this delicious, like deliciousbase.
(13:33):
Um, and it's it's just perfect.
It's it's impressive.
Like I've made it for so manypeople and they're always
surprised by it.
And it's, I actually eat it forbreakfast sometimes too.
SPEAKER_01 (13:42):
Don't tell me.
That sounds awesome.
That sounds delicious.
And so with the book coming up,do you have any plans with the
book?
Are you gonna do anythingvirtual or go on a book tour?
SPEAKER_02 (13:54):
Yeah, so we are doing a nine-city book tour.
We're going to all thesedifferent places.
We're super excited.
We're gonna be talking about itand launching it soon.
Um, so I'm really excitedbecause we get to meet in person
and sign books and just have agood time.
Um, we are planning to do like avirtual cooking uh demonstration
sometime in December to kind ofcover some holiday recipes,
(14:16):
which I'm known for.
So people can be on the lookoutfor that.
My newsletter, I always sendupdates.
But yeah, I'm just reallyexcited to meet my supporters
and have a good time and likecelebrate the book.
SPEAKER_01 (14:26):
Absolutely.
I cannot wait.
From the bottom of my heart, itwas so nice for you to come on
the show today and share thebook with us.
And I just want to say thanks somuch, and I wish you all the
success with the release of thenew book.
But before I let you go, we'regonna play a game of lightning
round.
Are you ready?
I'm ready.
What is your favorite color?
SPEAKER_00 (14:48):
Blue.
What is your favorite kitchenutensil?
Oh, uh, spider.
I like that answer.
I don't think anyone's ever saidthat one.
That's my favorite because I doa lot of frying.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Uh, Trevor Noah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:09):
Oh, that's a good one.
I love that.
SPEAKER_00 (15:14):
All right, and who's your favorite author?
Uh, Tony Morrison.
SPEAKER_01 (15:19):
That's a good one.
And then last but not least,we're gonna have you skip this
question because we always ask,what is a cookbook that you
cannot live without?
And we're gonna recommend thatpeople go out and get your new
book.
And the link to your website andyour blog and your book is all
in the show notes for thoselistening.
So, from the bottom of my heart,thank you so much, Tony, for
(15:41):
coming on and just sharing yourjourney and your story and your
brand with us.
I truly do appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02 (15:46):
Thank you so much for having me, Amanda.
I really appreciated chattingwith you and thank you so much
for your platform and all theresources you provide.
Oh, thank you, darling.
SPEAKER_01 (15:55):
Hey, sweet friends.
I just want to take a moment togive a heartfelt thank you.
Today marks our 100th episode,and I am beyond excited and
grateful.
A huge thank you to our guest,the incredible Tony Chapman, for
joining me on this milestoneepisode, as well as for sharing
her new book and her journey tosuccess with us.
(16:16):
If you haven't yet, definitelycheck out her book.
It's truly a gem, and I have allthe information in the show
notes.
And to you, all of the amazinglisteners, this milestone is as
much yours as it is mine.
Baking for Business has alwaysbeen about building a community
and helping each of you findmultiple streams of success as
you navigate entrepreneurship asa baker.
(16:39):
So, from hearing from othersuccessful bakers to hearing
from authors to eventcoordinators to all the
different people that touch andimpact our industry and all the
different people that we use.
We've had some amazing companieson here, such as CapeSafe and
Hot Plate software companies,and just anyone that can help us
(17:02):
in our business.
We appreciate all of thosepeople.
I never could have imagined thehundreds of thousands of
downloads and listeners who havecome along on this journey.
I'm truly grateful for everysingle one of you.
Our mission is to empower bakerslike you to thrive both in the
kitchen and beyond.
And having you here for 100episodes truly means the world
to me.
So thank you for being a part ofthis journey.
(17:24):
And here's too many moreepisodes and successes together.
I pray that you guys have ablessed day.
Take care and bye for now.
Hey sweet friends, my name is Jeff Schomberg.
I started my baking businesswith a bottle of Di Solano and
one buttercake fan.
Fast forward to today from newsto magazines, speaking on
national stages and more, I cantruly say that baking has
changed my life.
So now, as a bakery businesscoach, I get to help others have
the same success.
(00:22):
I've helped hundreds of mystudents across the world in my
global membership program createsix-figure businesses, mainly
from home.
The Baking for Business podcastis an extension of that, from
actionable tips to valuabletools and resources that can
impact you as a business owner.
I truly believe, y'all, we wouldnever have been given a gift if
we couldn't profit and prosperfrom it.
(00:42):
So come on, darling.
What are you waiting for?
Hey, what's going on, you guys,and welcome back to the Baking
for Business Podcast.
I'm so excited to be here withyou guys today.
Today we have a special guest inthe house who has a book which
is on the way, Tony Chapman,who's also known as the Moody
(01:05):
Foodie.
She is a Miami-based culinarycreator, a social media
influencer, an author, as wellas an entrepreneur.
And she's known for her bold yetcomforting recipes inspired by
her Afro-Latina heritage andhome style cooking.
And so today she's here to talkall about her journey, her
beautiful content that shecreates, and what you can expect
(01:27):
from her new books.
So without further ado, welcometo the podcast, Tony.
SPEAKER_00 (01:32):
Hi, Amanda.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to be chattingtoday.
SPEAKER_01 (01:37):
Absolutely.
I'm so happy to have you here.
And so, real quick for those whomay never have heard of you, how
did you get started with yourroad to just content creation
and putting yourself and yourfood out there?
SPEAKER_02 (01:52):
Yeah, great question.
Um, so I started contentcreation about seven years ago
formally.
I had always loved cooking.
I started a business when I was19, and we were selling like
these really colorful lunches inmy neighborhood.
So I come from a food businessbackground.
But in terms of like actuallycreating, it kind of started a
(02:13):
little bit before COVID as ahobby.
Like I had a lot of free timeand I would just be cooking, and
I was taking photos of thethings that I was making and I
was taking videos, and peoplereally liked what they were
seeing, and it kind of inspiredme to continue to do it.
And then over the years, it'sbecame a career, but it's been a
fun and unexpected ride.
SPEAKER_01 (02:35):
I love that.
And I noticed that you don'tjust share cooking.
There are times where alsoyou'll share uh baking recipes.
So, in regards to just loving tocook, how did you decide on a
niche when it came to justbranding yourself and putting
yourself out there?
SPEAKER_02 (02:50):
Oh, wow, that's a wonderful question.
I think for me, that's somethingthat I actually struggle with,
right?
Because I don't ever want to beboxed in.
My cookbook is calledEverything's Good, because I
would like to imagine that likeI kind of cover everything.
Like I have this culturalemphasis, but I like you said, I
bake.
I make southern recipes, I domeal prep, I do takeout, I do
(03:11):
like appetizers that areimpressive.
You know, there's lots oftechnique.
Um, love to bake, definitelybecame a better baker with
practice and over time.
So, in terms of like a niche, Itry to always like represent my
culture where I can, but I dolike to cast a wide net because
I love to cook everything and Ijust love all sorts of food.
So I want to represent as manycultures and cuisines as
(03:33):
possible in an approachable way,of course.
SPEAKER_01 (03:35):
I love that.
So take us back to the earlydays.
What did it look like when youfirst started putting your
content out there?
Did you have like a contentschedule?
Did you know, okay, I'm gonna doone recipe a week?
Did you go by the seasons orwhat did that look like in terms
of just creating the content?
SPEAKER_02 (03:53):
Yeah, in the beginning, I was actually
creating for about a year and ahalf before I actually entered
the creator economy.
So I didn't know that you couldmake money being a creator.
I had no idea.
I just knew that I really lovedto make videos, I love to cook,
and there were people that werewatching me and they were
commenting.
And I was really inspired andempowered by that, even though I
(04:15):
wasn't earning.
So I just stayed consistent,even though I had a business at
the time and I was like the CEOof that business.
I was still committed toscheduling time to make these
videos for people that wanted tosee them.
And I was just reallyconsistent.
So, no, I didn't have like acalendar and I wasn't super
intentional about the thingsthat I was making, but I made
(04:38):
sure to always like just beconsistent.
I was like, I have to do two tothree videos a week.
I have to, I have to, and Iwould do it, I would sacrifice
plans, not knowing that it wouldturn into a career.
So it was just consistency inthe beginning.
SPEAKER_01 (04:53):
I love that.
And I read that you're also avideo creator for BuzzFeed
Tasty.
Yes.
That's really wonderful.
So tell us about uh thatjourney.
Like, what does the jobtypically entail when it comes
to your content?
SPEAKER_02 (05:09):
Yeah, so I work freelance for BuzzFeed Tasty.
I started working with themabout four, almost five years
ago.
Um, BuzzFeed has like this supermassive audience of like a whole
bunch of people who really lovefood.
And when I started working withTasty, their brand was really
about teaching people how tomake uh the classics, right?
(05:29):
So Tasty had a huge YouTubeplatform where they would show
people how to make chocolatechip cookies and that had over a
hundred million views, and sothey were kind of known as like
for their resources.
Um, and so obviously theyrebranded throughout the years,
but I was brought on to kind ofadd some like fun and vibrancy
to what they were already doingon my short form platforms.
(05:49):
So it was we would have meetingson a weekly or bi-weekly basis,
we would come up with ideas andcon uh concepts, and then I
would like create uh videos forthem.
And we we started off by doingthis uh series around
affordability because that wassomething that was really
important to me.
So we would create these videoswhere I would take$20 and go
(06:10):
into the grocery store and tryto make something special and
impressive with it.
And these videos went so viral.
I mean, at the time I had onlyhad maybe a hundred thousand
followers, and now I have likefive million.
And so Tasty really, reallycatapulted me into success
because people really love tosee what you could do on a
budget and how you can makethese elevated dishes on a
budget and these impressivedesserts on a budget.
(06:33):
So it was a really great timeworking with them, and I'm still
a part of the family, and youknow, it's just been a great
experience.
SPEAKER_01 (06:39):
I love that.
As you're saying that, I noticedthat's actually how I like
content.
I like content that kind of hasdifferent themes, you know, like
uh I made this for$10 or thisfor less than five ingredients.
So, you know, there's alwayslike that one thing.
So, like you said, on a budget.
I love those videos.
I'm always scrolling and lookingthrough them.
And you mentioned all themillions of views with BuzzFeed,
(07:02):
but looking on your content,your stuff always looks
delicious and it's the same, ithas tons of millions of views,
and I love that.
So, from creating your contentand building, and now you have
the book coming out.
What inspired you to write thebook?
SPEAKER_02 (07:19):
Wow.
I mean, I think it was just thethe next natural step, right?
Like I had garnered theaudience, people really were
asking me for, you know,something physical that they
could have.
And especially since most of myrecipes are centered around
holiday and entertaining, Ithink it meant something for
people to see it physically.
Christmas morning, people wakeup, you know, Thanksgiving
(07:41):
morning, people want the book.
They want something that theycan feel, that they can pass,
that they can see.
And so, you know, my supportersstarted asking me.
They started saying, Hey, youknow, Tony, when is a book
coming?
I would love a cookbook.
And so I said, okay, I I'm gonnawrite this book of kind of like
my my most viral bangers, right?
And so these are the dishes thatI'm really known for.
They're the dishes that I wantpeople to like come back to and
(08:03):
cook all the time.
And so uh I was inspired to makethis book that was kind of like
an introduction to comfort foodfor people.
So you have like hallmarkfavorites in there that you'll
cook for the rest of your lifeand you'll nail them.
And so I spent two years likeworking on it and perfecting the
recipes, and obviously now it'sfinished, but I was really
(08:25):
inspired by my supporters.
SPEAKER_01 (08:27):
That's awesome.
And you're right as you'resaying that, because I always
ask for cookbooks, like forChristmas.
So I love just always getting abrand new book.
So, what were some of thememories that you had in
creating this new book?
Anyone in particular?
SPEAKER_02 (08:44):
So I think one of the things that stood out to me
is, you know, uh, I've been veryfortunate, right, to work with
an amazing publisher.
I think the cookbook space islargely underrepresented.
And so I felt that when I waswriting the book, so many of my
experiences were new, not justto me, but to the people that I
was working with.
(09:05):
So I remember when we went to gofilm and do the photo shoot for
the book, and I was making allthese cultural dishes or all
these southern dishes, that itwas hard for people to like
sometimes capture the beauty andthe essence of a stew or like
red beans and rice or black eyedpeas.
And that was really interestingto me.
And that really inspired me andpushed me to want to find a way
(09:30):
to capture cultural food in away that's really beautiful, and
it was definitely difficult, butthat's what kind of stands out
to me in the process.
I saw an opportunity to do that,and so like one of the recipes
that I have is like a cremebrulee sweet potato pie.
It's pretty impressive for likeThanksgiving.
It's like just another layer tolike make it like, you know,
(09:53):
ooh.
And they were having a hard timecapturing this because like
sweet potato pie, once it'sbroken into, like it may not
always look like the mostgorgeous.
And we worked on it for a wholeday.
Like I would not stop.
I was like, let's make it againand again and again.
I wanted to get it right.
And I think I challengedeveryone on set who was new to
(10:14):
this cuisine and who may havenot ever made this type of food
to get creative and we got theshots that we wanted.
But it was, I that was a veryunexpected experience.
You know, I didn't know what toexpect, but I didn't expect
that.
And it kind of like shaped me asa chef, as a creator.
And so I'm really proud of thephotography.
We worked with BrittanyCornelly, she's a black
(10:35):
photographer in the space.
She's done some incredible work,and the photos are absolutely
stunning.
And it took us a long time, butwe got to where we wanted to be.
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
Oh my gosh.
And that sounds so delicious.
The minute you said that, I waslike, what?
Like, that's such an amazingmashup.
That sounds so good.
How did you decide what recipesfrom your blog would go in the
cookbook?
I know you said you filled itwith viral bangers.
Did you add any new ones or isthere a certain percentage?
SPEAKER_02 (11:05):
I would say that the cookbook is mostly new recipes.
Like they wanted it to be likenew things that people had never
seen from me.
I think my blog is reallyimportant to me.
So I wanted to kind of keep themseparate because it is a stream
of income, if I'm being honest.
So what I did was I createdthere were recipes that I wanted
to be free, that I wanted peoplethat supported me, that even if
(11:26):
they couldn't afford to buy thebook or they weren't ready, that
they could go online to my blogand they could search and find
those recipes.
So those recipes eitheroverlapped in the book or I just
left on the blog.
And I think that the cookbookwas more like um kind of like
little spins and twists onthings, right?
And so I would take somethingthat was like maybe super
(11:48):
popular, but like add my ownlittle twists.
Like, for example, I have ashort ribs recipe on my blog.
It's your typical red winebraise short ribs, like everyone
loves it.
But I added a new recipe in mycookbook for short ribs, which
is a Coca-Cola braise shortribs, and it's sweet and it's
sticky, and it has like thisdelicious sauce that like is
very different from the red winereduction.
(12:09):
So I found that like thecookbook was a little bit more
creative.
And although these are like cozyclassics, they're they still
have like my own little personaltouch.
SPEAKER_01 (12:19):
I love that.
Do you have any particulardessert that's your favorite
that went in the book that youcould tell us about besides the
creme brulee sweet potato pie?
SPEAKER_02 (12:27):
Yes, my favorite dessert in the cookbook is a
it's my brioche bread pudding.
And I love bread pudding.
And there was a restaurant thatis, it was Frank Sinatra's
favorite restaurant, and it'sone of the only restaurants in
the country that still has acoal brick oven.
It's in Hoboken, New Jersey.
It's called Antique Bakery, andthey make their breads from
(12:49):
scratch.
Phenomenal.
If anyone ever gets in that areain New York City, New Jersey,
it's wonderful.
And so I loved their breadpudding because it was like
these big chunks of likehomemade bread, and it had this
like delicious rum sauce, andit's like served so beautifully.
And I'm like, oh my goodness,like there's no place that
serves anything like this.
(13:10):
Everyone needs to try somethinglike this.
People don't have access tothis.
So I made like my own version.
Their version is like out ofthis world because it's made in
a cold brick oven, but I try toreplicate that as much as
possible.
And that's like my favoritedessert.
It's like easy.
It's, you know, you get thebread, you know, chop it up, you
this delicious, like deliciousbase.
(13:33):
Um, and it's it's just perfect.
It's it's impressive.
Like I've made it for so manypeople and they're always
surprised by it.
And it's, I actually eat it forbreakfast sometimes too.
SPEAKER_01 (13:42):
Don't tell me.
That sounds awesome.
That sounds delicious.
And so with the book coming up,do you have any plans with the
book?
Are you gonna do anythingvirtual or go on a book tour?
SPEAKER_02 (13:54):
Yeah, so we are doing a nine-city book tour.
We're going to all thesedifferent places.
We're super excited.
We're gonna be talking about itand launching it soon.
Um, so I'm really excitedbecause we get to meet in person
and sign books and just have agood time.
Um, we are planning to do like avirtual cooking uh demonstration
sometime in December to kind ofcover some holiday recipes,
(14:16):
which I'm known for.
So people can be on the lookoutfor that.
My newsletter, I always sendupdates.
But yeah, I'm just reallyexcited to meet my supporters
and have a good time and likecelebrate the book.
SPEAKER_01 (14:26):
Absolutely.
I cannot wait.
From the bottom of my heart, itwas so nice for you to come on
the show today and share thebook with us.
And I just want to say thanks somuch, and I wish you all the
success with the release of thenew book.
But before I let you go, we'regonna play a game of lightning
round.
Are you ready?
I'm ready.
What is your favorite color?
SPEAKER_00 (14:48):
Blue.
What is your favorite kitchenutensil?
Oh, uh, spider.
I like that answer.
I don't think anyone's ever saidthat one.
That's my favorite because I doa lot of frying.
Who is your celebrity crush?
Uh, Trevor Noah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:09):
Oh, that's a good one.
I love that.
SPEAKER_00 (15:14):
All right, and who's your favorite author?
Uh, Tony Morrison.
SPEAKER_01 (15:19):
That's a good one.
And then last but not least,we're gonna have you skip this
question because we always ask,what is a cookbook that you
cannot live without?
And we're gonna recommend thatpeople go out and get your new
book.
And the link to your website andyour blog and your book is all
in the show notes for thoselistening.
So, from the bottom of my heart,thank you so much, Tony, for
(15:41):
coming on and just sharing yourjourney and your story and your
brand with us.
I truly do appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02 (15:46):
Thank you so much for having me, Amanda.
I really appreciated chattingwith you and thank you so much
for your platform and all theresources you provide.
Oh, thank you, darling.
SPEAKER_01 (15:55):
Hey, sweet friends.
I just want to take a moment togive a heartfelt thank you.
Today marks our 100th episode,and I am beyond excited and
grateful.
A huge thank you to our guest,the incredible Tony Chapman, for
joining me on this milestoneepisode, as well as for sharing
her new book and her journey tosuccess with us.
(16:16):
If you haven't yet, definitelycheck out her book.
It's truly a gem, and I have allthe information in the show
notes.
And to you, all of the amazinglisteners, this milestone is as
much yours as it is mine.
Baking for Business has alwaysbeen about building a community
and helping each of you findmultiple streams of success as
you navigate entrepreneurship asa baker.
(16:39):
So, from hearing from othersuccessful bakers to hearing
from authors to eventcoordinators to all the
different people that touch andimpact our industry and all the
different people that we use.
We've had some amazing companieson here, such as CapeSafe and
Hot Plate software companies,and just anyone that can help us
(17:02):
in our business.
We appreciate all of thosepeople.
I never could have imagined thehundreds of thousands of
downloads and listeners who havecome along on this journey.
I'm truly grateful for everysingle one of you.
Our mission is to empower bakerslike you to thrive both in the
kitchen and beyond.
And having you here for 100episodes truly means the world
to me.
So thank you for being a part ofthis journey.
(17:24):
And here's too many moreepisodes and successes together.
I pray that you guys have ablessed day.
Take care and bye for now.
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