Life & Work with Karen Allen of HOLLY SPRINGS

Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Allen.

Hi Karen, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Our family, the Joyaux and Allen’s, had a tremendous love for food. Recipes were born, written on the backs of envelopes or the cardboard off of a cereal box. My grandfather, Micheal D. Allen was a chef in the Army in WWI, cooking for the troops before they all were sent off to serve their county.

He returned home after the war and after getting treatment for mustard poisoning, he made his career and worked as a chef, and the head chef in many of the largest country clubs in the Chicagoland area and Indiana. My mother learned to cook from him after she married my father, John Allen.

I was blessed to receive my grandmothers’ (Marie Kempf Joyaux) 1950 Chamber Stove. I absolutely love knowing she cooked some of the same recipes I now cook on it. Her stuffed cabbage could be smelled miles down the road as my grandmother, Marie, cooked it in the well of that stove. Walking in her house and smelling that cooking was an icon for me growing up. I don’t know what I loved more, her stuffed cabbage or her stove.

All the recipes of the family have been saved and handed down. Original and just the way they were cooked from the early 1900s to today as our family cherishes each ingredient and the way our grandparents and great-grandparents served them up.

With all these recipes and that old Chambers stove, the KarenKave was born in 2020.

As our grandparents and parents passed away, it became even more important to bring all the goodness they raised us up on and keep them going. I cherish the vintage love in each of these recipes and how they were cooked and wanted to share that with others who love old recipes, traditions and the simple things in life. Faith, Family and Food.

As part of the KarenKave, LLC, I have recently taken a portion of these wonderful recipes and published a cookbook, called Generations of Recipes, so you can share in making some of the best home cooking in your kitchen. I have also taken on one of our family’s recipes that has been canned for years and have taken it to a new level I believe my parents and grandparents would be so proud of. Our family’s Chili Sauce, which was canned each Fall to have as a staple during the cold winters in Chicago, is now available to buy in North Carolina and is being used in The Lunenburg Diner in Massachusetts. It’s been officially branded and called the KarenKave Chili Kickstart.

Here is more on my story about family tradition:
Local area network: WRAL TAR HEEL TRAVELER: https://www.wral.com/video/holly-springs-woman-s-kave-fully-of-family-memories/20310435/

See more on this Chili Sauce and my love for family traditions in: https://www.ourstate.com/the-secret-of-the-sauce/

Each year I can over 40 varieties of canned goods and share them amongst our family and friends across the country and enter them into the NC State Fair Competitions.

The KarenKave Chili Kickstart is available at a number of markets and stores across North Carolina. Find a complete list on my website at www. KarenKave.com

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has not always been smooth. After retiring from the tech industry after 35 years, I found myself with a love for an industry I had no idea about. Learning the rules, regulations, and finding myself through to this point was all about finding the right networks of mentors and leaders in the industry willing to give me a chance and believe in what I was wanting to accomplish. I took classes and got certifications that helped and made more connections. I went to conferences and food shows and met some inspiring people I could learn from. I focused on a mentor that has provided me an opportunity to have fun, be challenged and as she told me, “don’t give up on.”

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a canner at heart. I love the way life was when it seemed a little more simple when I was growing up. I like to take that simple and use it in a way to fulfill a love for canning and serving up jars of goodness all year through. It’s simply how my KarenKave Chili Kickstart has now become a brand and product that is on the shelves of markets from Western NC to the coast.

Our family was big into traditions, big gatherings for every occasion and I love to now share those recipes with as many as I can reach. My work ethics stem from how I was raised. Nothing comes easy, but If you work hard, you will succeed in a way that will make you happy.

Part of what I immerse myself with is to document history and time with family recipes. I have written a cookbook with over 80 recipes that go back to WWI. This book includes my Grandma Allen’s Hungarian Chicken Paprikash, donuts and noodles along with my other Grandma Joyaux’s French Pate.

Of course there has been a lot of time and pushing the pencil till it’s dull that has gone into a small business, however, I don’t consider it work, rather enjoyment in sharing what I was so blessed to have growing up and learning about my family’s background through our nourishment at the table. I keep learning each day and that’s work you can’t argue with. I tend not to do anything small when I get started, so I went into this adventure knowing I wouldn’t stop until I could see success in a simple way.
And that I have.

Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Risk, such a risky word and one that I must say, I believe I have always had in me.

I have taken risks in my career by pushing the edge of my teams to the point of “no, we shouldn’t do this, but we can ask for forgiveness later, let’s try it.’ I have said many times along my journey of life, I would love to have my own business, I would love to own a shop, a restaurant etc. IT’S RISKY!! Especially with so many unknowns that can happen.

In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. This scares me! I don’t like bad things to happen to anyone, including myself. So risk becomes a balancing factor in many decisions I make or how I want to carry out something to make a gain in life and what is the human value to me.

However, if you don’t take risks in life and play it safe 100% and avoid risks, it could lead me to missed opportunities and stagnation in various aspects of life. When individuals consistently choose the safe and familiar path, they often miss out on opportunities for personal growth and self-discovery.

I knew I was taking a huge risk of getting into an industry I had absolutely no knowledge about. NONE. I needed to network, ask a lot of questions, find a good mentor and push myself beyond my normal limits to make it work.
If I didn’t like these risks and the work it was going to take to either possibly succeed or fail, then don’t even get started.

Believe in yourself, even if it means taking the risk and failing. Place yourself among people to support you, that inspire you and are happy for you and give it your all.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.Karenkave.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenkavenc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenKaveNC
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@VintageCookingKarenKave
• Other: https://www.ourstate.com/the-secret-of-the-sauce/