From an early age I had a great love for food. My father once told me that “food was a language, that if you could make a man a meal you could make him your friend” and I have largely found that to be true.  In grade school I learned what a good snack vs a lesser snack was worth in trade value. In middle school I learned that bringing baclava for the class was the difference between a report being a C+ (at best) and a solid A.

In high school I developed my culinary skills at home, learning as much as anyone would teach me. I began cooking for holiday events, fundraisers, party catering, and eventually, I went to culinary school. I enjoyed working in many environments including bakeries, catering big events, and fine dining. 

I loved food so much that I ended up needing to step away to get my health under control. I tried every kind of food there was, without focusing at all on nutritional value, overall portion control, or even what commonly found chemicals and processes were used to make some of my favorite comfort foods. I found myself at 28 years old. My blood pressure was 176/134 - stroke territory. I was over 250lbs and I was on blood pressure medication. 

I decided I needed to shift but felt sort of helpless. I had attended culinary school but we didn’t learn about nutrition. We learned how to prepare and present and enjoy food but we never learned about the added measures large scale food manufacturers take to preserve food for mass consumption, what corners were cut in fast food or pre-made restaurant items, or where the food we loved so much was coming from. I didn’t know how to meal prep for one person. I was used to feeding hundreds!

So I made the radical decision to go back to school but for something totally different. I needed to get active so I decided I would become a massage therapist and “retire” from food so I could manage my health and personal issues around food. I loved being a massage therapist! It was active and I was helping people feel better in a tangible way without side effects. I was in a great position to focus on myself in other areas. I was a massage therapist for over 7 years and, in that time, I lost over 110lbs and dropped my blood pressure 40 points. I was feeling great and life was going my way…  Then Covid hit.

Massage therapists were unable to see their clients for months during the pandemic and, in that time, my clients contacted me asking how they could get the relief they were used to getting through massage. CBD was legalized in Texas in Fall of 2018 and I had been using it as a massage add-on (via creams and lotions) since I was able. It makes a huge difference. So I suggested to them, if they couldn’t get their massages, try taking CBD in tincture form. They loved it! My clients reported higher levels of relief and lower levels of anxiety and restlessness. They wanted to know more! So I researched and I read everything I could get my hands on. 

One night when I was considering how effective the tincture was I had a "chef-y" thought - what if I put CBD in food so that people can enjoy it as part of their routine? It would be easy, fun, and most anything can be infused with CBD if you know how. So I spent my pandemic doing chemistry experiments and working on how I might make this idea a reality. Along the way I learned that by eating CBD (as opposed to taking it in tincture form) increased the bioavailability and increased the impact of your CBD - meaning it worked better and the effects lasted longer! I knew I was onto something. That is how I became the CBD Chef. I am proud to present Cannanoms, my line of mindfully crafted CBD infused grocery items.