I spent hours in the kitchen, trying to bake my blues away and experimenting with different flours. Sometimes Kate helped me. Her specialty was lemonade. Spring turned to summer. We went to the local farmers market to buy fresh vegetables. “Mom,” she said, “I want to open a lemonade stand.” I checked with the head of the market for permission. “I wish I could let her,” she explained, “but then every kid in town would want to do the same.”
“I understand,” I said. The woman must have heard the disappointment in my voice. “Wait,” she said. “She can sell her lemonade if you have something to sell too.” I thought of the recipes I’d been experimenting with: breads, jams, desserts and a steak rub my friends kept raving about.
So one Saturday Kate and I set up our stand alongside area farmers. I brought my knitting, figuring I’d need something to do. Boy, was I wrong. I was sold out by noon.
We manned a stand at the market every Saturday after that. Even Brian got into the act. “Brian’s Balsamic” was his special “secret” salad dressing. People loved it! We started getting a name. Townspeople swamped me with orders. Maybe this is the new career we’ve been praying for. I started selling our dishes through a local specialty shop. Soon we could barely keep up with demand. The stovetop and oven bubbled all day long. “Brian,” I said, as we were cleaning up one night, “our answer is right in front of us. This is our business.”
In 2005 we took our shot. We opened Molly’s Bistro. The menu has my favorite dishes: baked brie with basil, Mediterranean herb-grilled yellowfin tuna steak, even my special steak rub, as well as homemade pies and rich coffees. Our place is always busy. Sometimes I look at the sign above my little restaurant and can’t believe this is me. A café owner? In a Michigan town practically in the middle of nowhere? Funny how life takes twists and turns, like the braids in challah bread. We turned to this because we had to. And I learned that necessity brings out the best in you, that in order to make a fabulous omelet you have to break a few eggs. If you don’t believe me, stop in and try my spice rub.
Try a favorite at Molly's Bistro, the Fillet of Beef with Spice Rub recipe
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