The Beginning...
I was in my Grandmother's kitchen in Elk Grove Ca. the summer of 1983, a small town with only one traffic light. It ran on cattle fields and agriculture, a true meat & potato land. I had always experimented in Grandma Emma’s kitchen but this one time, I made a vegan roast and realized I was so bored of the same flavor. So, I mixed up a new spice blend that made it taste like a Basque chorizo, drier and sweeter. The fact that it was vegan made it even better! If the term ‘vegan’ existed back then, I didn't know about it. All I knew was vegetarian and lacto-ovo-vegetarian. A while later, I was in Grandma Emma’s kitchen whipping up some vegan cinnamon rolls. I decided to spread my wings and take samples to my local co-op and some vegetarian restaurants. They tried my creation, loved it and since then it’s been a long, miraculous journey that has unfolded over the last 30 years.
As time marched on, I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I prayed and just had faith. I invested in my first run of crack-and-peel labels printed by a local newspaper, red ink on white paper. I felt that if this was meant to be, a kitchen would open up for me to rent, otherwise I'll just go back to L.A. and use the kitchen at the natural foods store I used to manage. I was shocked when the first person I asked allowed me to rent their kitchen. Preston, the man who owned the kitchen, was a kind-hearted Christian. He offered me the kitchen on Sunday’s only, while he had the day off. I was making the vegetarian roast, seasoning it, grinding it, measuring it, wrapping it and labeling it - with that red and white label. I would also make 12 dozen cinnamon rolls and wrap each individually. The next day they would all be delivered. This continued for five years, but in my third year something new developed in Grandma Emma's kitchen.
Grandma Emma loved tamales and would make them periodically. I would leave because I never liked the smell. One day I questioned my Grandma about why she used lard in her recipe and asked if she could use a vegetable oil instead. Disgusted, she said “no I can’t.” I had also been wondering about making my own masa and with that she added “and you have to buy the masa already prepared. No, you can't make it yourself,” as if there was some magical process that only true tamale makers would know. I told her, "yes you can!" We argued about this until my frustration took over and I set out to prove my point. I made the masa from scratch and it was good. But I knew that if I didn't have filling, she wouldn't approve. At that moment, a lightbulb switched on and I realized I had a great base for filling, my vegetarian chorizo. After two weeks experimenting, adding more ingredients to make a robust, savory flavor, I had created something as close to meat as possible. I knew this would satisfy my carnivorous Grandma. I filled my, from scratch, masa with my delicious filling and offered the first, original Mother Earth’s tamale to Grandpa Emma.
She took one bite and shouted “mentirosa,” which means liar in Spanish. She thought I was pranking her and accused me of buying prepared masa and using real meat. I laughed, looked her straight in the eye and said, "no this is vegetarian with no lard!" She was absolutely amazed and became my biggest fan!
That was the birth of Mother Earth’s - a vegan based, natural food company. For the first 17 years, we were exclusively vegan. Eventually we branched off and created Emma’s Tamales, carrying on the legacy and love for food that Grandma Emma shared with me in her kitchen.
Thank you to all our loyal patrons, stores throughout CA and NV who opened their arms to us and welcome to all our new customers. We are thrilled to be spreading love and health through our delicious food!
As time marched on, I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I prayed and just had faith. I invested in my first run of crack-and-peel labels printed by a local newspaper, red ink on white paper. I felt that if this was meant to be, a kitchen would open up for me to rent, otherwise I'll just go back to L.A. and use the kitchen at the natural foods store I used to manage. I was shocked when the first person I asked allowed me to rent their kitchen. Preston, the man who owned the kitchen, was a kind-hearted Christian. He offered me the kitchen on Sunday’s only, while he had the day off. I was making the vegetarian roast, seasoning it, grinding it, measuring it, wrapping it and labeling it - with that red and white label. I would also make 12 dozen cinnamon rolls and wrap each individually. The next day they would all be delivered. This continued for five years, but in my third year something new developed in Grandma Emma's kitchen.
Grandma Emma loved tamales and would make them periodically. I would leave because I never liked the smell. One day I questioned my Grandma about why she used lard in her recipe and asked if she could use a vegetable oil instead. Disgusted, she said “no I can’t.” I had also been wondering about making my own masa and with that she added “and you have to buy the masa already prepared. No, you can't make it yourself,” as if there was some magical process that only true tamale makers would know. I told her, "yes you can!" We argued about this until my frustration took over and I set out to prove my point. I made the masa from scratch and it was good. But I knew that if I didn't have filling, she wouldn't approve. At that moment, a lightbulb switched on and I realized I had a great base for filling, my vegetarian chorizo. After two weeks experimenting, adding more ingredients to make a robust, savory flavor, I had created something as close to meat as possible. I knew this would satisfy my carnivorous Grandma. I filled my, from scratch, masa with my delicious filling and offered the first, original Mother Earth’s tamale to Grandpa Emma.
She took one bite and shouted “mentirosa,” which means liar in Spanish. She thought I was pranking her and accused me of buying prepared masa and using real meat. I laughed, looked her straight in the eye and said, "no this is vegetarian with no lard!" She was absolutely amazed and became my biggest fan!
That was the birth of Mother Earth’s - a vegan based, natural food company. For the first 17 years, we were exclusively vegan. Eventually we branched off and created Emma’s Tamales, carrying on the legacy and love for food that Grandma Emma shared with me in her kitchen.
Thank you to all our loyal patrons, stores throughout CA and NV who opened their arms to us and welcome to all our new customers. We are thrilled to be spreading love and health through our delicious food!
