<\/p>\n
Seas\u2019nings, LLC, a Cortez-based catering business, closed on Jan. 1, but it has left its mark on Montezuma County\u2019s food industry.<\/p>\n
Karen Sheek and Holly Tatnall started the company in 1998 out of a desire to turn their passion for cooking into a full-time job. Sheek had taught home economics at Montezuma-Cortez High School for many years, and Tatnall was an expert baker who also had a degree in the subject. They met through a mutual friend, and decided to start a new business \u2013 the first company in Montezuma County that was entirely dedicated to catering.<\/p>\n
At first, the demand for catering took them by surprise. Some of the largest companies in the area, including Kinder Morgan, became regular customers. They found themselves preparing food for weddings and charity dinners that served hundreds of people.<\/p>\n
For 19 years, Seas\u2019nings operated out of a small home kitchen on South Madison Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis little tiny kitchen was capable of putting out a lot of (food),\u201d Sheek said. \u201cWe had done as many as 400 meals in this kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seas\u2019nings soon became known for a variety of appetizers and hors d\u2019oeuvres, which Sheek said were as difficult as they were popular. One of their first clients asked them to make 20 different appetizers, including the time-consuming stuffed pea pods, for a wedding party of 100 guests. Although Sheek said that although experience taught them the value of saying \u201cno,\u201d they couldn\u2019t resist working several events on one day, which led to hectic days in the kitchen during the Christmas holidays.<\/p>\n
Running a catering company was fun, but not glamorous, Tatnall said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou talk to kids nowadays, and when they say they want to be a chef, they\u2019re thinking of \u2018Iron Chef\u2019 and stuff on TV, and that they\u2019re going to make a small fortune,\u201d she said. \u201cThey don\u2019t realize that they\u2019re going to be spending 16 hours a day in the kitchen, on their feet. \u2026 The only reason you do it is because you just flat out love it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over the course of their company, the two caterers saw the rise and fall of several food trends. One recent trend they\u2019re happy to witness is the increased emphasis on fresh food for many people and businesses. They cited The Farm Bistro as an example of a Cortez restaurant that serves fresh, local food on a regular basis.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s partly because of restaurants like The Farm that Sheek and Tatnall don\u2019t feel their departure will leave a void in Cortez. Several local restaurants, including The Farm, now offer their own catering, and some, like Once Upon a Sandwich, already did so before Seas\u2019nings got started.<\/p>\n
But Seas\u2019nings\u2019 closure does come as a blow to some of their customers. Sheek and Tatnall supplied breakfast burritos and pastries for two coffee shops in Cortez \u2013 the Silver Bean and Spruce Tree Espresso House. They left their signature burrito recipe with the shops\u2019 owners, but Sharon King, owner of Spruce Tree Espresso, said she will use her own recipe from now on. Spruce Tree\u2019s baked goods will come from Absolute Bakery in Mancos.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been quite an adjustment, but we have adjusted,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Sheek and Tatnall decided to close their business because it was becoming too physically demanding, but also because they want to pursue other interests. Both want to travel more, and Tatnall wants to focus on her work with the Cortez Cultural Center and the guided tours she leads with Aramark Mesa Verde. Sheek wants to find another part-time job, though possibly one that allows her to sit down a little more.<\/p>\n
But neither Seas\u2019nings chef will leave the kitchen behind for good. Tatnall often teaches baking classes at the Cortez Cultural Center, where she works, and Sheek plans to prepare plenty of meals for her friends and family.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll be figuring out where I\u2019m going to cook at home and who I\u2019m going to cook for,\u201d Tatnall said. \u201cThat\u2019s my agenda for the next little while.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cake
\n 2 cups Flour
\n 1\u00be cups granulated sugar
\n 1 teaspoon baking soda
\n 2 teaspoons salt
\n 2 teaspoons cinnamon
\n Mix all dry ingredients together.
\n Add:
\n 3 eggs
\n 1\u00bc cups vegetable oil
\n 3 cups finely shredded carrots
\n Mix until well blended. Pour into greased or parchment lined two 8-inch pans or one 9 by 13-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30\u201340 minutes until cake tests done. Cool before frosting.
\n Cream Cheese Frosting
\n \u00bd cup butter, softened
\n 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
\n 1 teaspoon vanilla
\n 1 pound confectioner\u2019s sugar
\n Cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add vanilla and confectioner\u2019s sugar and beat until fluffy. Enough to frost two-layer cake.
\n After frosting the cake, if desired, press finely chopped pecans or walnuts around the edges of the cake.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Seas\u2019nings catering leaves a tasty legacy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":73127,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[431,13,624],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-73126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-business-general","tag-frontpage-lead","tag-lifestyle-and-leisure"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73126"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73126\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73127"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73126"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73126"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73126"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=73126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}