Traci Anello

The Power in Food

Tag Archives: spirituality


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The start of an amazing journey

I think I’m about to embark on a pretty interesting journey.

In the last few months, I have begun to clean up some pretty bad decision-making. One by one each debt has been getting paid. A lesson attached to each and every mistake. Trust was always a big thing for me. I grew up with a Sicilian dad and a hand shake, a good firm hand shake, was a good reason to trust someone and a deal. Well, enter the 2000’s. Those days were long over but I hadn’t caught up to that yet. So I made a business deal and chose a contractor for my house that I thought I knew and sealed them both with a hand shake. My first clue was at the closing for my business when the bank looked at the actual deal and asked me if I was sure I wanted to do this. I had put my home up for collateral. My partner put up nothing. But I had a new home and about to embark on a new business. I could do this. When the bank asked me one last time, I should have gotten the clue. I didn’t. Long story short, I lost the business 5 years later and my home. So some would think this is horrible. I’ve lost it all. Or did I? Physically, yes.

These were very expensive lessons to learn from a monetary value. They hurt from a personal view. My heart and soul went into both the business and the house. It was everyday. The business was 24/7. Up early, run the bakery, drive deliveries to Massachusetts at night and start all over again at 4am. What was I thinking? I could do this. No actually, I couldn’t. It all spiraled out of control. I got really sick one summer. I had an xray and a spot was discovered on my lung. Within a week I was being biopsied for Hodgkin Lymphoma. What was going on?? It all happened so fast. I couldn’t breath. The coughing was obnoxious. The last thing I remember in the OR was being asked if I like to play golf. I was out in seconds. The sugeon came in and said the biopsy was fine and I was sent home to rest for a couple of days. Rest? Were they crazy? Not at all. My daughter made me stay home and rest for two days. It was then I realized, this isn’t going to work. It’s not worth it. I watched what I was putting my daughter through and it just wasn’t worth it. But then I thought once I felt better I can still make this work. All the while ignoring my gut feelings and all the messages around me. My daughter swears I got sick just so I could rest a couple of days.

Finally the Winter of 2010, I decided it was enough. I closed the doors. The truth is, I felt great when I locked that door. I lost everything in it though. It was a tough one to walk away from but it’s then that I realized how important my life was and how materials really didn’t matter. It wasn’t a loss. I truly did the best I could. It was a wonderful place. People traveled all over to eat there. In the end, it was an increase in the lease that helped to seal the fate of the business. Not a total loss though. It was a gain of friendships, contacts (which would prove to be vital a few years later), knowledge, growth and most important, spiritual growth. Even though the debt was massive, I wasn’t going to let it get any worse. It took until this Fall but the business is all paid off. The house is about to come to an end as well. With a closing any day now, that too will be put behind me.

What was important was making the step to close the doors, both of them. Now materials really didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to determine my self-worth by what I owned. I’m a daughter,a sister, an aunt, a cousin, a co-worker and most important a mother. I feel I have been successful at all of these. Not because of what I own but because of the love I have for each and every one of them. Suddenly, my self-worth was becoming how I valued who I was. I was learning about Self.

Now the journey begins. I have a new place to live which I love. Through encouragement from my friends, I would imagine what I wanted for a house. It had to be safe, healthy, cute and by the water. I accomplished all of those. I absolutely love my home. Now my focus is on work, full-time work. I love what I do at Hospice. I was talking with a co-worker today and I told her that calling this a job just doesn’t seem right.It’s so much more than that. She said, “It’s not a job. It’s a calling.”. She’s right. It’s the most amazing place I have ever been. That’s part-time. So now I have to focus on the fulltime. It will to be something I love. It’s all about the journey.

I have been writing this blog as well as a few magazine articles. That’s the best side work I do. I love to write. I’m honored to be published in a few magazines already. It’s great work and you can share what you do with complete strangers. The important thing is you’re helping someone.

Now life is taking an interesting turn. My newest playtime hobby is painting. I decided to take a class and it was wonderful! I have been listening to more jazz and thankfully I have a friend that has similar tastes and he has been educating me on different types of music. I can’t get enough. All of this knowledge. Learning about things I love. Next on the list:Travel. I really want to travel. I want to learn about different cultures and recreate these dishes for people with food allergies. If I can do this, they too can experience other cultures without the fear of what they are eating. My goal is to someday have a show where I can recreate these dishes for everyone to enjoy regardless of your allergy. I have 6 cooking shows under mt beslt right now so I know that’s what I want to do. That day is coming very soon.

As a chef I often say sautéed onions, celery and carrots are the trinity of food. Travel, food and music are the trinity of life. My new journey is about making good decisions for myself. It’s about experiencing the trinity. It’s about learning, loving and experiencing all of the amazing things life has to offer.It’s about always trusting that firm hand shake but following up with a legal contract. It’s about listening to my gut always and having faith it’s all going to turn out exactly the way it’s supposed to.

This is the start of a fantastic journey.

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What do you mean there’s no equipment?…A true story about challenges, faith and triumph.

About 12 years ago, I was working at a beautiful cafe in mid coast Maine. We had a dining room, a lounge and a full gourmet bakery. I was the bakery manager at the time. The one thing the owner said was to make sure everyday the cases were full and looked their best. She said you never know who’s going to walk in that door. Her words rang true a May evening.

A well-known movie company was filming in town. That evening the prop master decided to come in for dinner. By then I had gone home after a long day of fresh baked breads and pastries. He commented on how lovely the cases looked and asked to speak to the bakery manager. The host informed him that I had left for the evening and so he gave her his business card with instructions for when I was to call. The following day I called. He wanted to ask me to come to the set and create a New England style continental breakfast for a scene they were doing. He especially wanted the scones to look like the ones he saw in the case. No problem. It was a long day but a great experience. I worked with them for the next three days.

A well known actor’s caterer happened to be there and asked me if I would fly to Georgia for 6 weeks to make his pastries and help with the desserts for the crew. This was a very good opportunity but I took a couple of days to think about. I decided to go. My plane left in mid June. I packed my favorite knives and some cake supplies (Thank God I did!). I get to the hotel and check in. It was a beautiful hotel. I went up to my room unpacked and then out to see the historic city. I got my itinerary from the front desk and needed to meet the crew in the lobby the following morning. We were taken in a van to an old warehouse with a Sysco refrigerated truck already filled with product and ready to go. The caterer had a small utility truck which had the grills, tables and other set up equipment. The catering truck had pans, sheet pans, some refrigeration and work stations. As I peaked around, I realized there was no baking equipment…at all! No mixers, no measuring spoons or cups, no scales…nothing. My heart sank. I went to the neice who was now my supervisor and her reply was simply this,”Next week you will get a check. Get what you need then.”.

I went back to the hotel room and buried my face in my hands and just sobbed. What would I do without the right equipment? What did I get myself into?? I thought…Hollywood…good money…best equipment. Boy was I wrong. I called a very good friend and told him I was going to book a flight home. This was a nightmare already. He said,”You? You’re going to give up without trying? You? The one that’s always saying never let them see you sweat? Put your game face on?” I told him this is why I called him. He was always there ready to reason with me. I got on my knees and prayed. I prayed hard too. I asked to just get me through this. It was only going to be 6 weeks. I went down to the bar and had a martini and thought about how I was going to pull this off. At 4:30am, the games would begin.

After a brief sleep and a good shower, I met the rest of the crew at the van. We headed over to the warehouse to prep for the morning. I decided that chocolate chips cookies would be my first attempt at beating the odds. All of my recipes were in weights so I had to do a conversion with each of them. I saw a few pallets stacked off to the side of the dock so I got my tea and headed over for a brief thought. After a few deep breaths, I decided how I was going to make this work. I would take a pound of butter and a plastic zip lock bag. I would hold the butter in one hand and put flour in the other. I closed my eyes and when the bag and butter felt at even weights, I had a pound of flour. The repeated the same for sugar, brown sugar, eggs and chocolate chips. I put gloves on and mixed the batch by hand. I portioned them out on a sheetpan and in the oven they went. If this worked, I would convert every recipe that way. Waiting for these cookies to finish was like being in labor. Deep breaths and constantly watching the clock. Even a few cramps found their way in my stomach. I had to pull this off. I couldn’t let them see me sweat. The timer went off and moment of truth was about to show itself. I opened the oven and there they were! Beautiful little cookies that said nothing more than “You did it!!”. What a relief. That was all I needed to give me the confidence to get through the 6 weeks. I tried everything, cookies, cakes, pies, cream puffs, cream puff swans even. When the cater saw what was coming out of the ovens, they presented me with a beautiful Kitchen Aid mixer and anything I needed. This caterer bragged he had a pastry chef that could make whatever he needed. He may have thought that but fortunately he was too busy all of the time to remember what he said. I kept it simple and elegant.
I didn’t have to use that first paycheck on anything more than a new pair of shoes.

By the end of the 6 weeks, I remember being in my hotel room and thinking about how I made it through that mess or challenge as I like to look at it. Then I sat quietly and looked down at my hands. I realized then that I had the right equipment all along to get this job done. I thanked God for getting me through this challenge, strengthening my faith and being there to colebrate my triumph.


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New England is home

The Atlantic Ocean alongside the Maine boarder is breathtaking tonight. The beautiful pink sky and rocky coast are the perfect setting to sit and ponder about my next post. This is New England. This is home, for now anyway.
It’s moments like these I reflect and I’m thankful I have the gift of creating different foods and types of cuisine for everyone. If you thought you could never have it again, I’ll find a way. I come to this spot and just imagine the what and how. Food is for everyone. It should look great and taste even better. Food is healing. Food is love. This is why I come to this view.

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