It’s crazy how the older we get, the faster and faster time FLIES by! Given that 2011 is already upon us, I took some time to remember 2010 and enjoy just some of the FANTASTIC and EPIC times we had! Here it goes…

January 2010…we expanded (from 2 coffee shops and 1 City Market in Aspen) into 80 King Soopers and City Markets statewide! For our first order, we had oven issues in Denver, so Alex and I loaded our cars FULL of supplies, drove to Aspen, and baked 24 hours straight! This is a great picture of Alex taking a 15 minute nap (in the kitchen) on a cot between batches! Needless to say, we met our deadline and delivered our first “BIG” order for King Soopers City Market and hit the LOVE officially hit the shelves statewide on January 13, 2010!

February 21, 2010 – We are written up in the Denver Post! “Love Grown Foods’ granola, $4.99 per 12- ounce bag, at 80 Colorado King Soopers and City Market stores and online at lovegrownfoods.com. University of Denver graduates Maddy P. D’Amato and Alex R. Hasulak created this cereal that contains no corn syrup or refined sugar, trans fats, hydrogenated oils, preservatives or artificial flavors. Try the apple-walnut, raisin-almond, or sweet cranberry-pecan, all baked in Aurora.”

March 2010 — We start spreading the LOVE! From news broadcasts to meeting customers in the stores we are out, about, and on a mission to show people how HEALTHY can be DELICIOUS!

April 2010 — Life starts getting crazy. Between baking, marketing, and running the day-to-day business we realize we need some help. We brought on 2 of our friends from college to help us spread the LOVE! Here Baxter and I are getting pumped to be stoked!

May 2010 — Things get sticky (literally). We are learning the ins and outs of production and lovin’ every minute of it. Nights are spent baking and days are spent spreading the LOVE! In this EPIC picture we had an over-flow of honey…

June 2010 — Summer…and farmers market season starts with a BANG! Between Cherry Creek Farmers Market twice a week and the Stapleton Farmers Market every Sunday, we had a blast getting people stoked on some LOCAL LOVE. We are also all about getting active and refuelling properly! Summer was spent at all sorts of EPIC events serving up the BEST post-race breakfast of LOVE! We are proud sponsors of the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure–below is a picture of us dishing out bowls of LOVE to some race participants.

July 2010 — Alex and I pull ourselves away from the business for a weekend and join his family in Sedona, AZ for an annual trip to PARADISE.

August 2010 — We expand into more stores! The LOVE becomes available in a total of 112 King Soopers and City Markets Statewide plus Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage!! SHABANG! This is UBER-EXCITING!

September 2010 — Alex and I head out to Cincinatti, OH to present the LOVE to Kroger Co. We even wore suits…we meant business!

October 2010 — LOVE GROWN FOODS: Oat Cluster & LOVE are now CERTIFIED GLUTEN-FREE and we also have STELLAR *NEW* PACKAGING PLUS 2 *NEW* FLAVORS!! We move into our own production facility, create the LOVE PAD (ping pong table, kegerator, flat screen TVs and all) and start “going into work” because we even have an office! We get word that Kroger is picking up 4 of our 5 flavors of LOVE and so we get busy baking!

November 2010 We hire on a team of LOVE BOMBS! Jason, who has been involved in the business since January, officially joins the team and we hire our first employees and bring on STELLAR “love seeds” to help us grow and get the job done.

December 2010 — We ship out TRUCK-LOADS of product and literally JUMP FOR JOY out of the pure THRILL for all that’s to come in 2011!

This past year has been amazing and a whirl-wind. With the expansion of Love Grown Foods, Alex and I have been busier than ever! This New Year we caught up on a little sleep and decided to make a feast at home. (We didn’t have the energy to go out and rage…but a quick break from the craziness of work was the perfect thing to start 2011 with a BANG!)

We did a SURF ‘N’ TURF dinner! It was a delight!

Black Truffle Dungeness Crab and Steak…we also had THE BEST FINGERLING POTATOES and SAUTEED GREEN BEANS AND ROASTED PINE NUTS (it was all so delicious)!

The night ended early (I know…lame) but the next morning we welcomed 2011 with mimosas and brunch with Jason and Trysh!

We had such a feast…it was all so delicious! I made a Spanish omelet, whole grain pancakes, cranberry peanut butter scones, and chicken sausage. We enjoyed a nice, long, relaxing morning (there was actually snow on the ground…so we even had the fire going). It was the perfect start to what is going to be another INCREDIBLE year!

Happy New Year from the LOVE GROWN TEAM! May 2011 be full of GOOD HEALTH, HAPPINESS and LOADS OF LOVE!

(Taken directly from Ashley’s Blog Edible Perspective.)

“A fun package arrived to day from the lovely Maddy + Alex, owners of Love Grown Foods.

I’ve mentioned numerous times before about how much I love their granola [which uses gluten free oats] and their business in general. They are local to Colorado and really know what they’re doing!! Maddy + I became friends through our weekly chats at the farmer’s market, where she sold granola. I am so excited about the little sample packs. They’re perfect for traveling and are my 2nd favorite flavor, Raisin Almond Crunch. I was lucky enough to get another full size bag of my favorite flavor, Cocoa Goodness. The perfect amount of cocoa, crunch, and sweetness all mixed together!

Maddy + Alex are “spreading the love” [as they say] and donating granola to the Ronald McDonald House of Denver for every new Twitter follower and/or facebook fan they receive. So definitely check them out on twitter + facebook! They do so much more than make granola. M + A are two of the most generous and hard working people I know!”

The New Year always sparks inspiration to incorporate better, healthier habits into our lives. This mentality of ‘starting from scratch’ is refreshing, but can also be daunting. Rather than looking for a complete change that happens overnight, shoot to incorporate small changes into each day. You can decide to eat vegetarian one day every week, take the stairs rather than the escalator, or choose fresh fruit over candy for dessert. One of my favorite things to make in the winter, after being bogged down by heavy, holiday foods, is a nice big salad. My favorite part about this salad is that is is festive and great to serve at a party, but can also be made on the fly (make nuts ahead of time and store in the fridge) and enjoyed on the run. My Spinach Salad with pomegranate seeds, kiwis and walnuts is full of antioxidants from the pomegranate seeds, omega-3s from the walnuts, and great vitamin C from kiwis. The dressing is light but fruity and a great salad to have for lunch or dinner. This a great (and delicious) immune-boosting salad! Check out the recipe and enjoy!

Happy Holidays and cheers to a new year full of good health, happiness, and LOVE!

This year we flew to Arizona to spend Christmas with Alex’s family outside of Phoenix. The weather was beautiful and it was a blast spending time with 2 of Alex’s sisters, his parents, and cousins. For me, Christmas has always taken place in the heart of the snowy mountains and Christmas day was full of skiing. To see palm trees and not have to wear a jacket was a shock to the system.

We spent Christmas Eve at Grandma Hasulak’s where we enjoyed a traditional pierogi dinner followed by a contest between families to decorate the best gingerbread house…

Alex got in on the action because our skills were not “up to par”

After a fabulous night of fun (note–our gingerbread house did not come in first) we headed home. It is a Hasulak tradition to give one gift on Christmas Eve and that is always pajamas! The Power Rangers have nothing on us: PLAID! SNOWFLAKE! STRIPE! LEOPARD!

We went to bed to dream of gum-drops and gingerbread houses…

After a much-needed long night of sleep it was Christmas! We started off the morning with one of my favorite Christmas traditions: STOCKINGS! I am not sure what it is about these dis-proportionate socks that makes us want to fill them with all sorts of mini gifts, but I must say that stockings–for me–are a jack pot. (And as a side note, Love Grown Foods is the PERFECT stocking-stuffer…)

The lazy day was the perfect dose of relaxation. We exchanged gifts, enjoyed delicious treats, watched some football, sat outside (without jackets) and delighted in each other’s company.

The following day, it is tradition for the girls to go to tea (while the boys sit around watching football..). I had never been to tea. I am a big tea connoisseur, and I have had my fair share of tea parties, but this was the first time I had been to a formal tea where they served cucumber sandwiches with no crust. It was a treat!

It was an absolutely lovely afternoon and perfect Christmas weekend. Unfortunately, it all ended too soon. We flew back to Colorado that night (only 1 hour delayed from all of the crazy snow storms that pounded the East Coast) and quickly became swept back into chaos and thrill of Love Grown Foods!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
~Maddy & Alex