Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Trotochaud.
Emily, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I grew up in northeastern Connecticut and am part of a sciencey, food loving family. I went to the Massachusetts College of Art and Design with the intention of becoming a production potter. During my time there, I majored in ceramics, but was also very involved in two other 3D departments, the fibers department and glassblowing department. I love learning new skills, especially tactile ones like weaving, knitting, anything that keeps my hands busy. One of the easiest ways to stay involved in those departments while I was in school was by being a teachers assistant, it allowed me to have access to all of the tools and to share my skills with new students. Both of my parents are teachers, and teaching comes really naturally to me. I love sharing my passion for craft with new people, especially when they are intimidated a bit by the process.
When I graduated, I was able to connect with two local artists – Jill Rosenwald and Lawrence McRae – and I became their production potter. I went from making whatever I want, whenever I wanted, to making their designs 40 hours a week, and I genuinely loved it. I got to do my favorite part of the process, the making without having to worry about the business side of things, or even finishing them! (They have two painters who do the finishing work in their studio). When I got home though, I still wanted to make. Soon, I realized it was really hard both physically and mentally to do ceramics after work, on top of the work I was making there. I did lots of other projects (see the knitting/weaving I mentioned earlier) but it was some time before I was in a space that allowed me to do something I really loved – cooking.
Cooking is the best of both worlds, it’s creative, it’s tactile, it’s (usually) delicious. And it’s something you kind of need to do, I mean you have to eat. Cooking is relaxing, I understand enough of whats going on to fall into a rhythm with it, I understand all of the timing that goes into a dinner that gets all the components done at the same time and once we moved to an apartment with a spacious kitchen (where you ask? east boston of course) I began cooking more and more.
I had dabbled in pasta making a few times before; I actually can say that the first time I made it was on a school trip to Italy, so there’s that romantic back story for you. As projects began winding down for me, and I learned more about pasta making I fell more in love with the process. It is almost exactly like working with clay. From the raw material, mixing it with water, kneading it and then shaping it into the final pieces – the process was comforting, easy, and best of all, delicious. In early spring of 2017, we were making pasta pretty regularly, and thats when the 100-day project started up and I got the idea that I could do one. The 100-day project is an instagram project that inspires people to be creative. You pick a task and commit to doing it every day for 100 days. People do all kinds of amazing ones, many are musical, some are as simple as drawing a cartoon or doing hand lettering every day. I’ll admit mine was a little more elaborate, but at this point, what did I have to lose.
I told myself to take it seriously. That I would write about it, photograph it, and ultimately see if a possible career path in food was something I wanted. I invested in myself ($100 which at the time seemed like a lot on a silly project) to buy three cookbooks, some plates (all different for food styling purposes) and some other basic supplies, set a date and some rules for myself and was off to the races. I didn’t realize it when I started, but 100 days is a really long time. It wasn’t long before I needed a little motivation to keep going. Motivation came by the ways of friends and family, so many people reached out to me to ask about the project, and in turn, I would invite them over for dinner. Of my 100 days of pasta, over 25 were with friends, family, and even a few new faces I ended up meeting along the way. Teaching people to make pasta was so fun, it helped me just as much as it helped them. It was as my project was winding down in October that I found a way to keep that energy and excitement going.
I spent a more than average time at Sur la Table in Copley during this time – always popping in to look at their pasta things – and I casually inquired about how they hire chefs for their cooking classes. Fast forward a few weeks and I found myself with a new part time job teaching people of all ages way more than just pasta. I’ve taught french classics, Vietnamese and Korean food, and of course some italian classes in my time there and it was a blast. It gave me the confidence to teach just about anything (as long as you’re prepared, of course) and even though my time there is now over, I learned so much about teaching and the professional food industry. It was a great experience.
I left my pottery family in April of 2018 and started a new job doing marketing and social media for Golden Cannoli Shells Co. in Chelsea, MA. I used my own blog and Instagram as well as some marketing experience I gained from working with Jill Rosenwald to land this new gig; and I’m really excited to start revamping their social media and website (the new one is launching Aug. 1), I’m going to be able to make cooking a part of my job too, by doing some recipe development for their blog and Instagram as well!
In my free time, I offer private pasta making workshops, in either my East Boston apartment or in peoples homes. I travel all over Greater Boston, with my vintage pasta machine + stash of flour in tow, to teach small groups of people how easy it is to make pasta. Long term, I want to open a fresh pasta store with a small kitchen in the back that will offer lessons and private dinners in the evening.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the biggest piece of advice I can give someone who wants to start their own blog/business/brand is to just own it and start. That’s the best thing you can do, because once you start taking it seriously, other people will too. I was really apprehensive at first about telling people I planned on starting my project because once I said it, I would have to follow through. Saying it out loud, writing it down, will help you commit and get you started.
I’ve struggled a lot with finding the time (and motivation) to write and cook after working all day, but if you choose something you’re really passionate about you’ll find that even though its work, and ultimately you’ll enjoy it. There were week long stretches at a time where I didn’t write or update anything on my website, honestly, even now there are some unfinished projects lurking on there, but I’m not going to beat myself up about it. Take it one day at a time and try to do something small even once or twice a week to get it done.
Working a “side hustle” is hard. Find other creatives that are doing it and try to build a support system for yourself, so when you do have a problem or are feeling down there are people who push for you to keep going. And don’t be afraid to ask for help!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about 100 Days of Pasta – what should we know?
As for my work, right now, I do a little of everything. For Golden Cannoli I’ve become part food stylist/photographer, an occasional graphic designer, a trade show rep and more in between. I love it, there is something new to do every day. For my own business, 100 days of pasta, I teach private pasta making classes and workshops. I also write and share tutorials for making fresh pasta on my website. I occasionally do freelance social media consulting and do instagram tutorials for the Boston Design Salon.
I’m the proudest of my writing, because if you had asked me 10 years ago, 5 years ago, even 2 years ago if I would ever consider writing a blog my answer would be a firm no. I have never been a confident writer, so it was scary to start. I’ve realized that it really doesn’t matter how many people read it, I should just take some pride in the fact that I took the time to actually write it down. When I write, I try to make it as genuine and approachable as possible. My favorite content on my website right now is the (mostly finished) tutorials for making semolina pasta. This is pasta anyone can make, it takes two ingredients, and requires no special machinery. I love it because I really believe that anyone can make it and feel good about it after, and that’s what I want my writing and images to do, to inspire people to try cooking what I’m cooking.
I’m also proud of my instagram account and the community of people I’ve met on there. It still amazes me that people are invested enough in what I’m making or cooking to not just follow along but to make it or ask me questions for it afterward. You can check out some of my more ambitious baking and cooking projects in my featured instagram stories.
Do you recommend any apps, books or podcasts that have been helpful to you?
Oh, my, there are so many. My favorite app for Instagram is stop-motion studio – its really great and is easy to use.
My all-time favorite cooking blog is Smitten Kitchen, I grew up reading it and everything she makes is amazing. I also love the food blog serious eats.
The cookbooks that got me through my 100-day project are Flour + Water, Mastering Pasta (Mark Vetri) and Handmade Pasta Workshop and Cookbook (Nicole Karr)
Other cookbooks I love – The food lab (Kenji Lopez alt), this one is amazing and really explains the science behind what your food is doing in an approachable way. I also really like Jerusalem (Yotam Ottolenghi, Sami Tamimi) because those flavors are so new and exciting to me, but dont usually require any hard to find ingredients.
There are so many wonderful food Instagram accounts that I love, on the pasta side if you’re not following @saltyseattle for her rainbow pasta you’re missing out, I also love @shihoma for some other pasta inspo.
There are three general baking ones I’m going to have to suggest too (aside from smitten kitchen of course)
@zoebakes has the most wonderful and informative Instagram stories, @cloudykitchen is the perfect mix of food styling and kittens and choose one of the following and you’re good to go – @nytimesfood, @bonappetit or @testkitchen
Contact Info:
- Website: www.100daysofpasta.com
- Email: emilytrotochaud@gmail.com
- Instagram: @100daysofpasta
Image Credit:
Emily Trotochaud
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