Welcome to Hunger for Spice where we aspire to encourage others to fuel their souls through food, photography, and nature.
Hunger for Spice Origin
My name is Barbara Cantrell and I began Hunger for Spice at the tail-end of 2018. Beginning a recipe site was never a planned endeavor, it was something that just kinda happened. After taking a break from the food and beverage industry after over twenty years, I had been and was in the middle of some MAJOR life changes and was climbing out of my rock-bottom. I needed to put meaning back into my life and decided it was time to put my culinary degree to use, so Hunger for Spice was born.
At the time, having recently been in a significant car accident, I had been instructed to live on a low carb and gluten free diet to aid in the reduction of inflammation in my body. This is where Hunger for Spice’s niche was born.
Growing
My deep passion to constantly learn new things and grow as an individual has been rewarded with an endless education being a food blogger and aspiring photographer. The amount of information, programs, skills, platforms, and on and on, that we as food bloggers and photographers continually must learn is boundless.
I laugh every time I think about the struggles of trying to retrieve the images from my camera to transfer to my computer when I first started. I had NO IDEA how to do it! That simple task took me about 150 times the amount of time it would take nowadays. I really did start from ground zero.
Shooting a camera in manual mode was something completely foreign to me. Learning to shoot with a camera in manual mode has been one of the most rewarding and challenging tasks I have given myself.
Background
Growing up “living in the kitchen” is not my story. I do have fond memories of churning homemade ice cream with my grandma and husking the corn. But, the majority of the time I spent in the kitchen before my twenties was canning foods and making jams.
When I did start spending hours upon hours in the kitchen, I was making candies and cookies. So, it is no surprise that when I did decide to attend culinary school, I fell in love with baking.
After graduating, I received a fellowship position and taught fine dining procedures to culinary students. This was one of the most rewarding positions I ever held. Throughout my studies and following, I catered weddings and made cakes, and did contract catering where I traveled across the U.S.
Embracing Life
Cooking, baking, nature, and now photography are all therapy for me. I have endured many and long-lived traumas, (I know I am not alone here) which has given me the gift of battling with anxieties. Having these therapeutic outlets and practicing meditative rituals calm my mind and help keep my focus on the present.
It’s easy to try to hide from our anxiety and fear, but I choose to take those scary steps into the unknown. “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” This is a line from the book, Who Moved My Cheese, by Spencer Johnson. This question has pushed me that one last inch to just go for IT, whatever “IT” happened to be at the time, (like hitting publish on that very first blog post.) I have NEVER regretted trying anything new. Whether I failed or soared, I grew.
What fear is holding YOU back? What BIG step will you take next?
If you struggle with anxiety, depression, eating disorders, or substance abuse, you are not alone in this world. Please talk to someone and ask for help.
National Mental Health Hotline: 866-903-3787
Suicide: 1-800-273-8255
Substance Abuse: 1-800-662-HELP
National Eating Disorders: (212) 575-6200