We were lucky to catch up with Sara Walkenbach recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, thanks for joining us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

I grew up in a -what people today would say – strict household. My parents both worked and expected my siblings and I to do the same when we were of age. When we got our first job, we were expected to pay for our car insurance, gas money, and clothing. At the time, I thought my parents were mean. My friends always had nicer clothes than I did, their parents would pay for all their things. However, now I am so grateful for the way I was raised. I was taught to work hard, save my money, and spend it on the things that I needed.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve always had a flair for entrepreneurship and food. My 1st job when I was 15 was working in a baker/ deli. There I learned how to decorate cakes. Years later I started a side business out of my house decorating cakes. When I had my kids, it got to be too much with little eager helping hands. After years of filling myself with personal development podcasts, books, and programs I felt like something was being left unfulfilled in my career.

After doing some soul searching for what I truly love, and will always find joy in, I decided something in the food industry is what I needed to focus on. I had no desire to go to culinary school or work in a restaurant with my young family I’ve always loved making and enjoying delicious food. With encouragement from friends and family I started my blog Freckle Face Foodie in 2020 (www.FreckleFaceFoodie.com).

Since having my kids in the “high risk” age level, I’ve been more cautious of the foods I eat and how they make me feel.
I noticed by making a few changes of ingredients I felt better and could still enjoy my favorite foods. I feel like more people should adopt this eating lifestyle. No dieting, just eating the foods you enjoy, lightened up a little bit. That is my focus with my food blog: To help people enjoy food, and still feel good.

Most of my recipes can be made gluten free, but mostly they are all healthy recipes that have a good mix of healthy fat, flavor, and mixed textures. My specialty is salad. My friends lovingly refer to me as the “Salad Queen”. It’s amazing what you can come up with when you have an easy homemade dressing and a refrigerator with leftovers. I even had a stint of making salads for friends as a side business.

I’m a busy mom, I don’t have time to spend hours in the kitchen on dinner or meal prep. I make recipes that are typically easy and ones that my kids will eat. If I can get a thumbs up from at least one of them, I know I have a winner.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I’ve read books, listened to podcasts and have an accountability partner which continue to help me on this journey. Here are the people that have stood out to me:

Darren Hardy – the most successful person that I know of. He has daily inspirational mini videos, book – “The Entreprenurial Roller Coaster”, planner – “Living Your Best Year Ever”, and programs to help you think differently about your business. His planner has changed my life. He helps you break down the most important tasks that need to be done. The planner also helps you instill better habits on a daily basis.

Jennifer Allwood is a women’s business coach with a weekly podcast and book – “Fear is Not the Boss of You”. She has helped me focus on the things that will move the needle forward in my business, and to not get hung up on roadblocks.

Megan Porta – As a food blogger, Megan at the Eat Blog Talk podcast always has quality content for food bloggers. She hosts a weekly podcast with topics that help me tremendously. She covers areas like partnering with brands, strategies to grow your domain authority, writing cookbooks without overwhelm, monetizing your blog. She is very helpful and kind.

Accountability Partner – It’s completely beneficial to have a person to report to every week. As business owners, we don’t have a boss to report to, we are the boss. Knowing that I have to let my accountability partner know what goals I met each week and what I got done that I said I was going to get done is huge in accomplishing your goals. There are days when I don’t feel like working on a certain recipe but knowing that I will be reporting back to my partner, gives me that nudge to just get it done.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

Consistency. This is something that I still struggle with but know how important it is. When it comes to social media and posting new recipes, to get traction, you must stay consistent. You must show up when your audience is expecting you to show up.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.frecklefacefoodie.com
• Instagram: freckle.face.foodie.kc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frecklefacefoodiekc/
• Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/discover/freckle-face-foodie
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/frecklefacefoodie

Image Credits
Portrait: Mark Wickliffe All food photography by Sara Walkenbach