Connie Jo’s All-Purpose Sauces
$6,000 Gina Burchenal Grant and $1,500 Cathy Cochran-Lewis Excellence in Leadership Grant: $7,500
Led by its namesake entrepreneur Connie Jo Kirk, Connie Jo’s All-Purpose Sauces creates flavorful condiments inspired by the inherited foodways of generations of African Americans in Central Texas. Based on an important aspect of Soul Food — barbecue sauce — the versatile products avoid the excess sugars found in commercial sauces while introducing provocative flavors to everyday cooking. With the Alliance grant, Connie Jo’s Sauces will launch a sauce suitable for people with diabetes and those wanting to limit their sugar consumption.
Funding will support research, nutritional analysis, new label design, a first manufacturing run, and website updates to support e-commerce. Additionally, profits from the sauces support an ecologically sustainable village near Manor for low-income families and seniors.