Meet MK Hennigan, Entrepreneur & Hostess Extraordinaire
Kentucky's MK Hennigan is the owner and founder of 'In the Curious Kitchen' — an online source for Southern stories, recipes, and a range of delicious culinary products. Image: Facebook / In The Curious Kitchen
In 2019, Kentucky native MK Hennigan started In the Curious Kitchen, a blog that showcases her love of food, travel, and family recipes. After losing her corporate job to COVID the following year, she turned her blog into a full-blown business, offering stories, meal ideas, cocktail recipes, and more to the public. Her site now even boasts a line of products ranging from jam, beer cheese, and bitters to barware. Get to know this inventive FACE of the South!
How did In the Curious Kitchen come to be?
In 2019, I decided to create a blog that told the story of my adventures in travel, food, and people, as well as the inspiration I find around me. I named it In the Curious Kitchen.
I hadn’t even really started writing — I’d just set up my social media handles and so forth — when COVID hit us all. I lost my corporate job, but since I already had something established, I knew I was just going to start my own company. The blog turned into a product-based business, which is what my background is in. My first product was pimento cheese, made with my grandmother’s recipe.
Do you have an old cookbook with all your grandma’s recipes?
No, she didn’t write any of her recipes down. With the pimento cheese, it took me years to tweak the ingredients until I finally figured it out. I made some switches here and there and got with my dad for taste testing. He gave the final approval!
We had to come up with these recipes based on watching her guess measurements. I remember her making biscuits and just scooping flour by the fistful. It was one of those things where she just knew the touch and feel of the dough. My buttermilk biscuit recipe is as close to what she did as I could figure out.
It sounds like your grandma was a major inspiration for In the Curious Kitchen.
Yes. I knew that I needed a story to connect to the products, and that story is me spending summers with my grandmother in North Carolina and South Carolina, cooking in her kitchen. She cooked so much for all the relatives who would come to visit her, so we spent the majority of our time together in the kitchen.
You’ve added many product offerings over the last few years, available for both wholesale and retail. What are the most popular items?
The number one item is the pimento cheese, but the boozy cherries are right behind that. After that, it’s a tie between beer cheese and hot pepper jelly.
Is there anything new in the works?
We are working on spicy versions of pimento cheese and beer cheese. It’s exciting because there are people who just love spice. Though our products currently have some spiciness, they don’t have the level of spice that some people want. We’re also developing a new mustard and a barbecue sauce. The goal is to release all of those items by fall.
Your business has grown exponentially in the short time it’s been around. Is there anything you’re particularly proud of?
I’m a very proud Kentuckian, and I love being part of Kentucky’s culture and tradition. My products have the Kentucky Proud designation, and it was really exciting to achieve that. That’s how Publix found me and began carrying my products. It’s also exciting to know that so many people are enjoying the products; I’m seeing the fruits of my labor every day.
What lessons have you learned in growing your business?
Slow down! I had to learn how to slow down and remember that my schedule is not the same as other people’s schedules. While my focus is my business, everyone else has a million things going on. So slow down, be thoughtful, and whatever you’re doing, do it well. Also, you’re going to make mistakes — but that’s okay. No one will know all the mistakes you’ve made along the way.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever given or received?
Keep your eyes forward, and keep moving forward. Just keep pushing yourself. It’s like the old sales saying, “keep asking for the ‘no.’” Part of this business is about continuously reaching out and being tenacious. Also, if you have an idea and are inspired by it, it’s a great idea — especially if you wake up every day and get excited by it.
You’re often in Louisville for things like brand development and your cherry collaboration with Angel’s Envy. Do you have favorite places to eat, shop, and play around Derby City?
I love to eat at Jack Fry’s and Bristol Bar & Grill. I like shopping at Lotsa Pasta, Paper Source, and Museum Bees by Trace Mayer, which moved to Prospect. I also think Dolfinger’s is an amazing store. For play, I like going on distillery tours, going to concerts, and perusing the annual St. James Court Art Show.
Aside from faith, family, and friends, what are three things you can’t live without?
Lip gloss, skincare, and good bourbon — specifically Jones Road lipgloss, iS Clinical (which is medical-grade skincare), and Angel’s Envy.
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Lennie Omalza
Originally from Hawaii, Lennie Omalza is a Louisville-based freelance writer of over 18 years. Lennie is a yoga-loving foodie who travels as often as she can and enjoys writing about food, homes, and weddings. You can find more of Lennie's work at Eater, Hawaii Home & Remodeling, and The Louisville Courier-Journal.