Rising Stars: Meet Annie Dickson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Annie Dickson.  

Hi Annie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hey! My name is Annie Dickson, I’m a 32 year old wife & mother, and I’m addicted to food. I never really thought about why before, it’s an odd thing, to look back and think about the milestones in our lives that molded us into who we are today. I’ve never really considered any part of my life worthy of being a “story” that anyone would want to read, but here we are. I grew up in Lynchburg, Virginia. We didn’t have a lot, but my parents did a good job of making us think that we did. My brother, sister & I spent a lot of time with our Grandparents, especially in the summers. I remember watching my Nannie make homemade peanut butter fudge & chocolate chess pies thinking how great it would be to get to bake all day, every day. She showed us how to test the sugar for the fudge, rolling it into a little ball in the palm of her hand, how to feed a sourdough starter and turn it into fresh bread (we called this Nannie Bread, I had no clue anyone else in the world had the privilege of eating fresh sourdough bread until I was much older) and made absolutely sure we knew that every dish that graced her table was carefully prepared with love. 

It was the same when we visited my dad’s parents in South Carolina. We woke up every morning fighting over who was going to get to help Grandma make the buttermilk biscuits that day for breakfast. We would spend the days fishing in the pond on the farm & swimming in lake Keowee then come back to a full feast of dinner & help churn homemade Banana ice cream out back for dessert. 

Everything in the South revolves around food, and as a little girl, my eyes got as big as saucers when I showed up to anything with a table full of potatoes & pasta salads & fried chicken, it was game on. Food was comfort, but with my comfort came the almost immediate consequence of calories. I struggled with my weight from a very early age. I was an excellent swimmer & very active but for some reason, nothing that I did was ever enough to fix it. When I stopped swimming competitively sometime in early middle school, things took a turn for the worse. I fell into a massive depression & coped with lots of my feelings by eating. I got heavier and heavier and sadder and sadder because of it. 

Fast forward a few years, I’m married to my best friend, graduated from cosmetology school, and living in Columbus, GA. After years of trying to diet & start exercise routines, I decided to pursue Gastric Bypass. I realized very quickly after surgery that my issue was with my mindset, not that my body couldn’t do what I wanted it to. So, I dove head first into relearning everything I knew about food so that I could live a long healthy life with my very active husband. I fully appreciate now the way I was taught to cook growing up, but I knew that it wasn’t the healthiest to deep fry everything or cover it in butter. So, I started from scratch and retaught myself how to cook & bake, and it quickly became my favorite thing to do. 

Obviously, over the years, I’ve learned that there are no good or bad foods and that everything is okay in moderation. So instead of baking an entire batch of cookies and eating them all myself, now I have one and give the rest away. I think this practice is the root of why I do what I do today, because seeing the joy a Sea Salt Chocolate Chip cookie or a loaf of Sausage Bread brings to my friends & family filled my soul, so I did it more and more. Food quickly turned from the enemy to my love language. Looking back, it feels like the past 9 years flew by and I just woke up one day knowing how to make Beef Bourguignon, but I have realized from talking with my friends and family that I rarely give myself enough credit, and it’s taken me this long to not even perfect my skills but be confident enough to say “I could make that better” … 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Honestly, I can’t say that I ever really intended on turning my love for cooking & baking into a business. It just happened organically and that’s something that I think makes it even more special. When my husband deployed a few years ago, I decided I was going to keep myself busy (I was a stay-at-home mom) by baking for my friends during the holidays, making charcuterie boards & layer cakes. Over time word spread and I was getting referrals left and right. So, I started toying with the idea of opening my own brick & mortar business early this year and was in the process of looking for properties when I came up with Bagel Bombs, I was trying to think of a savory option I could offer amongst a sea of sweet treats and cheese, and when I took them to a few friends to try their only complaint was that I should have brought them more. So, I took a chance and posted them on Instagram and they took off like wildfire. I’d have to say the only struggle I’ve had so far has been keeping up with rapid growth (trust me, I’m not complaining about it) Everything happened so fast that I’m having to learn very quickly what and what not to do, but thankfully I’ve got an amazing support system and have met some absolutely amazing local bakers & business owners that have been kind enough to take me under their wings and offer support any time I need it. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a self-taught culinary and baking junkie. I can’t honestly say I specialize in one thing or another, but I do hold myself and my work to a very high standard. I tend to find something I want to be good at and am notorious for doing it hundreds of times until I deem it worthy enough for others to try. 

Until a few months ago I wouldn’t have said I was known for anything, in particular, maybe a really good chocolate chip cookie or the brownies I was always asked to bring to a gathering. Now, I’d say that I’m officially known as the Bagel Bomb lady, who also makes really good cookies and brownies. 

This may come as a surprise to some, obviously, I’m proud of my food. But I am actually most proud of what sets me apart. I’ve modeled my entire brand around the things that make me different because I spent a huge part of my life trying to fit in with everyone else around me. As I got older, I realized that being comfortable and confident with myself in my own skin was something to be celebrated, not hidden. I don’t really look like what most people would consider “a baker”. There’s this stigma around the profession that makes people assume if you love to bake you must love sprinkles & unicorns and the color pink. But that’s not me, and it’s definitely not what you find when you walk up to my booth at the market. I love tattoos, my favorite color is black, I love anything having to do with the occult, I study lots about poisonous plants & grow them in my garden, and I’m known amongst my family and friends as “Momma Bat” because I live for Halloween 365 days a year. I chose “The Alternative Baker” as a slogan because I want people to know I fully embrace the weird, and it’s okay to do what you love and not fit into a mold, I think people appreciate that I’m just authentically me. 

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I’m not sure honestly, I think it may be a combination of a few things. After all, every recipe calls for more than one ingredient. I’d say it’s equal parts stubbornness, creativity, & determination. I think it was my dad who told me once as a teenager not to be good at something I don’t like to do. I’m sure he was joking, but I took it to heart. I have never liked math or science, so I’ve never been very good at it because I didn’t want to do it. I enjoy creating, baking, cooking & feeding people, so I did it over and over again until I was good at it. My friends & family will confirm, once I’ve set my mind to it, I do absolutely nothing halfway. I literally never stop thinking about food. So much so that in my free time I watch the culinary greats teach Masterclass, I read cookbooks for fun, and my favorite thing to do with my family on a day off is to spend it cooking a big meal for us to share together. I think that the saying “if you do what you love you never work a day in your life” is true because I never tire of looking at or learning about food. 

Pricing:

• Bagel Bombs $7-8
• Biscuits $4
• Brownies $4
• Pub Grub $5
• Fat Boi Cookies $5

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @bitethisbyannie
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/684041405629900