We had the good fortune of connecting with Florence Jackson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Florence, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Taking risks in my career has led me to where I am now! I used to work in a corporate job, where risk taking was what led to me working in three different countries and getting promoted younger than average. But the real risk taking was starting a social media page, then a website – all managed by me. Putting yourself out there in front of people is initially scary, especially when you’re putting something creative out. I was constantly thinking, ‘what if someone makes a recipe and hates it?’. This was true for writing my cookbook too, letting myself be at the mercy of critics and online reviews. I wrote my cookbook while in a full time job, and making time for that level of work on top of the regular social media work was a real struggle and required lots of sacrifices. The biggest risk was stepping away from my day job to pursue this full time, and so far it’s worked out really well. I think calculated risks are a part of normal life, but leaps of faith with little to guide you are when you really see yourself and your potential.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My background is in PR, and I was a business major in college. I grew up in the UK and studied in London and thought I’d always pursue a professional ‘big girl’ career. Never would I have expected to pivot so massively into baking for the internet! I think my ‘unique selling point’ would be how approachable my bakes are. Really anyone can pick up a recipe in my book or on my website and give it a go without feeling too flustered at a million steps. There are no complicated steps, hard to find ingredients or expensive equipment needed. This has always been the most important thing to me: how can we remove the barriers that stop people from wanting to bake? I have a history of disordered eating, that I’ve left far behind me, but baking was the thing that truly helped. I realized I could bake for the office, and I wouldn’t have any idea how many calories were in it, but I’d have to try it before I offered any to colleagues or friends! The baking content creation/website space is already inundated with people. It definitely wasn’t easy to grow my page or my website views, and it took an abundance of patience and research and flat out effort to get here! About a year in of having my page, I knew I would one day want it to be my full time job, so I put in the hours – after work, weekends, late nights spent researching website development and SEO to help me make money from baking – which is ultimately all I wanted!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I LOVE this question as we have had family and friends visit from the UK so we do have a few ‘must do’s’. Let’s take a look at what a week might look like, assuming we’re in late Spring/early Summer: Day 1: Take the roof of the Jeep, go for a drive to a TexMex place for some patio margaritas and queso. We’re big fans of Ninfa’s or Los Tios for something casual.
Day 2: Catch some sun by the pool before heading out to one of our favorite places: Lake Houston. Load the fishing rods up, take the cooler and head home to grill up whatever we caught.
Day 3: Brunch at Cuchara, Traveler’s Table or Citizens of Montrose. Then see if anything fun is on at Buffalo Bayou Park or Discovery Green – we love the Jazzy Sunday sessions! For dinner, it’s got to be BBQ at Pinkerton’s. Be warned, you’ll be ruined for any other BBQ place for life!
Day 4: You can’t come to Houston without heading to an Astro’s game! Get those nosebleed tickets, pick up a Marg from El Tiempo and enjoy the game. If we’re feeling like a late one, head over to Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar.
Day 5: Likewise, you’re in Space City – let’s head over to Space Center Houston and spend the day checking out the rockets and all the displays. If there’s time and you don’t mind a drive, take a little detour to the Buc-ees nearby. Wrap up the day with dinner at Truluck’s or Brenner’s on the Bayou.
Day 6: Walk around Houston Zoo. Then prepare for the evening: dinner at Nancy’s Hustle is my BIGGEST recommendation in Houston. It was our dinner after we got married at the courthouse and has won a James Beard award (maybe several?). Hop into a taxi for some drinks: Lost & Found, Julep, or Anvil!
Day 7: Pick up some baked goods at Koffeteria or Ema HTX. If there’s time, head to Marriott’s Rooftop pool and Texas shaped lazy river!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people who have helped guide me through my journey, but the biggest influence and support has been my husband, Ian. He is my biggest cheerleader – we joke that he is the chief taste tester, but he is so much more. So much goes on behind the scenes when writing a cookbook or taking a jump away from a full time job, and he was the first one to push for me to do these things! Simply, I wouldn’t have gotten this far without him by my side!

Website: https://tasting-thyme.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tasting.thyme/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tasting.thyme1/

Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tastingthyme1

Image Credits
Photography: Maja Smend

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutHTX is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.