Meet Stacie Archer | Founder

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

Hi Stacie, what principle do you value most?
I value the opportunity to give back for all that I have been blessed with in my life. My biggest blessing is my family. Spending time with them is limited. I guess that’s why I have made it a point to have dinner together as much as possible. It’s a routine that grounds us as a family. There is a quote I once heard and believe in wholeheartedly. “A strong family has well worn seats at the dinner table.”

What should our readers know about your business?
As a single mom of three young kids, life can get chaotic. But no matter what was happening I knew one thing was for certain, that every weeknight I’d find a way to make a homemade dinner and sit down at the table with my kids to talk about their day.

It wasn’t easy, but it was worth it. Cooking for my family was a way for them to “taste my love”. I learned some short cuts to get dinner on the table fast. We had no time to waste! I learned how to budget for groceries. I learned how to use leftovers to create a different dinner the next night that the kids wouldn’t even recognize as leftovers.

In 2016, I started a food blog to share my recipes and cooking tips. It took off and before long I found myself as a guest on The Rachael Ray Show. The popularity of my blog led me to write a few cookbooks and then in 2020 I decided to take all of my experience to Camillus House and set up a charity program to work with young families living in permanent supportive housing. It’s been three years and we have taught 36 classes and distributed over 1,500 meal kits.

In 2023 my partner, Chef Norman Van Aken, and I started our own non-profit called Get Cooking. With the help of several esteemed guest chefs, each month we are teaching low income families living in Orlando basic cooking skills so they can feed a family of four a healthy dinner for under $20. It’s an interactive streaming class so the families can cook in “real time” with us. During our time teaching, we make a point to give tips on budgeting, nutrition and reducing food waste.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Miami has so many great restaurants. It really has become one of the best dining scenes in the country. When I have friends in town, we like to explore Wynwood. There is so much energy in this part of Miami. Our favorite restaurants here are Michael’s Genuine for brunch, MaryGold’s for martinis and crude and Kush for a great burger.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I credit my partner and friend, Norman Van Aken. He is the only Florida Chef to be named on James Beard “Who’s Who” list, yet he is the most humble, giving man who wants to share his talents in a way that lifts other people up. His eagerness to take on this endeavor with me to teach cooking classes to those who have very little resources but a desire to live rich, meaningful lives is what inspires me to move forward with our cause.

Website: www.getcooking.org

Instagram: @get.cooking.org

Linkedin: @stacie-archer

Facebook: @getcooking