Meet Jodi Maria | Owner & Head Baker

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

Hi Jodi, what role has risk played in your life or career?
.“No risk, No reward” period. I haven’t risked it all for success by any means, but the struggle is real and I’ve triumphed over it in the last couple of years. In 2017 I found myself a stay at home mom who blossomed to a size 4X and became increasingly depressed. I literally decided one morning I’d had enough and had to take my life back. I began walking and, in an effort to hold myself accountable, started an Instagram account, FortWorthFatMom. Connecting with others struggling with the same issues is powerful stuff. I went platinum blond, tried out for the Fort Worth Police Department (and passed!) am heading back to college and in March 2020 started Fort Worth Cookie Gal.

What should our readers know about your business?
I’ve been a cookie enthusiast as long as I can remember and have always served as the designated cookie baker, maker and decorator for family gatherings. I’m a full time Mom and part-time baker for Sweet Lucy’s Pies. When COVID hit and events slowed it just seemed like a natural progression to bake exceptional cookies and offer home delivery to home bound families. When Fort Worth Cookie Gal began it was simply part time. Now I run a full time cookie schedule offering free delivery Thursdays and Saturday pick up at the Clearfork Farmers Market. Starting my own business has had its rocky moments. Sometimes not all my product makes it to the oven and that hurts. I learned to let go of the things I can’t control when I had to toss out 500 lemon sugar cookies that just weren’t up to my standards. Not everything will turn our perfect and that is ok. Remake and move on is what I tell myself. I think what sets me apart are the amazing whoopie pies I make and our unique flavors like whiskey soaked raisin carrot cake whoopie pies to spicy gingersnap cookies with a smear of cranberry orange buttercream. It still makes my day when someone takes the time to message me once they have tasted a cookie to let me know how great it was. Just reassuring to me I must be doing something right.

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?
So many great places in the area! Where do I even begin. I’ll start with where I would eat. A few breakfast places to definitely not miss are Hot Box Biscuit Club and order the Hottie, Pearl Snap Kolaches for some out of this world breakfast tacos and FunkyTown Donuts and Drafts for any of their donuts and a mimosa while walking around downtown Fort Worth. For lunch I would head over to Coco Shrimp for some shrimp tacos that are life changing with a side, of what I call, crack rice, Kincaid’s Hamburgers for a Cowtown burger that’s topped with pimento cheese or Reata for a bowl of chicken tortilla soup that will warm your soul. For dinner I would head out to Waters Restaurant but go a little early because they have one of my favorite happy hours in the area with chilled glass of rose and a pile of oysters. If we are feeling takeout there is a small hidden gem on the outskirts of Fort Worth called Hongthong Kitchen that makes an amazing Pad See Ew. Last but certainly not least is my all time favorite place to eat in all of DFW, Ellerbe Fine Foods. Their menu rotates with the season but everything they make is my favorite. For drinks I would head to Ye Olde Bull and Bush, Thompson’s Bookstore or Cowtown Brewing Co. My top things to do would include heading to the Fort Worth Zoo and ride the train, take a cooking class at the Cookery Fort Worth or head to Trinity Park for kayaking.

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?
Major shoutout to Sweet Lucy’s Pies and owner Lindsey Lawing. I have worked with Lindsey since she opened and being a Sweet Lucy’s baker has been a huge boost for me as I’m able to cross promote with SLP’s already established audience. A few others that pushed me along the way would have to include Sarah Hooton with Hot Box Biscuit Club who had shared endless posts of mine and Wade Chappell of Pearl Snap Kolaches for always lending me a place to bake.

Website: www.sweetlucyyspies.com
Instagram: Fortworthcookiegal