About Us

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My parents first fell in love with the Sonoran Desert when visiting a close childhood friend of my fathers. It was the old west and very different from the busy streets of Chicago where they were all originally from. In 1974, with the push of an ultimatum from my father, my parents daringly moved to the small town of Tucson in pursuit of a new, more free, and adventurous life. It took a lot of courage and a lot of trust that everything would work out.

My mother who was pursuing a career in the health care industry at the time had a difficult time being away from her family, and friends. She was homesick & often contemplated returning back to the Midwest. However, she then began redefining how she saw herself, what was important to her, and therefore her beliefs overall had shifted. Maybe it was starting a family, maybe it was the laid-back vibe of the desert, or maybe it was the colorful Tucson mountain sunsets in their back yard, but she was inspired to be a different version of herself. 

As fate would have it, my parents would come across an old cowboys’ recipe for a delicious salsa he shared with them as something he enjoyed making and eating. Coming from Chicago, and little Italy as their last home, food was the very fabric of life so it was without reluctance, my parents immediately gravitated toward these amazing flavors. My mother became obsessed with developing her own version of this recipe. She and my dad added new ingredients and modified it into a fresh, chunky, & flavorful one of a kind salsa. That salsa became a part of my family’s everyday culinary life. One holiday season when money was very tight, my mother made a large batch of her special salsa on her kitchen counter and gave it out as gifts that year to their friends. Everyone they gave it to was excited to receive this labor love which was no surprise. What was not expected was that those same people wanted to know how soon they could buy more just a few days later. With my family’s encouragement, a passion for food, and the unsatisfied palates of my parent’s friends who were now out of salsa, my mother created and introduced the country’s FIRST bottled gourmet salsa in 1976. Her original medium blend was a unique fusion of Italian and Hispanic flavors. It was chunky, flavorful, and just the right mix of sweet and hot. It became a standard of the industry and a benchmark for all gourmet salsas to follow. My mother’s business grew steadily over the years to follow and eventually gave way to new products.

In the early ’80s from a very dear friend’s Italian grandmother, an original giardiniera like the recipe was shared with my parents. Variations of it dated back generations to the old country in Italy. Like her original medium salsa, the flavors from this topping jumped off the plate like fireworks for the mouth. This recipe was given to my mother, then refined, enhanced & added to her existing product line. Most people had never really seen anything quite like it. Instantly loved by all who enjoy spicy foods, which were a lot less popular during this time, my mom’s product went on to win international awards at the industry’s largest gourmet food shows in the mid 1980s. Simply referred to as the “peppers” by those who had the good fortune to know of them, they were beloved. Like my mother, her product line was colorful, vibrant, full of life, and good for you. Her company went on to be a success for many years to follow, but to know my mother, you knew that her family, friends, as well as what went on her kitchen table remained to be what mattered most to her.

In 1993 my mother eventually lost her 2nd courageous battle with cancer. A devastating blow to her friends, family, & her company. The loss was unimaginable. Her courage, her passion, her generosity, and her vibrance still resonate with those who knew her to this very day. 

We kept my mom alive in in our hearts in many ways. One of them was getting our family together in the same kitchen she made her 1st large batch of salsa for the holidays in, and make a batch of “the peppers”. Slightly modified from the original, this product is not an easy one to make. It takes a lot of time, care, and patience, but one thing that remained, we continued to give it out as gifts to people in our lives, not to mention, always keeping it on our table when it is time to eat. 

Knowing the world deserves to have peppers with their pizza too,  we launched EPIC Foods Company to share the LOVE.
 

Inspired by my mother's legacy, our family, and friends, we have decided to introduce a new version of her decorated Italian peppers to the world. Because we share a passion for amazing food like the peppers, and more importantly, because our favorite place to be is at the kitchen table, we are introducing you to our gourmet “Table Peppers”

As a tribute to my mother, the Table Peppers offer a mouthwatering healthy array of flavors as well as the culinary excitment she was known to share with all who knew her. We bring this to you in every bite of this one of a kind small batch food enhancer. 

So, From our family to yours…Thank you