TodayFood - Clay Coyote

September 5, 2023

Hello Today Show Folks:

I am a lifelong Today watcher. I DVR the program so that (a) I won’t miss it and (b) when I am in a hurry I can fast forward to the Today Food segments.

I own a pottery studio and art gallery in central Minnesota. We’re about to celebrate 30 years in operation. We specialize in pottery for cooking. We don’t make mugs. We have a special clay and glaze combo that allows the pot to expand and contract at the same rate, allowing them to go right on a stovetop or grill. Most pottery would crack in under a minute if you put it on a direct flame. There are only 2 other potters in the USA that specialize in pottery like this (one in Seattle-area and one in New Hampshire), we all have a slightly different aesthetic.

Our top two pots are the Grill Basket and the Tagine. We make the only handmade clay grill basket in America (maybe the world). We also make the only domestic, handmade, clay tagine designed for the stovetop (traditional in Moroccan cooking). Those two pots compete for #1 because they’re so unique.

I am sending the three of you a pot each. I would love for you to use them in your home (or at work). We have a very dedicated and passionate customer base that love cooking with clay. Our pots have been featured in cookbooks like Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking by Paula Wolfert and Cassoulet Confessions by Sylvie Bigar. Our pots have been featured in Wall Street Journal, Food & Wine, NYT, Star Trib, PBS, CBS, NBC, FOX, WGN-TV, and more. Last year, Forbes named us as a top pot for home chefs (one of 12 and only handmade to make list).

My personal goal is to someday cook with you in a Today Food segment. I cook LIVE on our local CBS Saturday morning program every couple months. I’ve loaded the car and gone down to cook live on WGN.

There is something really special about using handmade clay pottery to make homemade dishes.

There’s a traditional aspect—there’s a reason archaeological digs find so many clay cooking vessels.
There’s an authenticity to clay pot cooking—especially in African, Latin, and Asian recipes.
There are also health benefits—the pottery is nickel free and has no non-stick synthetics that have perfluorooctanoic acid which can lead to adverse health outcomes.
And lastly, they’re fun and pretty.

I appreciate your consideration.

-Morgan

PS: If the Today Food spot isn’t the right fit, we’d welcome the opportunity to work with one of your producers to do an on-location, get behind the scenes, segment like when Harry Smith checks out oyster ponds or Maya Eaglin goes on a sourdough scavenger hunt. We would show you how we make the pots in the studio from start to finish and then show you how to put them in action in a kitchen.

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