A Message From The Founder

My alarm has been ringing since 5:15am. It’s now 6:00am and I am officially behind schedule. I swig my mouth with mouthwash, throw my hair in a clip, hastily slide on leggings and a t-shirt, and am out the door. Thankfully, I packed the sixteen 5-gallon buckets, waders, and purple beach cart in my car the night before. I’m headed to First Ave to collect 160 gallons of fresh seawater.

Usually when I get to the beautiful shoreline of Asbury Park, I take a few moments to pause, to drink up the salty air and see if I can spot any whales or dolphins showing off in the distance. But not today. I need to get back to the Asbury Park Food Collective by 8:00am if I have any hope of filtering half of today’s sea water before I need to get home to relieve my husband from Dad Duty so he can go to work.

I draw a quick symbol of gratitude in the sand and rush back to my car with four of the sixteen buckets in tow (it takes four trips!), shouting several “no thank you’s!” to the kind beach goers who ask if I need a hand. I give a quick wave to Rob at the Department of Public Works who’s always working hard to make sure the boardwalk is ready for the day, and am off on my merry way.

I unload my car at the Asbury Park Food Collective, hose off the sandy buckets, grab a cart to wheel them inside through the warehouse door, and begin to run half the day’s haul through my portable Reverse Osmosis machine (five times). It should take three hours exactly, which means I’ll only be home five minutes late. Tim, my husband, can be five minutes late to work today, I decide.

I jot down a few notes for Kim and Matt who will be coming by later to keep the salt production moving while I’m on Mom Duty, and hop in my car. I cross my fingers for only green lights, hold in my Jersey Girl road rage, arrive home, run up the steps, and greet my husband who is tying his shoes so he can run out the door. We are in a 24 hour relay race together, except the baton happens to be our adorable but very rambunctious toddler.

Luckily, my son is ready for a nap. I give him some milk, turn on the sound machine, hum “You Are My Sunshine” three times, and lay him down in his crib. Out like a light.

It’s nearly noon and I haven’t eaten anything today yet. Thankfully, I was working the Asbury Park Sea Salt table at the Asbury Fresh Farmer’s Market yesterday and picked up some goodies from other local vendors in between serving my own customers. I cut a slice of bread from a baguette from Jersey Artisan Cafe, layered it with a little mayonnaise, sliced cherry tomatoes from Morton Gardens, fresh basil from the pot on my balcony courtesy of my mother in law, and of course, Asbury Park Flake Sea Salt. I sit down on my couch, and take a bite.

For the first time today, I am still. It is an involuntary reaction to the burst of flavors fully captivating my taste buds, but so gratefully welcomed. The flake sea salt has pulled the juices and sweetness from the tomato, and drawn out the floral notes of the basil. The flavor is savory, deep, and rich. It tastes like summer. I close my eyes and let out a reflexive “mmm” as I slowly chew and savor this very special moment.

As the founder of Asbury Park Sea Salt, I often wish I could embody and share with you a Martha Stewart-esque lifestyle, filled with beautiful tablescapes and intricate and creative sea salt pairings, but that’s not my reality. Although I am inspired by those creations, and have way too many posts saved on my instagram “recipes” folder, the truth is that we only need a few simple but high quality ingredients to have those world stopping culinary experiences everyday.

Asbury Park Sea Salt is one of those ingredients. Despite an inevitable rush on some of my morning hauls, my team and I are meticulous about quality. We harvest, sort, and jar all flakes by hand in small batches to preserve the delicate crystal texture. We pick out any clumps that are not up to our flaky standards and reboil them. We share notes on any conditions that affect the texture, like humidity, and adjust our dehydrator settings to accommodate. A handwritten note on our white board reads, “I love salt!” and we truly do.

Not only is this sea salt special because of where it comes from and how it’s made, but because of the actual composition of the delicate but gently crunchy sea salt flakes that deepen the flavor of whatever you put it on. It’s magical.

What’s your favorite food? Cookies? Brownies? Ice cream? Try it finished with flake sea salt and you’ll experience a richer, sweeter flavor. How about fresh seasonal produce? Top with olive oil and flake sea salt and experience the blooming of flavors with every bite. Or try it on pasta, salad, meat, fish, eggs, oatmeal and see how it makes you feel. Have you ever had a banana with peanut butter and flake sea salt? It’s out of this world. My nieces and nephews can’t have their PB&J without their Asbury Park Sea Salt!

I understand that we live in a busy world, and that there’s not always time to make deliciously elaborate meals. But, it is my greatest desire that you’ll discover that throughout all of life’s chaos, all you need to do is sprinkle a pinch of Asbury Park Sea Salt on a simple dish, and you’ll have found a moment to savor. 

You deserve it.

Enjoy,

Danielle Hickson

Founder, Asbury Park Sea Salt