Rising Stars: Meet Mary Beth Chasen of LONGMONT

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Beth Chasen.

Hi Mary Beth, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
The day after Halloween in 1985, my coworker friend and I happily took home unsold harvest fruits while visiting a local pumpkin patch. It was then equally decided that now was the time to learn to bake our own pumpkins for homemade pumpkin bread and other delicious treats for our families and friends.
Fast forward to 2012, when the Colorado Cottage Foods Act was voted into regulation. The Act allows us to make and bake in our home kitchen and sell our products. It was afterward that I sought to find ways to pay off student loan debt and decided to begin selling pumpkin bread and other Autumn and Holiday flavors. In 2014, I became food-safety certified.
Through the years, I began selling bread to friends and coworkers, and asking what they liked or didn’t about the loaves. I have created my own custom recipes using beers in support of local Longmont Breweries. One recipe uses home-tapped and processed maple syrup from a producer in Pennsylvania. I try to include products made by other home producers as much as I can.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I began opening accounts on social networks while also placing my home business on Google Maps. I have built my website twice. I have learned so much about website building that I have added it to my work resume for my day job. Autumn and Winter Holidays are my busiest time of year with the flavors of pumpkin spice and gingerbread being in demand. You can have those flavors here all year long.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Marketing is a full-time job in and of itself. If you do not stay on it, people forget about your products. I have explored various ways to showcase my bread, including local Chamber events, high school symphony performances, and charity auctions. I have taken samples to the local breweries whose stouts are used in my breads. As well, I have perused Longmont events handing out samples with QR codes on the labels, enticing recipients to give their survey for the recipe they have received. Yes, I design and print all my labels as well. I am grateful for the knowledge base I have built over time, where I can design and create my own professional look.

When I have a new or improved recipe, I like entering my breads in the Boulder County Fair just to get blind opinions on my recipes. I have been a fanatic for the baking exhibits at the fair since I was six years old, when I won my first blue ribbon for artwork.

I have hosted sampling events at my home, inviting other cottage food bakers to show off their products. The sampling show was advertised everywhere I could find for free. It was almost a complete flop, but for one couple who made a 20-mile drive all the way from Loveland, CO, to sample our products. That made it worth most all our efforts.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Being a Cottage Foods Baker is simply my hobby turned into a side gig to have extra funds to do fun things. I do hold a day job 5 days a week, but cottage foods baking is my weekend passion. I enjoy experimenting with new ingredients and flavors so my products will stand out among the crowd. I take online orders via my website.

My produce specialties are original recipe breads. The most popular Fall flavors, such as Spiced Pumpkin with Cherries and Dark Stout Gingerbread, set my breads apart from the ordinary flavors in your cookbooks. I try to use local and/or organic ingredients whenever they are available. These ingredients and the high-quality spices are the best I can find for my flavors, equivalent to what you would buy if you were baking these recipes yourself. I am very pleased with my original flavors, especially when they can be rewarded with a ribbon at the county fair or a positive sampling survey.

My business was featured in 2021 in the Longmont Leader. Then, my website link was published twice by the Boulder Weekly’s food critic, John Lehndorff, in both 2023 and 2025. To me, that is a major accomplishment to be proud of.

What was your favorite childhood memory?
My favorite childhood memory is being “lost” in Disneyland at 9 years old. I was merely separated from my adults, but I had the wherewithal to enjoy the moment on my own, knowing I would meet up with them at a set time later.

Pricing:

• $10 Mainstay Items – are always on the menu
• $11 Stout Varieties – available when breweries have flavors in stock
• $8 Bialys – Baker’s half dozen, $15 Baker’s dozen
• $23 Colorful Braided Loaf – available in many colorful palette options for your event

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ovenspringkitchen.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marybeth_ovenspring_kitchen
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OvenSpringKitchen/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-e-chasen-80504/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/oven-spring-home-kitchen-longmont

Image Credits
Craig Chasen; Mary Beth Chasen