Jessica and Paul Carrington say their new business, “Bread + Bones,” is both a passion project and a response to the drastic changes in the food service industry last year.

Before moving to Sandpoint in the fall, the couple and their two sons were living in Seattle running a catering company, Black Caviar Catering, and working backstage for various music venues.

After spending years cooking for rock stars and later as a backstage caterer, Paul says everything changed last year when COVID-19 shut down live entertainment.

“We plodded along, we tried to pivot, we did this, and we did that, and did a great deal of work until we sort of hit something that we really are passionate about,” he says.

The company is still licensed for catering, Jessica says, but now the couple is also focusing on their latest project: Selling Pauls’ broth and sourdough bread.

Paul is the chef, Jessica says, and she runs the business end of the company. Bread + Bones officially launched in February 2020 and is now carried in several local stores including Winter Ridge Natural Foods in Sandpoint, Pilgrim’s Market in Coeur d’Alene and Huckleberry's Natural Market and My Fresh Basket in Spokane.

The company is still expanding, Jessica says, and is working to expand shipping options on their website. They’ve also been working to gain traction locally and through their social media accounts on Instagram and Facebook.

So far, she says, the company has 1,000 pre-orders shipping nationwide, offering organic chicken, beef and vegan broth.

“For a long time we tried everything out there. All the frozen ones, all the shelf-stable ones, and they just taste like watered down,” Jessica says. “My husband's broth is like today, you can swim in it. It's just amazing. And so people are noticing.”

The philosophy of the company is to take things down to the bare essentials, Paul says. Bones would usually be considered a byproduct, and the sourdough he makes is just water and flour. But by combining the ingredients in the right way, he says, he’s able to create something “magical.”

“We get such great nutrient value and, you know, in a fantastic meal and a base to create so many other meals,” he says.

The couple is currently working to build a commercial commissary at a new location on Highway 95. The long-term goal, Jessica says, is to have small Bread + Bone cafes.

In the immediate future, the couple is looking at the possibility of hosting cooking classes taught by Paul, and have floated the idea of a themed Italian pasta night for couples and other cooking classes.

Recently, Paul did an instructional video on Instagram’s IGTV for how to take care of a sourdough starter. They also have plans to create a step-by-step video on how to bake a sourdough loaf that will be on their website.

“Sourdough can sort of intimidate people,” Paul says. “You have to figure out how to execute it through practice and repetition. We're going to also show people how they can make their own bread. Making bread, the process is easy, right? [But] There's a lot of little steps involved. And those little steps are where people get tripped up and confused.”

The two are incredibly excited to delve into their new project, Paul says.

“We love working, and we love creating something that we're really passionate about,” he says. “We have a new kitchen and new space and the commissary where we'll be able to produce fulfill all of our orders for the bread and the broth. And that's just the very beginning.”