DADE CITY, Fla. — Mary Katherine Saughter is a natural when it comes to selling her shortbreads at Lanky Lassie's Shortbread in Dade City.
She's had some time to perfect her great-grandmother's recipe that has been passed down from generation to generation.
"She used to teach my mom how to make it and then my mom taught me and then I used to make it for my hotel owners for Christmas," Saughter said.
She's been selling her shortbreads with unique flavors for 10 years online.
It wasn't until the pandemic she had to switch gears.
"Last April I was furloughed because our sales in our company dropped 88% from January to March and so I have never been furloughed with no pay," Saughter said.
So, as she cleverly put it, she started baking for bucks.
The holidays gave her business a boost and in May she opened her brick and mortar location in downtown Dade City.
In keeping things all in the family she's even putting her niece to work.
"It has been fun, scary and the support of our community is awesome. I love it," Saughter said.
Inside Saughter's quaint shop the walls are filled with butter puns and flashes of pink but don't let this former marine who fought in the battle of Nasiriyah in Iraq fool you.
She's holding her own in a new world she's learning to navigate.
For more information about Lanky Lassie's Shortbread visit Saughter's website or Facebook.
