Mixing in Health

Cookies, muffins, and pancakes rarely make the top ten list for healthy eating. MAITE BOU is changing that. Bou’s company, Yummix, produces organic, gluten- and sugar-free mixes for all kinds of baked goodies.

“My main goal is to help Americans become healthier,” Bou says. “I came out with recipes for snacks, pancakes, and bread that have a healthy spin and that everyone loves.”

Bou’s journey to eating healthy food started when she developed an autoimmune disease that left her sick and drained of all energy. After Bou started eating whole, organic foods, she saw the connection between what she ate and her physical and emotional well-being. 

That didn’t mean Bou was willing to give up the foods she loved to eat. After all, she grew up surrounded by bread and pastries–she was the product of three generations of bakers. Bou also was determined to assist others who were seeking ways to feel better.

As a first step, Bou became a certified nutritionist, and she helped clients regain their health, reduce inflammation, and lose weight. But Bou wanted to reach more people than she could as a consultant and decided to enroll in culinary school.

Then she put all the information she’d gleaned–from culinary school, the time-honored baking secrets of her family, and the thousands of healthy recipes she’d studied–and started developing her own recipes for delicious gluten- and sugar-free baked goods. They were a hit with family and friends alike. 

Two months ago, Bou turned her passion into a business. By doing so, she hopes to give others the gift of healthy, fresh-baked goods and bring families together for meals.

“I want to bring people back to the kitchen, where they make healthier food, slow down, and bond with their kids,” Bou says. “My convenient mixes make it easier to do this.”

To ensure her mixes meet the highest standards, Bou spends hours researching and interrogating suppliers. As a result, her mixes have no fillers, processed oils, guams, yeast, processed flours, or hidden sugars. Bou readily admits that using only certified organic products, some of which are imported from Europe, is more expensive, but she says it’s worth it.

“Our flour costs three times more than conventional flour,” Bou says. “It’s expensive. I don’t care, because it’s about people’s health.”

Bou sells an all-purpose mix as well as mixes for cookies and muffins, pancakes and waffles, naan, and bread. However, customers can make other baked goods from the mixes such as dinner rolls, focaccia, and donuts. Bou even posts recipes and videos on her website to show them how. She also answers customers’ questions when a recipe doesn’t turn out as planned.

There’s already a high demand for the mixes. Bou had so many orders coming in during the presale, she had to shut it down, and she gets new customers every day.

For Bou, her business is her calling, and the positive feedback she gets from customers shows that she is on the right track.

“I get weekly messages from happy customers,” Bou says. “They are engaging with us, telling me they are so happy they can eat bread again and eating my cookies. This is the reason I am doing this.”

To view more of photographer Daria Amato’s work, go to dariaphoto.com

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