Jordan Smith began her journey of providing desirable gluten-free goods from her personal experience of being diagnosed with Celiac Disease 10 years ago. Having always loved baking, she saw a need in her own life and began offering her baked pies to friends and family in 2022 after a challenge to herself to make one pie a week. She then had her first big order for Thanksgiving—quite ambitious for someone just starting this journey, and she sold out! What began as a challenge to herself grew into a working business model, and Small Comforts Kitchen was born.
Jordan grew up in TX and completed a degree in English Lit before coming to the University of Tennessee in 2019 to work on her Master’s in Library Studies, a far cry from being a small business owner and baker. She’s no stranger to the food world, however. Jordan was a food blogger for quite some time as she earned her degrees. While she had considered culinary school along the way, ultimately, she decided that the lifestyle she thought that would bring would not fit her personality. However, when she was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, she learned how to use her culinary instincts to develop flavors and textures that are safe for people like her and delicious at the same time. While she doesn’t consider herself a recipe developer, she does rely on ingredients she knows to work together well.
She does not use gluten-free grocery flours that are a one-to-one ratio substitute but instead creates her own gluten-free blends for each recipe she produces. You won’t find the same combination of flours in her hand pies as she uses in her cakes, and even those blends can vary based on what works for the recipe. She works to find a ratio of each flour to combine to make the best texture and flavor in each crust, pie and cake.
I met Jordan through her work with Real Good Kitchen, where she served as the marketing specialist while starting Small Comforts Kitchen in 2022. Jordan told me she is thankful for the mentorship and learning experience she had under Bailey Foster and the space she has been able to use at Real Good Kitchen to create her gluten-free, celiac-friendly goodies.
Jordan has been popping up at the Nourish Market’s Market Square Farmers Markets on Saturdays and went wholesale in several local shops in July 2024. (Currently, Hummingbird Café, Vienna Coffee in Maryville, Treetop Coffee, Partial Coffee, Remedy Coffee and Three Rivers Market.) The business is currently 2/3 wholesale partnerships with 1/3 market sales.
Having had such success in her pop-ups and wholesale offerings, Jordan began to look at finding a storefront that could work to make Small Comforts Kitchen rise to the next level. That opportunity has come in the form of a space formally operated by Crafty Bastard Brewing in Baker Creek Bottoms at 3726 Sevier Heights Road with some other fantastic shops we have highlighted through Inside of Knoxville. While it will take a while to outfit the space to meet her needs, she hopes to open there in the Spring of this year.
In the meantime, Jordan and her team will be hosting another pop-up event for Pi Day on March 14 at Zero Zero Wine Bar in Old City. This event will feature lots of favorites plus some creative spring flavors. She recently held her first pop-up in Baker Creek Bottoms with great success. Jordan credits her team of bakers for the ability to expand and grow like they have in the last 8 months. Her fearless team is Courtney Lazano (of Soothsayer TeaHouse), Kristin Samples, Meara Selene, and Maggie Warren.
The star items on her menu are a Blueberry Lavender hand pie and the Goodbye Earl hand pie (Benton’s country ham, strawberry jam and goat cheese). One of the things that stands out about Jordan’s pastries is her creativity and ability to combine interesting and unique flavor profiles for each one. However, if the saying “we eat with our eyes first” is to be believed, you will want one of every gorgeous item created at Small Comforts Kitchen. While she does a variety of pastries, she feels strongly about remaining a pie shop. Jordan credits Inny’s Bakery (now closed) and the previous and current owners of Donut Theory for mentoring her and helping her learn the business and how to work within a fully celiac-friendly environment.
In the midst of building her business, Jordan is also a newlywed! She married longtime partner Matt Cowen on January 13. Matt is the culinary director at KBrew Coffee. With many irons in the fire, so to speak, Jordan’s energy, passion and drive are propelling her forward both personally and professionally.
Follow Jordan and her team on social media HERE and HERE to stay up to date with markets, specials and her grand opening in the Spring!