Hi Nicole, 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.

My husband and I left our home in Canada with our 2 younger kids to start a new life here in the Florida. We had left due to a big change of events in our life and decided to start over from scratch. After being in healing and health care for many years, I really had to find out who I was and what I was going to do with my new life. I was always very creative with food, flowers, and writing. I connected with food and its beauty when I met my husband’s mother. She was a fabulous cook and baker. Her background was European, and her food was always amazing! Later on down the road I loved the days that I could cook&bake for my family. We had a lot of farms in the area, and I always tried to get fresh ingredients whenever we could. 

Being in Florida opened my eyes to all the wonderful fresh farm ingredients and more. 

After a few years here, we found a house, and I started to settle down. Then I began my new adventure in food. Baking & cooking have always been very cathartic for me. 

I started taking photos with my phone and showing people my food pics. I had a few people ask me if I had a bakery open somewhere. I laughed to myself (really) haahaalol! 

I have learned to take myself more seriously and just started learning more with my DSLR camera, and the wonderful Macro lens hubby bought me. (Who is also a photographer in Real-estate) 

A friend of mine had suggested I start a food blog, so I did! Then I decided I would dedicate it to “Artisan food” and use the wonderful flavors and abundance of local fresh foods of the area. If I could create something from someone’s fresh veggies, fruit or fresh local fish markets, I would do it and start trying to connect with them and show them how their beautiful food looks with one of my recipes, plated beautifully and in front of my camera! I thought it would be a great way to help out the local markets etc. Also, a great place to meet new people that are like-minded. 

I am still always working on my food, photography, and blog. I am working on a plan to turn this into a business where I can help others and do what I love! 

For anyone who has been through any kind of grief, I would strongly recommend getting creative!!! I was told once, ” If you follow your heart, it will take you places! So please follow me at https://www.thetarnishedapple.com/ 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Some of the struggles that I have fought with is taking myself seriously and not being afraid to put myself out there. I admit I am still working on it. I was always nervous approaching people and telling them about myself, and I am still working on that too. But It’s perfectly human. This whole thing has help me become more comfortable with myself and is part of my life’s process. 

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Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

I have always been working hard with people in general with healthcare and holistic healing with women in need (for many years). Here in Florida, I have worked in Retail in merchandizing (again with people). I would say I am very good with people skills that I have learned over the years. which I have to say I am proud of. My creative spark in food and photography is what a lot of people around me know me for. They know me as a good cook and baker and how I love to share my love my food! I know I have always been unique in my flair for food, artistic creation on stylizing, and photography. I know there is always room for improvement! That there is always a learning opportunity in what I do. 

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
That I am a healer, Reiki Master, and survivor! I love to empower women when the opportunity arises. 

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nicole Martineau a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nicole, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

If anyone would have told me when I was 20 years old that my life’s path was going to have some major upheavals along the way I would have never believed it. Everything seems so simple when you’re young, and naïve to what goes on in the real world. This is because we are on a pathway to life experience and sometimes you have to tumble to find you’re way. It’s our right to passage but what we don’t realize is that those direction changes and sudden upheavals help us to grow in spirit and in strength. You become more resilient. You never know where life is going to take you! I was raised with good old fashioned values. My mother & father were raised in England and brought up with an stern yet loving approach to life.
We had moved to Canada when I was just a little one, and grew from there. I was always the smallest in the class and at times I was bullied. As much as I hated it, I some how always found a way to bounce back and keep going.
If it’s not what life has in store for you that challenges you it is also ,the spirit within you that grows and makes you who you are.
I had two other siblings, a brother and a baby sister. We travelled throughout the U.S.A. as a family and spent a lot of old fashioned quality time together.
As you all get older things change, you go to school, you grow up and don’t realize how precious life is, until we are all grown and doing our own thing. Life changes when you find yourself trying to support you parents with a sudden loss of a child. Their baby who was 21 and supposed to have a full life ahead of her. You are now planning her funeral instead of her graduation from college or wedding to the love of her life. Grief is not an easy road to travel and we all do it in our own way. Our lives would never be the same again, it changed everything that we knew, Through grief and trauma you learn a lot about yourself, your family and the ones you’re closest to. It also humbles you, and you become more aware of the people who are important to you.

My husband and I were raising a young family and I was working in Healthcare for the elderly and doing holistic, energy work with women.
Later on in life as our little family was growing, we had just moved into our dream house in the country, or so we thought. We were so happy. Life was good again, or so I thought. Being in the country you would think it would safe. Soon to find out that my 4 year old and myself were at the mercy of a very violent offender.
We survived the attack, I protected my baby and took the brunt of it to protect my family. As a mama bear does.
I woke up in the hospital with wounds and burns to my body. I was in a medicated coma for a while then eventually came out of it.
When I woke up I was told we didn’t have a house anymore, the violent offender had burned it down. We had lost everything, but we had our lives and our family. You soon learn what’s really important. All that other stuff that we lost in the fire could be replaced, our lives could not.
My family and I moved on but it would take a while to heal myself and find peace again after I found a therapist to help me. I had suffered with PTSD. I had some EMDR and Spot Therapy to help me with my nightmares and blackouts. This stuff is amazing. I would suggest to anyone going through PTSD to have this done. It truly is a lifesaver.
We eventually moved to the U.S.A and started fresh here in Florida. They say if it doesn’t kill you it makes you stronger. It certainly did. This is where my resilience has come from. It is called survival. As far as I am concerned I am a survivor and very resilient because of the grief and trauma I have had to go through.
Starting fresh and finding you’re passion again is great and I am truly thankful to be where I am today.

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Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My food journey started in England, then it takes me to Canada, Belgium, Asia and then across to the U.S.A.
I was born in England, the land of the scones & clotted cream. In fact, one my earlier childhood airplane
memories back to England was when I was served a scone with clotted cream with jam. I was hooked!
Even though my family was now in Canada, we would visit family in England quite frequently. I was
raised on watercress sandwiches, and tea time was several times a day. I cannot have a cup of tea
without a biscuit or two, till this day!
Sunday dinner memories were the whole family around the table with a leg of lamb, dressed with
roasted potatoes and gravy with my dad’s Yorkshire pudding. He still makes the best Yorkshire Pudding
ever. I was raised on British food and desserts, like English Trifle.
I grew up in Canada where I met my husband and his family. After being stuck at his home in a snowstorm for
the night, I was served caramel pecan pie, cream puffs and beautiful pastries for breakfast (the Belgium
breakfast). My love for food grew even more from there. I cannot forget those Belgium waffles either,
which I do make today with his family’s recipe.
My focus has always been my family and the good values around them. We travelled to Asia to adopt
our beautiful daughter. This also expanded my love for different foods.
This was the next step in my food and healing journey and when I started to really appreciate different
food cultures.
Next stop, Florida, we are so blessed! Florida farmers grow an abundant amount of great strawberries
and other local produce.
With all of this said, my intentions are to focus on my recipes with the freshest local ingredients. I thinks it’s important to showcase what foods are made here or grown local. The Saturday Morning Markets in Florida are a great place to start and are fun to go to. I can check out what’s in season to use in my cooking. After I come up with a recipe with something fresh and local from the markets, I will post it on my website. I usually tag the person or company in which
their product is used and try to email them. It could be local wine to fresh caught fish to any other product. This is who I am and how I create what I am doing. I take pride of the food and the presentation of the food that I share.
I love to use some of our old family recipes, then create new ones. I like to play with my flavors and
ingredients until I find what I want. I have lots of family and friends that like the samples!
I also throw in a little table scaping too, around the holidays especially.

I started my webpage to showcase what I am passionate about. There’s alot of us out there and it’s great to share the love. This is an adventure for my soul.
A cookbook in the future may be in the works too.
My website is called, The Tarnished Apple. Please check it out!
Reels are big right now which you may see some of my photos. Please follow me at:
https://www.facebook.com/tarnishedapple
https://www.instagram.com/thetarnishedapple/
https://www.threads.net/@thetarnishedapple
Would like to shoot some food videos. Although I am a little camera shy, its coming! As I call it; work
in progress!
Whatever dish I am creating, tasting, and shooting it has to be pretty, and delish! or as I say Tarnished
Apple worthy. If not, it doesn’t make the cut!

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If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

When I met my husband, I started learning more about the food that my husband grew up with. His family’s style of cooking and baking was very European with a mixture of Danish. and Belgium. There
were always beautiful pies, cookies and pastries coming out of that kitchen. I was very interested in
learning how to cook like that! This was very impactful for me at this time in my life.
As a young and blooming family, we had moved to a quaint little town in Ontario, Canada. We had a
local meet up group with other young moms & tots. We were taught how to do different food creations
in the kitchen. We did crafts and made chocolates and other interesting food projects. This was a
growing moment for me.
It taught me about the farms in the area and how they worked. Growing seasons and what produce was
available and when. I canned cucumbers, made berry jams, and baked. My love for food and farm fresh
veggies started to grow.
It taught me how to get to know my community better and learn more about family values. The importance of
nurturing your children with good eating habits and real food.
I had worked in a local Retirement facility caring for the residents then I decided to leave the floor with
the residents and do what I love even more, work in the kitchen.
One of the ladies there, taught me how to make really good pie crusts, and other delicious foods. It
taught me how to cook for many people and their different diets. Although I do not have a restaurant,
nor do I want one, I sure respect what they do from cooking to serving.
I worked nights and did food prep and baked muffins and other goodies for the morning. It was quiet
and was very calming and fed my soul.
These were great learning moments for me and helped me to better my cooking skills and knowledge.
Of course, today there is the Food Network and the internet which also has great information and shows
different techniques as well.

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Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?

There have been a few people that have helped me to move forward and build and develop my skills as a foodie and Photographer. My husband’s encouragement, love and dedication has helped greatly. His experience as a photographer and videographer helped me and encouraged me with my photos. In fact he took my phone away and gave me a camera in stead (lol). He saw how good my pictures were on the phone and wanted to see what I would do with a camera in hand. He took my photos to his photography club and the positive feed back really helped. So this has helped me with my camera work and food creations and more.

Family and friends have totally encouraged me with my food & photos. They share them and show their friends. Food has always been a part of our life. It really does bring people together and closer. When the kids were small we lived in small town Ontario where there were vegetable farms and other farms in the area. There were always fresh farm stands in the spring, summer and fall selling their wares. I learned a lot from this pretty little farm town. I like the values it bought to my life. It helped me to appreciate how fresh produce is grown and the hard work that goes into it.

In my earlier younger years I did energy work with women , I always had teachers to help guide me. My Spiritual teachers have taught me grace, and it has helped me to understand when you get stuck or hit a wall it’s time to work on yourself again, and there is nothing wrong with that. It means more quiet walks, meditation, talking to someone you trust and journaling. Perhaps its working out at the gym or dance class, but for me baking and cooking soothes my soul and is very nurturing to me. It always has been and always will be. So be creative and do what feeds you’re soul.

Thank you for reading!