Welcome, Ellie Skochdopole!

The Gardenuity team has grown again!

Meet Ellie Skochdopole, the newest member of the Gardenuity crew. Ellie runs a marketing firm that specializes in digital content creation. She will be producing fresh new blogs posts, newsletter content, and more for us. 

Name: Ellie Skochdopole

Current Town: Dallas, TX

What makes you excited to work with Gardenuity?

Everything about Gardenuity drew me to it, really! My company, SKOCH Strategies, works with what I call “creatively-minded businesses,” and Gardenuity is basically the dictionary definition of creatively-minded. They have such an incredible mission statement and this amazing staff that brings it to life. The way that they have taken something that seemed so inaccessible and made it not only easy, but fun and dynamic and rewarding–it’s really inspiring. 

Tell us about your gardening journey.

I am not what you call a gardener by any means. I have received a lot of flack from my friends and family about just how terrible I am at growing plants. I had on my balcony, for years, terra cotta pots with dead sticks planted into bone-dry soil. I was so bad at gardening, I didn’t even know how to dispose of plant corpses. 

That all changed with Gardenuity. I actually, for the first time in my life, was able to start cooking with plants that I grew myself. I am going to go into more detail about my specific Gardenuity journey in a later blog, but to say that it changed the game for me would be an understatement. 

What’s your favorite thing to grow?

I grew the most beautiful mint this spring. It was super rainy in Dallas for about six weeks, and my mint just drank it up. It sort of climbed up the railings of my balcony and was so enticing. I would cut off huge stems of it to put in water and tea. There’s really nothing more refreshing than a giant glass of water with a little lemon and a ton of fresh mint. 

Do you cook? What do you like to make with what you grow?

I love to cook. I have a whole series on my Instagram that I call “Barefoot Contellie,” and I make all sorts of things. Herbs are super important to my cooking, not just for flavor and finesse, but also for the amazing health benefits they provide. 

One of my favorite things to do with herbs is to make my spin on a simple gremolata. I mince fresh flat leaf parsley, basil, mint and chives, then combine them with a little olive oil, some lemon juice and zest, garlic and coarsely chopped pistachios or marcona almonds. It’s just a little something that really takes dishes over the top. I love to have it over charred cauliflower, salmon, roast chicken, really anything. 

Fast Facts:

Favorite Food: peanut butter

Least Favorite Food: cilantro. If there’s ever a recipe on the blog that is cilantro-free, you know who wrote it!

Go-to Cocktail: Extra dry gin martini with a twist

Favorite Dallas Restaurant: I live and die at Alamo Club. Their miso Caesar salad is breathtaking. 

Pets: None yet, but imminently getting a corgi puppy

Dream Vacation: I would love to spend some time at an Italian villa, cooking, eating, visiting hill towns and seeing art. 

Best Copywriting Advice: Try to write using the voice in your own head as much as you can. People respond well to writing that is conversational and personal.