The beginning · 2017
A brother
to cook for.
Allie was a naturally good cook. Her brother Mark, a professional boxer, needed nutritious meals that tasted good and fit around his training. She wanted to help.
There wasn’t a grand plan. Just good food, a demanding schedule and one less thing for her brother to think about.
From our first months
Figuring it out,
meal by meal.
We were figuring everything else out as we went—the handwritten labels, the packing, the first orders. These photographs are from that beginning.
The food came naturally.
The rest, we learned along the way.
The first orders
From one brother
to a much bigger family.
What started with meals for Mark soon reached other boxers, NFL players, college athletes and people training at their local gyms. Then came working professionals, busy parents and active seniors.
A favor for family was becoming something much bigger: good food that could make a difference in someone’s everyday life.
What stays with us
A lot has changed.
The reason hasn’t.
Today, we cook for people of all shapes and sizes, with different appetites, routines and goals. Building strength. Working toward a weight goal. Or simply wanting to eat well during a busy week.
The heart of Tough Cookies is the same: high-quality nutrition, delicious food and the care Allie put into those first meals for her brother.
What matters in our kitchen