Moving away from home can be tough but moving halfway across the globe is hard. One Foley resident is using her baking skills to introduce Baldwin County to traditional South African treats while keeping homesickness at bay.

Nicoleen Thorpe was born and raised in Victoria, South Africa. She spent her entire career working for the government. Her homelife revolved around her siblings and their families, never finding love for herself but that changed after a severe back injury in 2016.

Seeking to find support from others that had been through similar medical trials and tribulations she found a Facebook group for people with back injuries. The group provided her support and friendship. The group is where she met Alan Thorpe, her husband. Their love story sounds like something out of a Hallmark movie.

Alan lived in Missouri and founded the back injury support group after suffering a career ending injury as a lineman. He and Nicoleen struck up a friendship that evolved from digital pen pals to digital dating.

"We talked for two or three years before we met to make sure he wasn't fake and I wasn't fake," Nicoleen said.

In the fall of 2019, Alan made his first visit South Africa to meet Nicoleen and her family. They knew this was it.

"We had so much in common. We felt like soul mates," Alan said.

Then just as the COVID-19 pandemic began, Nicoleen reinjured her back in a boating accident and needed another surgery, only this time it didn't go well. She suffered life threatening surgical side effects.

Alan wanted to be by her side, but travel was shutting down. He contacted the South African government and told them their story and that he needed to care for her. He was granted special permission to travel on a repatriation flight. After he arrived the embassies and government shut down and he was happily stranded by Nicoleen's side for 10 months. The couple knew they wanted to be together forever.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, Alan's ailing father was hospitalized with COVID-19. He needed to get back to America. But he would not leave unless Nicoleen could go with him.

They wrote letters to the U.S. government, president and embassy trying to get permission. In the spring of 2021, Nicoleen made the decision to leave her family and country to be with the love of her life. The couple flew back to the United States via a quarantine stay in Costa Rica.

"I told them (her family) about him, and he came to visit but when I said I was moving they could not believe it," Nicoleen said. "They were shocked because they didn't expect it. People at work asked if I was crazy but they are all very jealous in a good way. I am getting to experience all these things."

The couple first lived in Missouri but decided to move to Sarasota and take over Alan's deceased father's home. They enjoyed the warm weather and being close to the beach, but the hustle and bustle of the area was not enjoyable. They decided to fix up the home, sell it and move. They landed in Foley in May of 2022.

While Nicoleen loves the United States, discovering all differences between her new home and South Africa she grew homesick. Video calling her family daily helped but she decided to ease her homesickness in the kitchen.

She didn't bake much in South Africa although she has fond memories of her mother baking. Nicoleen decided to start making her favorite South African desserts. It was difficult to find some ingredients but what she couldn't find or order from Amazon she was able to find substitutions for. Alan loved her treats, and she began to share them with others. That spawned the idea to sell them and use the money to travel back to South Africa to visit.

Nicoleen and Alan looked into what they needed to do to sell the goods to others under the Cottage Food Law. The law, effective in 2014, allows individuals to produce certain nonhazardous foods in their homes.

Nicoleen's South African Treats Facebook page went live in September and has filled orders to people all over Baldwin County. Delivering the orders has given the couple of fun way to see the area while satisfying people's sweet tooth. The Thorpe's have also started attended events like the Mobile Bay Makers Market and the Market Days at Bodie's Cream & Bean in Silverhill. Through the events and sales, Nicoleen has also met some native South Africans who have become regular customers and friends.

Many of the treats Nicoleen makes look like a pie you might find at your family events. The name may be different like the Melktert (Milk Tart) but it is similar to a custard pie: a creamy filling with a touch of cinnamon baked in pie crust.

She also makes a few treats you have probably never seen like a Koeksister.

The Koeksister looks like a braided doughnut, but it is actually a deep-fried pastry that is dropped into an ice-cold cinnamon and ginger syrup while piping hot. It soaks up the syrup. When you pick up the sticky treat it is deceptively heavy. It somehow has a crunchy bite, but the interior is almost liquid. Alan describes it by saying it's like if a Krispy Kreme doughnut was filled with the icing instead of being covered. The treats' flavor is like liquid hot tamale candy in the first two chews and then fades away to pure sweetness. It is a must try item.

The Thorpe's are enjoying their new venture selling treats. Alan has even gotten into making what he calls Chip on a Stick at the market days. He fell in love with the crunchy potato snack while visiting South Africa and asked the vendor if he could buy the contraption used to spiralize the potato. After the vendor gave him one, Alan realized it was a modified apple peeler. He has spent time perfecting his technique, finding the right potato and seasonings.

During the markets, Alan cuts the potatoes when ordered and fries them. Customers have eight potato chip flavorings they can sprinkle on the Chip on a Stick as soon as it comes out of the fryer. It is everything you want when you hear the name. Crunchy, salty, savory and fun to eat.

The Thorpes say they have found their forever home in Baldwin County and look forward to sharing Nicoleen's South African treat with more people.

"This is an awesome place to live. I am loving it," Nicoleen said.