cooking recipes
Homemade Cinnamon Hard Candy My grandmother used to keep a glass jar of these on her kitchen counter, and I’d sneak one every single time I walked past. That sweet cinnamon burn, the way they’d crack between your teeth — I’ve been chasing that memory for years. Finally sat down last weekend and made them […]
Coconut Cream Pound Cake My mom used to make this every Easter, and the smell alone would pull us all into the kitchen before the glaze even set. That buttery coconut aroma filling the house? Pure comfort. I hadn’t made it in years until last weekend, and the second I pulled it from the oven, […]
Old-Fashioned Chocolate Pie: MawMaw's Silky Cocoa Custard From Scratch My husband's grandmother made this pie every holiday and most Sunday dinners, and he has been telling me about it for eleven years. MawMaw Hamrick's old-fashioned chocolate pie was the thing people fought over, the last slice that somebody always thought they'd taken. Last month his […]
Pecan Upside-Down Bundt Cake My neighbor brought this to a potluck last fall and I watched three grown men go back for thirds. I finally asked her for the recipe and honestly kicked myself for not making it sooner. It's one of those cakes that looks like you spent all afternoon in the […]
One-Pan Stuffed Pepper Skillet I was standing at the stove last Tuesday, browning ground beef for what I thought would be regular stuffed peppers, when my daughter walked in and said, “Mom, can we just… not wait an hour?” She had homework. I had laundry. And honestly? I didn’t want to spend the evening babysitting […]
Buttery Piped Shortbread Cookies I was cleaning out my pantry last week when I found three things that had been sitting there forever — butter, powdered sugar, and flour. My daughter walked in and said, “Mom, can we make something?” and honestly, I almost said no because I was tired. But something made me pull […]
Apple Snickerdoodle Dump Cake I made this on a Sunday afternoon when the house felt too quiet, and I swear the smell alone brought my neighbor to the door asking what was baking. This Apple Snickerdoodle Dump Cake is one of those recipes that feels like cheating — but in the best possible way. You […]
Caramel Cheesecake Swirl Brownies with Milky Way My sister brought these to Thanksgiving last year and I watched three grown adults nearly fight over the last piece. I’m not even exaggerating. I finally made them myself last weekend and now I understand why. That first bite — fudgy brownie, creamy cheesecake swirl, gooey caramel, all […]
Cinnamon Roll Breadtwists My mom used to make these every Christmas morning when I was growing up, and the smell alone would wake us up before the alarm even went off. Last weekend, I finally tried making them myself — and honestly, they turned out even better than I remembered. My husband ate three before […]
Coca-Cola Chocolate Cake My mom used to make this every single time we had company over, and I swear people would call ahead just to make sure it was on the table. There’s something about the way Coca-Cola bakes into chocolate cake that makes it impossibly moist — like, you-can’t-stop-at-one-slice moist. The frosting gets this […]