You have to understand something about me for this post to make sense. I am a brand loyalist, to the extreme. If you produce something, and I like it, I am yours for life. Even if someone else produces something similar (or even better), I will still stick with the brand I know and love because…I am loyal to a fault.
This principle applies when it comes to recipe sources. If you aren’t Ina (or one of my other trusted sources), you’re not number one in my heart. Seat’s taken. But, over time (lots and lots of time), I have discovered some folks who aren’t Ina, and I have found a way to make room for them in my lineup of trusted recipe sources.
See? I can be reasonable at times.
ONE.
Smitten Kitchen. Hands down one of the most well-written food blogs out there, Deb Perelman is a wordsmith with a voice and a brand that has remained consistent as she has grown. I respect and admire all of it. She has published two cookbooks, and has developed quite a following. Her food is approachable, and she makes sure you know there is a very real human person behind every recipe. She plays a lot with different flavors, and at the end of the day, she really knows how to write a recipe that is easy to follow. From time to time she will give you options, but she always does so when it really isn’t going to have a negative effect on the finished product.
TWO.
How Sweet Eats. I find Jessica to be a powerhouse of creativity in the kitchen. She makes me want to cook her recipes based on the titles alone. She takes all of her own photographs, and they are gorgeous. She has birthed two children since I first found her, and she shares a lot of her real life on her blog. She knows who she is, and she owns it. She has an energy and love for life that is contagious. Jessica seems to follow the philosophy that more is more, and I frequently have been wooed by her wild combinations. Her salads are insane and amazing. I have come to trust her as a source because while I may not care for every recipe I try of hers, they always turn out as expected. She is super good at what she does, and I find myself giggling when I read her over-the-top descriptive posts.
THREE.
What’s Gaby Cooking. I love Gaby. She is crazy. She is hilarious. She is married to a guy who started an Instagram account called What’s Thomas Eating just so that he could lovingly mock her. And she makes beautiful food that I want to eat. She has an energy that is magnetic, and her food is fresh and non-fussy. I want to cook her recipes and share them with friends. She lives in California, and she has a balanced approach to food and eating. She works hard, laughs at herself a lot, and I love watching her Insta-Live sessions on Monday when she cooks in her kitchen while wearing yoga pants and house slippers. And even though she tends to use hyperbole and oversell everything as “the best,”…I am one hundred percent on board.
FOUR.
The New York Times. Sort of an odd duck in this lineup, but I have begun to place a lot of faith in the recipes from the NYT. I don’t subscribe the the publication, but I am considering it as an option. Their biscuits and sausage gravy taught me that I do in fact like gravy, and now I can make it without failing. And they offer such a variety of different types of recipes, I feel like I get to sort of stretch my comfort zone a little bit.
FIVE.
The Kitchn. It’s not a typo. That’s how they spell it, and it drives me bananas. This one is less about recipes and more about a resource. From the About page on their website, they “publish 20 short articles daily that inform and inspire every aspect of home cooking.” If you need to know how to do anything in the kitchen, chances are The Kitchn has published an article on that topic. Every time I google something, the top result is found on The Kitchn. Their pieces are easy to understand, and I have never read something that didn’t enlighten or explain exactly what I was wondering about.
There you have it, friends! A few new favorites from a die-hard brand loyalists who is learning to stretch and grow. I would love to hear some of your favorite trusted sources in the comments below!
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