Cooking with Kendra: Easy Home Recipes for Every Meal and Mood

Home Cooking Organized by How You Actually Cook

Cooking with Kendra is a collection of home recipes sorted into five categories, so you can start from the kind of meal you need rather than scrolling through an endless list. Each recipe lists ingredients and steps, along with notes on timing, substitutions and storage. The sections below explain what each category covers and how to get the most from the recipes.

What You Will Find in Each Category

Comfort Food Classics

This is the largest part of the site. Comfort Food Classics covers casseroles, slow-cooked roasts, soups and baked dinners, such as Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole, Green Chile Chicken Casserole, Crockpot Sweet Potato Casserole and a fall-apart chuck roast made in the oven. These dishes suit cooler weather and feeding a family without much fuss.

Desserts & Treats

In Desserts & Treats you will find cakes, pies, cookies and no-bake sweets. Examples include a warm lemon pudding cake, Salted Honey Pie and a No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake. Baking is more exact than stovetop cooking, so these recipes give oven temperatures, pan sizes and cooling times that are worth following closely.

Quick & Easy Meals

Quick & Easy Meals is for busy evenings: Flatbread Pizza with Tomato Sauce in 20 Minutes, Cottage Cheese Alfredo Pasta, a ten-minute hummus and a seasoned boiled egg. Short recipes still benefit from a quick read-through first, so you can have everything chopped and measured before the heat goes on.

Healthy & Nutritious

The Healthy & Nutritious section focuses on vegetable-forward dishes, lighter sauces and higher-protein options, for example a Kale Tahini Salad, balsamic-marinated portobello steaks and a raspberry peach smoothie. Nutrition needs differ from person to person, so treat any serving information as a starting point and adjust it to your own diet.

Global Flavors

Dishes from many kitchens live in Global Flavors, from wok-style black pepper chicken to Caribbean maduros (fried sweet plantains) and a tropical mango sago dessert. Where a recipe calls for a specialty ingredient, the notes suggest what to look for in the store and what can stand in for it.

Themed Collections for Specific Cravings

Besides the categories, recipes are grouped into themed collections that gather one idea in one place. A few examples:

• Cozy Fall Recipes for Comforting Meals
• Easy Crockpot Soup Recipes
• Simple Flatbread Pizza Recipes
• Easy Basil Recipes for Fresh, Vibrant Meals
• Easy Snack Prep Ideas for Busy Weeks

Collections are handy when you already have an ingredient to use up, such as zucchini, basil or ground beef and potatoes, or when you are planning a week of similar meals.

How to Use the Recipes

Read the whole recipe first. Check the ingredient list, the equipment and the total time before you start. Prep and cooking times are estimates, and your stove, oven and pan size will affect them.

Substitutions. Many recipes suggest swaps, such as plain yogurt for sour cream, different leafy greens or another pasta shape. Swap like for like. Replacing a liquid with a dry ingredient, or changing the flour in a cake, can change the result. In baking, change one thing at a time.

Storage and reheating. Cool cooked food promptly and refrigerate it within two hours. Store it in shallow, covered containers and eat leftovers within three to four days. Reheat until steaming hot throughout. Soups, casseroles and sauces usually freeze well, while crisp toppings and fresh herbs are better added after reheating.

Food safety and allergens. Use a food thermometer to check doneness instead of relying on color or time alone: 165°F for poultry and reheated leftovers, and 145°F for whole cuts of beef, with a short rest. Wash your hands, and keep raw meat away from ready-to-eat food. Always check ingredient labels for allergens such as nuts, dairy, eggs, gluten and sesame, since brands vary.

How the Recipes Are Prepared

Recipes on this site are developed and then edited for clarity. The editing looks at whether the steps are in a sensible order, whether times and temperatures are realistic, whether quantities match the stated servings, and whether ingredient substitutions and food-safety notes are included where they matter.

Use your own judgement as you cook: ovens run hot or cool, ingredients differ in size and moisture, and your senses and a thermometer are the final check.

Who Writes Here

Recipes are published under the names of our authors, including Kendra Thompson, Emily Collins, Marcus Lee and Jordan Avery, each with their own areas of interest, from Southern baking to Asian fusion and vegan cooking. You can read more on the About us page, or send a question or correction through the Contact Us page. You can also leave a rating and a comment on any recipe if you have a tip to share with other readers.