Welcome!

We are Nicole Corey and Laura Jones, sisters and best friends, and we have been cooking together for the last 6 years.  It all started when Nicole wanted to fix breakfast for our dad.  He wanted to go out, but she insisted.  She was so excited to cook one of his favorites - biscuits and gravy.  Long story short, the gravy was a disaster and they ended up at IHOP anyway.

For the next couple of years, Nicole received cook books in the mail (Dad was trying to help, LOL) and tried other recipes.  In the holiday season of 2007, she decided to make our family holiday cookie recipe. The cookies turned out great (after she discovered using old Crisco makes them taste like soap), but the frosting was another story.  Like many recipes handed down, there are only ingredients (butter, milk, powdered sugar, vanilla) but no measurements.  She tried that frosting several times before getting it right.

Then in 2008, we decided it was time to learn the traditional turkey dinner that our mother had always prepared.  It's mostly the recipes our mom learned as a child, with a few from our dad's family mixed in.  Mom didn't really have recipes (again) so Nicole spent two days following her around the kitchen writing down the ingredients, the steps, and all of the details.

In 2009, it was the first holiday dinner we prepared by ourselves, for just us and our hubbies - in case it didn't turn out we had a pizza in the fridge, ready to be cooked.   We learned about the necessity of the "big ass bowl" (story and recipes to follow) and the threat from Laura's husband not to "eff up his pumpkin pie" - which we did.

New traditions started that year.  To keep the holiday dinner in tact, but to add one new recipe to try each year.

Then we got brave and invited more people to holiday dinner.  And then decided it was time to have a place for all of the family recipes to come together.  And the cookbook idea was born.  Along the way, we have learned so many lessons that will benefit many.  It's a good thing we have our humor due to the many recipes that have been epic mishaps.  We are just amateurs who LOVE to cook and want to share that with all of you.

This blog will have stories, recipes (of course), inspiration and other yummy goodness.  To tide you all over until our cookbook is ready.

Thanks for joining us and please...share with all of your friends.  The more the merrier - but not in our kitchen.

Best, Laura & Nicole