top of page


PECAN TASSIES with CHOCOLATE
I saved one of my all time favorites for last. If the sticky toffee cookie is my new favorite cozy sweater, tassies are my well-loved...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 23, 20243 min read
4 views
0 comments


STICKY TOFFEE COOKIE
There is no winner in 12 days of cookies…but if there was, these might just be the winner. As I’ve been baking, Christian and I have been...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 22, 20245 min read
2 views
0 comments


GINGERBREAD with MAPLE BUTTERCREAM
I have already confessed that I love Starbucks’s Peppermint Mochas, but I have one more confession I have to get off my chest: I don’t...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 21, 20244 min read
4 views
0 comments


PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOMS
When I told Christian that I was going to take on a roster of one dozen varieties of Christmas cookies, he had one request. Peanut butter...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 20, 20243 min read
8 views
0 comments


LONDON FOG WHOOPIE PIES
I had my first London Fog while working at a cafe in D.C. Working at that cafe was the single worst hospitality industry experience I...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 19, 20244 min read
9 views
0 comments


COQUITO MACAROONS
My brother and sister-in-law hosted a holiday party for many years—before everyone moved to different cities and people started getting...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 18, 20242 min read
7 views
0 comments


PEPPERMINT MOCHA SHORTBREAD
IknowIknowIknowIknow… we hate Starbucks. In most cases, I’d much rather tour the small, cozy coffee shops that dot this gorgeous city of...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 17, 20243 min read
11 views
0 comments


CRANBERRY ORANGE OATIES w/ WHITE CHOCOLATE CRUST
I called these oaties because I thought if I called them oatmeal cookies, you’d skip right past them—and that would be a mistake! I wrote...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 16, 20244 min read
13 views
0 comments


GERMAN CHOCOLATE MAGIC BARS
German chocolate cake is my favorite cake. The textures. The sticky sweet frosting. The light chocolate cake. The bittersweet pecans....
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 15, 20242 min read
8 views
0 comments


PARTY MIX KRISPIES
Day 3 of cookie chaos blends my own family favorite with an American classic. My mom always makes what she calls party mix as an element...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 14, 20242 min read
31 views
0 comments


MOLASSES CREAM PIES
I've been thinking a lot about oatmeal cream pies lately. Maybe it’s a pregnancy craving, but I’ve hesitated to buy the Little Debbie...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 13, 20246 min read
9 views
0 comments


COOKIE CHAOS KICKOFF
This is not a unique thing to say, but I love Christmas. I love the trees and tinsel and glitter and all of the lights. I love when...
Vanessa Ruby
Dec 12, 20247 min read
18 views
0 comments


A FOLLOW UP LETTER TO MY BABY
Hi baby, I wrote a letter to you years ago when you were just an idea. I was scared then you’d never come, but you’re here! You’re not...
Vanessa Ruby
Nov 15, 20247 min read
120 views
0 comments


Pregnant Pumpkin
I’m 21-weeks pregnant today. There’s this urge for me to put an exclamation point, a little yelp of excitement to display the very real...
Vanessa Ruby
Sep 20, 20247 min read
102 views
2 comments


The Seasons ft. Roasted Corn Salad
I grew up in the suburbs in the Midwest where foods were not seasonal, or at least no one in my orbit was talking about them that way. We...
Vanessa Ruby
May 17, 20247 min read
34 views
0 comments


Mother's Day
I am a woman with two pregnancies. Seven years apart. If I’d had the babies to show for them, one would be learning to spell four-letter...
Vanessa Ruby
May 11, 202410 min read
228 views
3 comments


Less Ed, More Self-Awareness
You’re going to die. More than one person told me that early in my recovery. In honor of Eating Disorders Awareness Week, I’d like to...
Vanessa Ruby
Mar 1, 20248 min read
61 views
1 comment


*Miss you, Taiwan* Short Ribs
It’s been almost six years since my visit to Taiwan, and I can still feel the dense air inflating my brown waves into a mess of frizzy...
Vanessa
Jan 26, 20247 min read
32 views
0 comments


Pancakes For Dinner
I wanted pancakes for dinner. Mom offered, as she did every year, to make me whatever I wanted for my birthday dinner, and I wanted...
Vanessa
Jan 18, 20243 min read
59 views
1 comment


Vegetarian (or not) Chili
This recipe is for my friend, Neha. I'm sure there are some other wonderful chefs out there who have rich, savory vegetarian chilis to...
Vanessa
Jan 12, 20243 min read
22 views
0 comments
bottom of page