I recently tried to figure out how many food blogs populate the internet. The answer: A lot. I couldn’t find an exact number—not a recent one, at least—but it’s big enough to demonstrate that yes, there can be too much of a good thing. With so many food blogs to follow out there, it’s hard to know which you can count on for great writing and reliable recipes, especially for families. To help, I’ve combed all my favorious resources, and put together a list of some of my favorite food blogs to follow in 2015, with a particular focus on family eating.
These probably aren’t the names you know and see all over over the Internet. But they are the ones I turn to for my own family. I hope they help you too.
1 Feed Me Dearly
Jessica of Feed Me Dearly is a mom of three who cooks up simple, creative meals using whole ingredients. Other than her dishes—which are right up my alley—the best part of Jessica’s blog is her honesty. She can kill it in the kitchen, but also has mishaps and she isn’t afraid to share them. Feed Me Dearly isn’t about being Pinterest-perfect, it’s about feeding a family healthy food.
That said, it’s hard for me not to pin delicious recipes like Coconut Kabocha Squash Soup with Japanese 7 Spice or this Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Maple Butter. The magic is in her balance, I suppose. In addition to recipes on Feed Me Dearly, you’ll also find Jessica’s musings on picky eaters and tips for a time crunched cook. Even personal photo essays on nesting with the kids which involves lots and lots of waffles. This is definitely written by someone who’s in it and, if you ask me, there’s no better resource.
2. Not Without Salt
Like several of the blogs on this list, Not Without Salt has been around a while, but I’ve fallen in love with it all over again ever since getting Ashley’s new book, Date Night In, featured in our best family cookbooks of 2014. Her cooking manages to be fun and accessible while maintaining a modern sophistication. Read: No “kid food” here. That said, I find the recipes on this blog to be family-friendly, or at least easily adapted for pickier palates. And I want to eat everything that Ashley cooks.
Case in point: Winter Herb Pasta with Roasted Vegetables, Hot Fudge Pudding Cake, and a salad of Cara Cara Oranges, Avocado and Feta. Yeah, I can make these work for my family. Happily.
3. Love & Lemons
If you’ve been following our food posts for a while, you’ve probably hopped over to Love & Lemons at some point since we often link to Jeanine’s recipes there. It’s hard not to, when the recipes make so many vegetables looks so out-of-control good. Though not entirely a vegetarian blog written by not an entirely vegetarian cook, Jeanine’s focus is seasonal vegetables that make for flavorful food. And boy does she succeed with recipes like Roasted Cauliflower and Leek Soup and Butternut Squash Burrito Bowls
Unlike a lot of other healthy, veggie-based blogs, the food on Love & Lemons never gets too serious. Jeanine lives in Austin, after all (I’m not exactly sure what that has to do with anything, but I feel like it matters) and she likes making Fancy S’mores, Frozen Chocolate Bananas, and Carrot Muffins with Coconut Whip. Which means I like her.
4. Real Food By Dad
If you thought all family food blogs were written by moms, think again. There’s an expanding crop of dad food blogs, many of which feature all the necessary elements for success: good food, awesome writing and a fresh perspective on parenting and food. Real Food By Dad is my current favorite among them thanks to Matt’s gorgeous photos, and fun but refined take on family food.
Matt says that his Easy Tomato Baked Meatballs aren’t sexy, but I beg to differ: My entire family would gobble these up and that’s about as sexy to me as dinner gets these days! And Texas Chicken Nachos? As in, use chicken tenders in place of tortilla chips and cover them with melted cheese and crumbled bacon? I’m going with those for the win in my house, too. As if that isn’t enough, perhaps, like me, all you really need to see to add Real Food By Dad to your daily reads is his Coffee Cake Waffles wherein Matt toasts buttered pieces of coffee cake in his waffle iron. And, scene.
5. Teach. Eat. Love.
The tagline for the food blog Teach. Eat. Love. is Teaching kids to love what they eat. A little on the nose, I know, but the message is so dear to my heart. This is a place you’ll find such great go-to recipes like Easy Butternut Squash and Chicken Risotto and Vegetarian Chili with Quinoa that you’ll keep coming back.
The family recipes on this blog are decidedly healthy and made with unprocessed ingredients. However instead of assuming that everyone can–or even wants to–eliminate processed foods, Anne puts a lot of energy toward describing why she believes unprocessed ingredients are worth avoiding, so that you can make the decision for yourself. She also offers a growing section on coping with a picky eater (isn’t it reassuring to know that food bloggers have them too?) and another category specifically for baby and little kid recipes. If you’re feeding little ones and hoping to get them off to a healthy start, Teach. Eat. Love. is a must-bookmark.
6. An Edible Mosaic
I was first drawn into An Edible Mosaic through the photos, but I quickly came to love Faith’s eclectic recipes for when I need an idea a little off the beaten food blog path. She deftly moves between mouthwatering vegan dishes like Creamy Wheat Berry Porridge with Gingered Blueberry Topping and fare fit for Monday Night Football, like Buffalo Chicken French Bread Pizza (in collage at very top). My favorite of her recipes, though, turn out to be her Middle Eastern dishes.
Faith married into a Middle Eastern family and even lived in the Middle East for a while. There she came to master the region’s home cooking, which she shares from time to time on An Edible Mosaic. Of course you can try the more involved, traditional recipes, but I dare you to resist her simple, delectable Falafel Spiced Chickpeas! If your family likes trying new foods—or you like making them—don’t miss out on this lovely blog.
7. My Name is Yeh
I will be honest, I’m not sure that you’ll ever make anything from My Name is Yeh, but a) you should, and b) it doesn’t matter. Just visit this blog once and you’ll go back over and over for the beautiful pictures and Molly’s lovely voice. Also a Juilliard graduate, she is clearly talented in more than just percussion; check out her whimsical baked goods like Mini Pumpkin Loaves (in collage at very top) and Pistachio Cream Cake with Chocolate Ganache.
I mean, anyone who takes Funfetti Cake this seriously is a blogger that I need to follow.
While I spend most of my time ogling Molly’s baking, she also serves up creative savory recipes, many of which are inspired by her Jewish and Asian mixed heritage. And did I mention that she lives on a farm? She relocated from Brooklyn after falling and love with and marrying a fifth-generation farmer. Could her story be any more charming? I don’t think so, and neither could her blog. Especially considering that Molly offers up a recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Breakfast Mousse. Yes, breakfast. That’s my kind of charm.
[collage images: my name is yeh, an edible mosaic, feed me dearly]
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