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KARACOOKS

KARACOOKS

Good Food · Honest History · Strong Opinions

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KARACOOKS
KARACOOKS
Good Food · Honest History · Strong Opinions
  • The karacooks logo: a hand-drawn pepper cross-section in forest green, burgundy, and gold, with three seed chambers arranged around a burgundy center.

    A Logo, a Pepper, and a Year of Trying to Look Like Myself

    ByKara May 17May 16 Behind the Blog, Personal

    So I’ve been redesigning the blog. I’ll spare y’all the full backstage tour, but if you’ve been around here for any length of time, you’ve watched me cycle through enough visual identities to fill a small museum. Or possibly a cautionary tale. There was the cursive script phase, when the header looked like a wedding…

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  • Close-up of fresh white cape jasmine gardenia blossoms in full bloom, with bright yellow centers and dark glossy green leaves in the background.

    Friday Roundup #24

    ByKara May 15May 16 Friday Roundup

    Y’all, what a week. Zach and I have both been down with whatever crud is going around. Mine started last Friday with a sore throat that sent me home early from work, and the next five days disappeared into a haze of DayQuil, NyQuil, hot toddies, chicken soup, and sleep. A full week later I’m…

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  • a square pitcher of sun tea, brewing on the front door step. There is purple catmint and a cream rosebush in the background. The tea is a light golden color with green tags hanging out of the pitcher.

    What Cinco de Mayo Actually Is (and Why I Still Make Enchiladas)

    ByKara May 3May 16 Food & Politics, Personal

    I did not grow up observing Cinco de Mayo. Nobody in my Texas family did. It wasn’t a holiday in the way Christmas or Thanksgiving or even the Fourth of July was a holiday; it was a date on the calendar that occasionally meant something at school and otherwise didn’t. In college it became an…

    Read More What Cinco de Mayo Actually Is (and Why I Still Make Enchiladas)Continue

  • A thin crescent Earth, lit along its upper edge, rises above the cratered far side of the Moon against the black of space. NASA Artemis II flyby photograph, April 6, 2026.

    Friday Roundup #23 (From Florida, Because Mermaids)

    ByKara May 1May 12 Friday Roundup

    This roundup is coming to y’all from Weeki Wachee, where I’m spending the long weekend with a friend. If you’re not familiar, Weeki Wachee is a Florida state park where women have been performing as live mermaids in an underwater theater since 1947. Yes, really. And yes, we’re going to see them. We’ve rented a…

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  • The open lid of a white Mill food recycler with its bucket full of food scraps: celery ends with leaves, an overripe black avocado, orange and lime peels, red onion skins, and other vegetable trimmings.

    How I Became the Person Who Named My Food Recycler

    ByKara April 6May 16 Food & Politics, Garden

    Let me tell you about Millicent. Millicent lives in my garage, next to the door to the house and the glass recycling bin. She is white and rounded and about the size of a regular trash can – think one of those fancy simplehuman cans that a lot of people have in their kitchens –…

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  • Close-up of Remy's face, a black pit bull, with both brown eyes looking up at the camera and Zach blurred on the couch behind him

    Life with a Pibble: Meet Remy

    ByKara March 29May 16 Personal

    I’m writing this with a 71-pound pit bull pressed against my side on the sofa. Full velcro-dog mode. He’s dreaming, twitching, and making those adorable snorting sounds that pit bulls do. His name is Remy, and he is categorically the least threatening creature on the planet. How We Got Remy We adopted Remy on February…

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  • A cast iron skillet on a granite countertop filled with quartered Roma and cherry tomatoes, whole peeled garlic cloves, two bay leaves, and a generous sprinkle of dried oregano, ready to go into the oven.

    Friday Roundup #22

    ByKara February 21May 12 Friday Roundup

    The weather has been beautiful the last couple of days. I’m hoping it holds through the weekend because I have plans. What are you reading/watching/cooking/dealing with this week? Let me know in the comments. P.S. The tomato-garlic sauce is embarrassingly simple. You’re going to wonder why you ever bought jarred sauce. P.P.S. Alysa Liu. That’s…

    Read More Friday Roundup #22Continue

  • An open Dunkin' donut box on a wooden table holding a dozen Valentine's themed donuts: a mix of heart-shaped chocolate-frosted donuts with pink sprinkles, classic round donuts with pink and white icing, and one pink-striped heart, all decorated with pink, white, and red sprinkles.

    Friday Roundup #21 (On Sunday, Because February)

    ByKara February 15May 14 Friday Roundup

    The blog has been quiet this past week. Work has not been.Next week should be better, and tomorrow is Presidents’ Day, which in our house means a long weekend and a chance to get some end-of-winter things taken care of. Today it’s rainy and cold and I have big batch cooking plans for this afternoon…

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  • Michael Twitty's Cooking Gene - the hardback version.

    Black History Month: Essential Reading, Viewing, and Voices

    ByKara February 12May 16 Food & Politics

    This month on the blog, we’re honoring Black History Month by talking about African American foodways and the history of Southern food. If you want to learn more – and you should – here’s where to start. Essential Reading and Viewing Books: Television/Streaming: Writers and Food Historians to Follow: This is not an exhaustive list….

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  • A grove of tall pine trees, with a few fallen over, brown leaf and needle-strewn ground, and a scattering of small green undergrowth plants.

    Being Authentic

    ByKara February 8May 16 Food & Politics, Personal

    This is the forested area behind our house. It’s the part of our property that the creek runs through. It’s where I go when I need peace and calm and to escape from the world for a little bit. If you’ve been reading this blog since I restarted it this month, you’ve noticed something: this…

    Read More Being AuthenticContinue

  • A black and white image of the full moon rising at night behind the bare winter branches of trees.

    Friday Roundup #20

    ByKara February 6May 12 Friday Roundup

    Y’all, it’s Friday and I’m ready for the weekend. This has been one of those weeks where the weather can’t make up its mind, work has been relentless, and I’ve been coming home too tired to do much of anything except exist on the sofa. Here’s what’s been happening around here this week, plus what…

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  • Michael Twitty at an historical cooking reenactment at Smith Farm in Atlanta. Michael is sitting behind a wooden table loaded with food and ingredients. He's in front of a blazing cooking fire. There is a man to his left who is ready to enact his directions as the head cook in the room.

    What We Owe: Black Southern Foodways and the History We Need to Know

    ByKara February 2May 16 Food & Politics

    This is the first in what will be an ongoing series called Food is Political. I thought it was appropriate that this first post come during Black History Month and gives me a chance to talk about attribution, appropriation, and giving credit where it’s due It’s Black History Month. And on this blog, that’s going…

    Read More What We Owe: Black Southern Foodways and the History We Need to KnowContinue

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KaraCooks
Good Food · Honest History · Strong Opinions

KaraCooks is written, cooked, photographed, and gardened by one person in Johns Creek, Georgia.

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