I have a serious girl-crush, y’all… It’s been coming on for awhile, but it started small. At first it was a simple, “wow, that lady is so pretty!” Then it was, “I’ve never heard of shiplap, but I think this woman is a genius!” More recently, I read her biography and learned she is also an amazingly inspirational human, with the patience and heart of a saint. But what really got me was her latest offering, which I picked up at the library a few weeks ago. Magnolia Table established her as not only a brilliant interior designer and entrepreneur, but also a cook after my own heart. Joanna Stevens Gaines, if you ever divorce Chip, will you marry me?? Well, maybe it would be better if you just stayed married to him but adopted me. That would work!
Some of you already know exactly who I’m talking about. My fellow HGTV connoisseurs will have instantly recognized her at the mention of “shiplap” (for the uninitiated, it’s basically boards running parallel to the studs in a wall, typically covered in drywall or wallpaper in older homes), and coincidentally my new favorite interior feature! Even if you don’t watch home improvement shows, you’d almost have to be living under a rock not to have heard of the program “Fixer Upper” and its hosts, Joanna and Chip Gaines. If you DID happen to live under a rock, Jo would be able to offer you some tips to make that rock cozy and unique, replete with homey touches!
But what does any of this have to do with cooking?! Isn’t that what this blog is all about? Well folks, turns out Jo is a triple-threat. Not only does she run multiple successful branches of the Magnolia empire, she’s also a brilliantly creative interior designer AND spends her “free” time cooking next-level comfort foods. She clearly owns a time-warping device. That’s the only way to explain how she has managed to develop so many recipes which seem simple but delicious, and appeal to me with every page-turn of Magnolia Table. I returned my copy to the library and purchased my own personal edition to add to my cookbook collection immediately after flipping through it. 
Joanna Gaines did not wake up one day and decide to be a cookbook author for a living, as she very clearly already has a booming career. She did not attend culinary school (that I am aware of), and she works a whole lot more than a 40-hour week. Yet somehow she made enough time in her schedule to teach herself to cook nourishing meals for her family of 6 (recently expanded to 7!) on a daily basis. I am one of those weird people who actually READS cookbooks, not just the recipes themselves for ingredient lists and directions. I love to read the introductions to each chapter, and the little stories the author offers up before giving the basic facts of how to make something. When I picked up this book and started to read her opening pages, it was like coming home. There were parts that really spoke to me, such as our shared love of the act of putting on an apron. Even selecting which apron I’m going to wear is part of my process when tackling a new recipe. She also mentioned a cake dome on her counter that she never likes to see empty.
As I read those words, I looked up at my own kitchen table, which sported a brand spanking new Pioneer Woman cake platter, purchased just weeks earlier. It had some store-bought pastries in it at the time, but I had already begun fantasizing about the cookies, Bundt cakes and pies I planned to fill it with in the future. Joanna seems like a kindred spirit.
I looked through roughly 150 recipes in the book and came across such familiar American classics as chicken pot pie and biscuits and gravy, but also bulgogi and Syrian donuts. I love that she put in nods to her own Korean roots and her grandfather’s Middle Eastern heritage. It’s going to be so fun trying out her versions of foods I’ve made previously under the tutelage of Alton Brown, Ree Drummond and my own mother. I’m always amazed at how the same dish can be interpreted in so many ways, and I’m still learning what I like best. Another theme Joanna has running throughout her book is the idea that her recipes are “jumping off” places, not dictates. When I studied Alton Brown, I felt strongly about sticking strictly to his instructions, and I did NOT deviate. While studying Ree, I adhered to 98% of what she said, a much simpler feat since her ingredients were pretty commonplace and her directions straightforward. For these Magnolia recipes, I feel like I’m already being encouraged to take them and run with them, putting my own spin on things. It’s exciting!
So here I go, jumping into another culinary “course”, taught by a woman I’m pretty sure would be an amazing bestie if we ever met! In fact, I think I will reward myself when I complete this project by making a graduation pilgrimage to Waco, TX to visit the Silos, which houses the Magnolia Table restaurant. And when I get there, I’m looking forward to seeing what’s featured on Joanna’s cake plate!
Have Book, Will Cook 