I have dreamed about one day having my own book published.  How that was going to happen or what that was going to look like, I didn't know for sure.  The only thing I knew, is that food would be involved. When Skyhorse Publishing reached out to me last year and asked me about writing a cookbook, I literally couldn't believe it.  ( Um, pinch me...is this real life?)  Three years ago, I was a girl who started a blog not knowing much about it other than that I wanted to share my life and the food I was making with all of you.  And now here I am awaiting my very own cookbook release and I am just so thankful.  The Unexpected Cajun Kitchen is a cookbook where you will find Cajun inspired dishes with a farm to table twist that you can make in your everyday life!

Here's a little background info of how this cookbook idea came to be.  When deciding what kind of cookbook I would be writing, I knew I wanted it to tell a story as well as share delicious recipes with you.  Some of you may know that I married a Cajun, born and raised in South Louisiana.  We met when we were 18 and long story short, we kept in touch and I ended up moving to Louisiana to explore our relationship.  We got married a couple of years later and Louisiana become my second home.

I fell in love with the people and the culture instantaneously and knew it would forever be a part of me.  I do not claim to be a true Cajun cook...no, those are the women and men who grew up watching their Cajun grandparents make traditional dishes that didn't have recipes because it was all made from memory and heart.  What I will tell you is that my cooking is influenced from every experience in my life and for over more than a decade now, Cajun food has been a part of me and is a part of my family.  The recipes that you will make from my book are inspired by traditional dishes, but have my own spin using a fresh farm to table approach and hopefully will give you the confidence to get in your kitchen and make some memories with your family.

I put my heart into this book and developed all of the recipes while I was pregnant with my son Parks.  I look back thinking I might have been a little insane to take on a cookbook when I was about to have a baby, but at the same time I think it influenced my recipes in a really good way.  I thought about the legacy this book and it's recipes would leave behind for him to be able to pass on to his family one day, and that is pretty dang cool.

I could not have done any of it without the support of my husband, my unexpected Cajun, who took over baby duty whenever he wasn't working so I could do my thing.  He was/is super dad and a pretty super husband too.  Cooking, styling, and shooting 70+ recipes with a newborn baby who wants to eat every two hours is a little tricky.  But looking back I wouldn't have had it any other way and feel so proud of myself for what I accomplished.

I hope that you will love this book and I hope you will feel my love when you taste your first bite of gumbo, or pull apart one of my pecan praline cinnamon rolls.  Thank you for being a part of my journey and for making this happen.  Without all of you, there would be no cookbook.  So thank you and I love you and go buy the book!  You can order it here.

 Xo