My Favorite Food Blogs

A Love Letter to Food Blogs

This story was originally published in Sauce Magazine in December 2006. Its intent was to introduce my fellow St. Louisans to the worldwide explosion of food blogs and especially to the then-handful of local food blogs. It's no longer on Sauce's website, so I publish much of it here.

I attempted to update this page in 2021 but ran out of energy checking the links to see if the sites are still active. For me, the lists of food blogs circa 2007 offers a loving look back at the good ol' days of food blogging, a time when we all knew one another, we all supported one another. It was an amazing time, an amazing community. Today food blogs are big business, earning substantial incomes for a cadre of talented business people, especially women.

But who knows? Perhaps someday, historians will look for lists of the earliest food blogs and happen onto this page. Thus I leave even broken links intact, for history's sake.
I Really, Really, Really Heart Food Blogs
Here's my story from 2006, a love letter to my fellow food bloggers.



What Is a Food Blog?

On the surface, food blogs look much like other food sites, magazines and cookbooks. But look closer, they stand apart. Food blogs are extraordinarily personal, even when produced with knowledge and professionalism. They radiate curiosity, excitement and creativity. They often exude rich humor, sweet charm and unedited spontaneity.

Food blogs are like memoirs with recipes. Every recipe comes with a backstory woven from family, culture and personal experience. Tales abound of early lessons from mothers and grandmothers, first experiences with fresh figs, strategies for Thanksgiving turkeys, and frustration with breads that fall and tomatoes that char. If there’s a rant, it’s Reggiano versus Kraft or lard versus butter, not the left versus right of politics.

Food bloggers may start blogging with some notion of organizing favorite recipes, but we keep blogging because of connection and community. We covet comments from readers and go lengths to lure ‘lurkers’ into conversation. We watch for online food events to cook together. When we bring new babies into the world, we celebrate. When we lose a parent or a job, we console. When we struggle with illness or decision, we encourage. When we meet in person for the first time, we’re already friends.

Food blogging is a tight community inhabited by food enthusiasts, both writers and readers, from across the world who speak the universal language of food. Still, like seasonal fruits and vegetables, food blogs are inherently local too.

St. Louis Food Blogs
St. Louis is home to a small cadre of food bloggers. I write a blog called A Veggie Venture (you're here!) that’s packed with every-day vegetable inspiration. Karen from FamilyStyle Food cooks for her husband, kids and recipe contests in Webster Groves. Nupur from One Hot Stove hails from India, lives in New York but will soon move to St. Louis. (For security, many bloggers reveal only their first names.)

Zinfully Delicious (sorry, no longer online) is written by a pair whose friendship dates back to UCity schools and is now cemented by food, wine and a blog. In 2000, Bruno was a licensed counselor specializing in substance abuse. Encouraged by his Swiss-born mother, Bruno left St. Louis to spend 15 months at the California Culinary Society and now is a chef aboard executive jets. When his friend Duane suggested starting a blog, Bruno was uncertain. “I didn’t know what it would entail and sure didn’t know about all the great food blogs.” Software makes blogging easy, even for those like Bruno with limited technical experience. “It’s just fun,” he said. “I really love it.” Duane is adventurous about technology and food. “My dad taught me to say ‘Sure, I’ll try it’ to anything new,” said Duane, who recently moved with his wife from Webster Groves to central Texas. “The blog helps demystify food and wine.”

While most blogs are published by individuals, blog publishing concepts are increasingly being adopted by companies. An example is Kirk’s Traveling Kitchen (sorry, no longer online), the new online kitchen of Kirk Warner, the former executive chef at King Louie’s and Savor who recently launched a personal chef business. Warner said, “The web designer suggested the blog. It’s an easy way to keep the site fresh.” Warner also appreciates having a forum in which to explore his ideas about food and culture. “I hope my blog becomes a sounding board.”

Nearby Food Blogs
Further afield, Susan of Farmgirl Fare chases Cary the Lamb Daughter around some holler in rural Missouri. Susan is a California girl turned Missouri farm girl and started her blog to break writer’s block and create a visual record of the farm. Farmgirl Fare is less about food than a daily snapshot of life on a small farm in rural Missouri. With a veil of morning fog and laugh-out-loud animal antics, farm life appears idyllic. “People visit Farmgirl as a daily stress reducer,” Susan said. On Mother’s Day, Susan introduced Cary, a lamb rejected by its mother. Now visitors are charmed by new tales of Cary the Lamb Daughter, 60 pounds of housebroken lamb who curls nearby while Susan works at the computer.

Still, Farmgirl portrays farm reality too. Despite all precautions, last spring Susan lived a shepherd’s nightmare, losing lambs to an unidentified predator. With each night’s flock reduction, Susan expressed her grief and frustration on the blog and Farmgirl’s visitors mourned the losses as if their own. And in a way, the missing lambs were as much her visitors’ loss as Susan’s because Farmgirl readers connect to the farm, to the animals and to Susan herself with an authentic sense of community.

Lisa of Champaign, Illinois writes Champaign Taste (sorry, no longer online). Like many food bloggers, she discovered food blogs by accident but right away, she said, “I wanted one.” Lisa’s husband Keith is a partner behind the scenes. “Keith gave me our first digital camera and drags out the stepladder for pictures.” Her blog creates a “wonderful outlet,” Lisa said, but like other bloggers, she finds blogging addictive. “Some times all I want to do is work on the blog. It’s so great when someone from Champaign says, ‘I read your blog’.”

Other food bloggers call Missouri and Illinois home. A Fridge Full of Food (still live though very slow to load) is written by former cake maker and caterer Glenna Anderson Muse of Springfield, Missouri. Vyanjanaa (live but no longer active) is written by a mother-daughter team, one in Delhi, India, the other an assistant professor at Mizzou. Annie from Bon Appegeek (live but inactive since 2011) writes with style and humor from east central Illinois.

Are Food Blogs Food Journalism?
The short answer is "no" but a more thoughtful one is, "some times".

Because the best food blogs feature magazine-quality writing, styling and photography, some conjecture that food blogging represents a threat to traditional food magazines and cookbooks. Certainly some food bloggers are wannabe food writers who would happily ditch day jobs to write about food. But others realize that the passion expressed in their blogs exists only because the blog isn’t work and blogging isn’t a job. For most, the consensus is, Blogging is fun, for sure! But it will remain so only so long as it remains a hobby.

Still, traditional publishers are increasingly impressed by blogs. Last summer, TIME picked its 50 coolest websites; in food, Delicious Days (live but inactive since 2015) and Simply Recipes got the nod. Every week, Food & Wine’s website highlights favorite posts from food bloggers. And a handful of bloggers have earned cookbook deals.

After writing critically of political blogs cloaked in anonymity and agenda in 2005, long-time journalist Joe Pollack and his wife, the writer Ann Lemons Pollack, thought hard before launching a food blog in 2006. Still, the temptation to experiment with a new publishing venue was strong, “partly for fun, partly for ego,” he said. St. Louis Eats and Drinks features restaurant reviews, wine recommendations and occasional recipes in the professional Pollack style St. Louisans know to expect.

Explore the World
For a food-blog tour of the globe without leaving your laptop, visit www.Saucemagazine.com. Better yet, start your own food blog. The Internet is a big table with room for many chairs, many voices. There’s place for yours, too, in the warm, welcoming community of food blogs.




Food Bloggers I've Met

(some of these sites may be offline or inactive)
101 Cookbooks

Anali's First Amendment Andrea's Recipes

Baking Bites Becks & Posh Blue Kitchen Bruno's Dream

Champaign Taste Confessions of a Cardamom Addict Cook & Eat Cook Think Cookie Madness Cooking with Amy Cupcake Project

Daily Eats Dani Spies David Lebovitz

Egg Beater

FatFree Vegan Kitchen FamilyStyle Food Food Blogga

Homesick Texan

Inquisitive Palate Iron Stef

Kalyn's Kitchen Kate in the Kitchen Kung Foodie

La Tartine Gourmande Little Spatula

Matt Bites Michael Ruhlman My Little Kitchen My Plate or Yours My Sister's Kitchen My Vegetable Blog

Nami-Nami

Once Upon a Feast One Hot Stove

Part-Time Pro Bono Baker Pinch My Salt Pioneer Woman

Simply Recipes St Louis Eats & Drinks STL Bites STL Hops

Talk of Tomatoes The Inadvertent Gardener The Perfect Pantry This Mama Cooks Two Bites in Suburbia

Vyanjanaa

What's for Lunch, Honey?

Zinur



Kids & Vegetables

(some of these sites may be offline or inactive)
Besides Pizza Great Big Vegetable Challenge Tummy Treasure




Food Blogs to Follow

(some of these sites may be offline or inactive)
28 Cooks

A Blithe Palate A Finger in Every Pie A Fridge Full of Food A Slice of Cherry Pie A Spoonful of Sugar An Open Cupboard Albion Cooks Alpineberry Andrea's Recipes Around the Table

Baking Bites Baking and Books Becks & Posh Beyond Salmon Blue Kitchen Bon Appegeek Boxcar Kitchen Brownie Points Buttermilk Clouds

C Is for Cooking CafeLynnyLu Champaign Taste Cherry's English Kitchen Chocolate & Zucchini Clivia's Cuisine Columbus Foodie Confessions of a Cardamom Addict Cook & Eat Cook Almost Anything Cookie Madness Cooking for Kodiak Cooking with Amy Couteau Bonswan Cream Puffs in Venice Culinary Concoctions by Peabody Culinary in the Desert Cumin & Coriander Curious Cook

David Lebovitz Daydream Delicious Delicious Days Dessert First Domestic Cat Doughboy

Egg Hunt Eggbeater Erin's Kitchen Everybody Likes Sandwiches

FamilyStyle Food Fancy Toast Farmgirl Fare Fatfree Vegan Kitchen Feeding My Enthusiams Field to Feast Food & Thoughts Food Blogga Foodbeam French Kitchen in America Fresh Approach Cooking Fridge Full of Food

[gluten free] Goddess Great Big Vegetable Challenge

Habeas Brulee Homesick Texan Hooked on Heat Humble Pie Home Ec Failure

Iron Stef

Je Mange la Ville Jumbo Empanadas Just Braise

Kalyn's Kitchen Kitchen Exhibitionist Kitchen Unplugged Kitchen Wench Kitchenography Kochtopf kokblog

La Tartine Gourmand Laura Rebecca's Kitchen Laurie's Kitchen Lex Culinaria Lobstersquad Lucullian Delights Lucy's Kitchen Notebook

Matt Bites Mele Cotte Milk and Cookies My Husband Cooks My Kitchen in Half Cups My Plate or Yours My Recipes

Nami-Nami Never Trust a Skinny Chef Nosh, Thoughts & Reves Not Eating Out in New York

One Hot Stove One Whole Clove Orangette

Peanut Butter Étouffee Pinch My Salt

Raspberry Debacle Rubber Slippers in Italy Running with Tweezers

S'kat and the Food Saffron Trail Seriously Good Seven Spoons She Fills the Beans Simply Recipes Smitten Kitchen Something in Season StephenCooks Su Good Eats Sugar Delirium SuperSpark

Talk of Tomatoes Tartlette Tasting Life Tea & Cookies The Domestic Goddess The Flying Apple The Inadvertent Gardener The Maggpie The Passionate Cook The Perfect Pantry The Savory Notebook The Thorngrove Table The Traveler's Lunchbox The Village Vegetable The Wednesday Chef This Mama Cooks Thyme for Cooking Tigers & Strawberries Tip of the Iceberg To Be Mrs. Marv Toast Toastpoint Tummy Treasure

Vanesscipes Veronica's Text Kitchen

What Did You Eat? What's for Lunch, Honey? Weekly Dish

Zinfully Delicious





Finding Food Blog Events

(some of these sites may be offline or inactive)
Is My Blog Burning? Sticky Date





Browsing for New Food Blogs

(some of these sites may be offline or inactive)
BlogHer Food & Drink Food Blog S'cool Food Porn Watch Foodie Blogs Food Blog Blog Ex Pat Food Blogs





About This List

This is a personal list of favorite food blogs and is not meant to list all the growing number of food blogs. If you're a food blogger and would like your blog added to a comprehensive list, check out the section above titled "Browsing for Food Blogs"; most accept new entries.

That said, I do love discovering new food blogs! If your food blog isn't listed here, please introduce your blog via blog AT kitchen [hyphen] parade {dot] com; be sure to include the URL and tell me a bit about what's special about your blog. Please be aware that I do not do link exchanges.

Thinking about starting a food blog? Please don't be overwhelmed by the increasing number of polished blogs: we all write our first (nervous) posts, we all take our first (blurry) photographs. You know those wobbly steps a toddler takes? Even marathon runners and Olympic athletes make those same first steps.

Food blogging is a wonderful hobby with a warm and supportive community! Never Trust a Skinny Chef offers great counsel and a realistic approach for how to start a food blog. It's worth a read.

If I think my readers will like your blog, I'll be happy to add it to the list. These are some of the many ways for a blog to catch my attention.

  • Does your blog reflect your personality? Do you share where you live, even in a general way? (The "United States" isn't good enough, "the Midwest" comes close, "a small family farm in the Midwest" is plenty.) What about your family?

  • Is your blog recipe centric? Occasional commercial food reviews and restaurant reviews are fine but my mission is to help home cooks find good recipes they can count on.

  • That said, if your blog simply copies recipes from other sources and contains little sense of your own excitement, curiosity and learning, it's not likely going to be a favorite.

  • Does your blog actively link to other food bloggers in its blogroll and its entries? I like to promote blogs that support other food bloggers and participate in the community.

  • How long have you been blogging? It takes awhile for bloggers to find their "voices" and learn whether they can/want to sustain a blog. There's no hard and fast time period but give yourself at least a couple of months of at least a post a week before introducing yourself.

  • Decent photos or illustrations.

  • Good original writing with punctuation and grammar and little to no profanity.

  • While your blog design is your design, please be aware that dark backgrounds, small fonts and few paragraph breaks are especially hard on the eyes.

  • A link to A Veggie Venture is not required but frankly, it can't hurt! Neither can occasionally commenting on my own posts that catch your attention.
Thanks for reading all the way to the end. I look forward to your introduction! ~ Alanna



Looking for healthy new ways to cook vegetables? A Veggie Venture is home to hundreds of super-organized quick, easy and healthful vegetable recipes and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables. Join "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg to explore the exciting world of common and not-so-common vegetables, seasonal to staples, savory to sweet, salads to sides, soups to supper, simple to special.

© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2007 & 2021

Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. Wow Alanna! Look at all those food blogs! No wonder it seems like I'm always trying to keep up with my foodie friends.

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  2. What a great job you've done on this.

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  3. Great list - I've spent the past hour browsing through them and adding some new ones to my feed reader!

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  4. Nice work Alanna - this is a great resource.

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  5. This is a terrific resource, Alanna. Thanks so much for including me!

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  6. Hey Alanna - great points, especially "Does your blog reflect your personality?"
    I read food blogs for many reasons but it sort of boils down to two:
    1) for cooking "inspiration"
    2) because I've grown attached to the writer and want to keep up with their latest goings-on... it's the personality, style and agreement with their cooking philosophy that keeps me coming back. For sure.

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  7. Gosh Alanna what a great work here. This is your special spirit that keeps me coming back. Thanks much for including me.

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  8. Wow, Alanna! This is so cool!! I loved the write-up you did. I was actually surprised to see myself listed (*blush*). Thanks a bunch!

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  9. Impressive article, Alanna and an impressive list of blogs. This is really useful information. Thanks for writing it. I am standing before an overwhelming buffet -- where do I begin?

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  10. I'm honoured to be included (which means that I must have done at least one or two of your requirements to catch your eye:). There's quite a few blogs that are new to me, so I'm about the check them out..

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  11. How great: what a superb overview and idea for a post. Thanks for including Talk of Tomatoes, what a great list to be a part of!

    I recently started another (second?!?!?!) food blog for 'what to pack in kids' lunches?' called Brown Bag Blues (www.brownbagblues.com)!

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  12. Erika ~ There truly has been an explosion of really good food blogs, hasn't there?!

    Kalyn ~ Thanks, a labor of love!

    Rachel ~ Thanks!!

    Ellie ~ I've been watching the stats and it seems like there's quite a few new blogs to people as it's some of the newer blogs that are getting the most clicks.

    Karen ~ Interesting, I didn't think of a blogroll as a resource but you're right, it can be.

    Genie ~ Yes you mostly blog about gardens but food people must know their sources, yes? Besides, I think about you every time I don't save scraps for compost -- maybe I should order that pot of yours after all!

    Vanessa ~ Me too. Karen from FamilyStyle and I gave a presentation about food blogging to a group of St. Louis food people last week. We were 'browsing' and got onto Cookie Madness just when Anna posted that her grandmother had died. I got all teary, in front of all those people, because I knew she'd been ill, knew she was important to Anna, and so there I was!

    Tanna ~ My goodness, thank you! You made my morning with that particular comment!

    Sally ~ It's fun to meet bloggers from my former home state of Iowa!

    Christine ~ Dessert First. (oh wait, did I miss one?)

    Pille ~ You sure do! Who else shares my proclivities to carrots AND beets!!

    Janelle ~ You're welcome. Brown Bag Blues sounds like a great concept for a blog.

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  13. Hi Alanna, thanks for linking to my blog. I lurk on yours almost every day.

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  14. Hi Alana. Great piece on food blogging! I am so pleased to see my blog included in your list. Thanks for that and for introducing me to some other great blogs.

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna