A New Way to Cookbook

Introducing the Cookbook Shorty Series

As we enter the month of October, I find myself reflective. The month has not started on great terms. As I was driving the kiddo back from feeding therapy, the steering wheel started to lock up. I was having a hard time controlling the car, especially when trying to turn left. Not to mention, the brakes are getting harder to push down and taking longer to stop. I was on the highway and knew I needed to get on a less busy street. I decide to turn; left is the only way to go. I proceed to hop a curb and almost hit a fence. The car starts to overheat on top of all of that. I turn the car off, defeated.

We are about three minutes away from the house-so close, yet so far away. Maximus is calm and supportive, “Come on mommy, you can do it,” as I try multiple times to get us moving so we can limp the rest of the way home. It is only through God’s grace we made it home with no cars on the road as I had to take the widest turns. Upon parking, I thank God we made it. It was quite the miracle. 

About 20 minutes go by and I decide to check out the car. I’m walking out of the house and as I get closer I notice something hanging from the bottom of the car-the serpentine belt! Y’all, Chad was amazed we even made it home. He says, “I’m surprised the car didn’t blow up.” This dude, lol. 

As the car sits in the driveway, unusable, I start to think, this is not the life God intended for me to have. 

What does this have to do with a new way to cookbook? I’ve been wanting to write a cookbook for awhile, for at least 10 years. I’ve started a proposal and written recipes-so close, yet so far away. All I've ever heard is that you need to have a following—thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people who enjoy your writing and recipes so the publisher knows whether or not you will be successful and recoup their money. 

I obviously don’t have that nor do I know if I ever will. It’s my dream but sometimes dreams don’t come to fruition in the way we want them to. 

Just like me driving and finding a way to make it home,  taking wide turns but with no cars to block my path or cause an accident, I can find a way to publish a cookbook when there seems like no way; I am the only one blocking my path. I refuse to be an unusable car. 

On October 29th, 2023, I will be publishing the first in my Cookbook Shorty series— From the Kitchen of Christilisa Holiday Desserts and Sides. It will be $7.99. 

What is a cookbook shorty? A baker's dozen of recipes around a certain topic. (This is similar to the Short Stack cookbooks that focus on a certain subject, such as butter with about 20-30 recipes.) They will be published as ebooks, available on iBooks and Google Play. During the holidays, I will offer print versions, with a very limited run. (Cookbooks make great gifts!) Print version price to come.

Cookbooks have a tendency to be too long and oftentimes overwhelming. Sometimes, you just want to focus on what will help you the fastest in your moment of need. 

For more added value, a subscription to From the Kitchen of Christilisa will give you access to videos, photos, and deeper instruction on the recipes included in the cookbook shorty. I want y’all to be confident in making each recipe your own. Recipes are guidelines and I’m here to help guide you through the process. 

Xoxo~Christilisa