Chefs We Love
September 27, 2022
7 Fresh and Flavorful Recipes From Tieghan Gerard
If you follow popular food and recipe blogs, you’ll no doubt know Tieghan Gerard of Half Baked Harvest. Having just published her third cookbook, Half Baked Harvest: Every Day, the 28-year-old cook and author took time out of her busy schedule to tell us about her background and food philosophy — and share some recipes — making it easy to see why Tieghan’s followers can’t get enough of her cooking.
Because her recipes are so accessible and adaptable, millions of people, including plenty of celebs, flock to her blog and cookbooks. Don’t have provolone? She’ll suggest cheese alternatives. Need a recommendation for the best type of hot sauce? She’s got it covered! (It’s Frank’s RedHot, by the way.) Also, while Tieghan’s recipes are quite healthy overall, she still includes pizza and pasta dishes, too. Her philosophy is that if you’re cooking at home, it’s already healthier than eating out — and home-cooked family meals are something she’s more than familiar with.
Tieghan lives next door to her parents’ farm in the Colorado mountains in two converted barns that are customized for developing recipes and sharing them online. “It’s been really cool to do things with celebrities, be on Good Morning America and hit these big lists, but I’m just proud of this blog and community that I created from the ground up,” says Tieghan. Coming from a family of 10, Tieghan was enlisted to help with dinner from a young age and found her love of food and cooking along the way. She started her blog in 2009 while being dragged around to various mountains for her Olympic gold medal–winning snowboarder brother. Without much to do, Tieghan would spend her mornings on hikes with her mom and evenings cooking in the kitchen of whatever rental house they were staying in. Her mom suggested that Tieghan document her food experiments on a blog, and the rest is history.
Her latest cookbook came out earlier this year. “It focuses on simple, wholesome recipes with lots of color and so much flavor that families can enjoy, and also feel great about eating,” she says. And not only did she develop all of the recipes, Tieghan photographed them, too. As a young food blogger, she learned to take all of her own photos and style her dishes like a pro.
So much of what Tieghan does is inspired by her loved ones, including many of the recipes in the new book. For example, for anything meat-related, you can usually thank one of Tieghan’s six brothers (they’re big fans of the Mongolian Beef), Nonnie’s Sticky Apricot Chicken is inspired by her grandmother who used to serve the dish at Easter, and her mom’s cookie technique is showcased in the Salty Chocolate Pretzel Rye Cookies.
Tieghan’s dishes are subtly healthy, with no pressure to count calories or fats. Instead, she encourages at-home cooks to keep a well-stocked pantry of spices. “My ingredient lists can scare people because they’re long, but often it’s just pantry staples that most people already have, like dry spices. That’s how I like to add a lot of flavor,” she says.
To develop a recipe, she often starts with a beautiful image in her head and works backwards. It’s part of the reason why, on Instagram, she mainly follows fashion stylists and interior designers such as Nate Berkus, Kelly Wearstler and Leanne Ford. Inspired by these designers, she’s now redecorating her home and studio, working with Katie Hodges Design. While she loves color in her recipes, Tieghan, at home, is a self-professed minimalist who likes a touch of vintage — anything she can do to limit the clutter of her life.
Meanwhile, she’s still putting out content on her blog every day and working on soon-to-be released product collaborations. Every day is a chaotic, creative whirlwind, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Scroll down to see some of Tieghan’s recipes!
Brussels Sprouts and Gnocchi
“This combination is one of my favorites in the fall and winter months, when all I want is a cozy, hearty dish. Nothing is better than tossing the sprouts with gnocchi. What’s special about this gnocchi is that it’s made with cauliflower instead of potato. It feels a little lighter.”
Get the recipe here.
Herby Sun-Dried Tomato Salad
“The crunchy seeds and the herbs are the shining stars, so do not skimp on either. Also, the secret to the chickpeas is panfrying them in a little bit of butter.”
Get the recipe here.
Lasagna Alla Vodka
“When I’ve got a group of people coming, I turn to lasagna. This version has become my favorite because it’s delicious and adaptable. Instead of the usual marinara sauce, I swap in my vodka sauce.”
Get the recipe here.
Mongolian Beef
“The classic version of this dish usually consists of a soy-based sauce sweetened with brown sugar. I’m pretty sure it’s the delicious sauce that keeps me (and everyone else) coming back for more, but I use a less-sugary-than-usual version.”
Get the recipe here.
Honey-Roasted Carrots
“Carrots are naturally sweet, and roasting them brings that out even more while the honey creates a nice glaze. Then the herb oil helps balance all that sweetness.”
Get the recipe here.
Nonnie’s Sticky Apricot Chicken
“This recipe is really all about the sauce. The three main ingredients sound odd together but are magic. They create a sticky, sweet and savory chicken that will satisfy all your cravings.”
Get the recipe here.
Salty Chocolate Pretzel Rye Cookies
“These are crisp on the edges, doughy in the middle and loaded with chocolate. The rye adds unexpected flavor; it’s nutty and rich and, when combined with the salty pretzels and brown butter, it makes for a cookie that really does melt in your mouth.”
Get the recipe here.
About Tieghan
- More than four million people follow her on Instagram (including Reese Witherspoon, Leanne Ford and Gigi Hadid)
- She’s been featured on Good Morning America, The Cooking Channel, Food Network and HGTV, to name a few
- Books in print: Half Baked Harvest Cookbook (2017) Half Baked Harvest Super Simple (2019) Half Baked Harvest: Every Day (2022)*
*On The New York Times bestseller list for 13 weeks and counting!
Tieghan Gerard