Welcome back to Cake with Katie! Guys, I am so excited to announce that we have our first-ever cookbook author as today’s guest. That’s right—, the queen of Substack, czar of the Butterpants (IYKYK), and lover of all things smutty, is joining us this month! Below we chat about her upcoming cookbook, What to Cook When You Don't Feel Like Cooking: Make It Fast (out tomorrow!), recipe favorites, and, of course, B.R.A.D.s.
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If my cooking journey was a romance novel, it would absolutely have an enemies-to-lovers arc. Every mistake you can make in the kitchen, I’ve made it. Fire alarms have blared, oven mitts have caught fire, and meat has been drastically overcooked.
Cooking has just never come naturally to me. I grew up with a mom who was not only an excellent cook, but could also totally wing it. I actually can’t think of a single time I watched her consult a recipe. She created delicious meals on short notice, simply whipping things up using what she had on hand. I attribute her culinary brilliance to her Italian ancestry, her creativity, and the fact that she didn’t fear anything in the kitchen. I, on the other hand, need a recipe, a little hand-holding, and the most explicit instructions—otherwise dinner will be ruined. I basically lead with fear! The first time I cooked for my now-husband, I attempted bolognese and was so scared I was going to undercook the ground beef and give him food poisoning that I burnt it to a crisp. It looked like little charcoal buoys were bobbing in my tomato sauce. He choked it down—bless him—but after I had a bite, we immediately ordered tacos.
Despite my lack of cooking skills, I love perusing a cookbook. The glossy photos! The beautiful meals! The gorgeous spines! I viewed cookbooks more as kitchen decor than, you know, actually helpful resources for cooking. Everything changed when I started following Caro Chambers on Instagram, subscribed to her Substack, and bought her cookbook of the same name when it released in 2024. That is when the enemies became lovers and the second half of my life in the kitchen began!
Even if I didn’t have an internet-turned-real-life friendship with Caro, she’d still be my favorite cookbook author. She creates accessible recipes that are fresh and tasty crowd-pleasers, and she writes them without the assumption that you know how to julienne something (my experience with the word julienne is limited to that one Friends episode with Monica and the creepy restaurant guy).
I own both a physical copy of her first cookbook and a Kindle version to consult in the grocery store. I can also guarantee that every one of my friends owns it too because I bought it for every person I encountered the year it came out. I post my favorite Caro recipes so often that I sometimes wonder if people think I am a shareholder in the WTC world! I wish!
If you, too, own What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking, check out my absolute favorite recipes:
Sausage & Kale Pasta (page 84)
Chicken Parm Sliders (page 140)
White Chicken Chili (page 148)
Enchilada Rice Skillet (page 180): I have made this recipe almost every week since buying the book.
Sheet Pan Chicken Poblano Fajitas (page 191)
Skillet Cheddar Turkey Burgers (page 205)
If you’re a subscriber to Caro’s Substack, my go-to recipes are below (but I feel like I haven’t even scratched the surface of all the great meals she has to offer there!):
Tiny Tomato Pasta: I like this with grilled chicken!
The other wonderful thing about Caro is that she’s a reader! Last summer, we had a wine-fueled (on my end—Caro was nine months pregnant) book club in Carmel, California, where we discussed Carley Fortune’s One Golden Summer (review here). A few years back, I also appeared on her old podcast, So Into That, and we talked about everything from the Magnolia Parks Universe (review here) to the time I accidentally split a Rice Krispies treat with a mouse.
When Caro announced her next cookbook, I honestly thought to myself, “How can it get better than What to Cook?” Well, after receiving an ARC of Make It Fast, I can confirm—it does get better because every single one of these recipes requires no more than 30 minutes of active cooking time. I am so looking forward to you guys getting your hands on this cookbook!
But enough from this self-proclaimed cooking novice—let’s hear from Caro!
Katie: As always, dessert first! What’s your favorite cake of all time to eat (think: someone else is making you this cake!)?
Caro: Momofuku makes this chocolate peppermint cake during the holidays that is ABSOLUTELY INSANE. I am a big chocolate peppermint aficionado, and this cake is top tier. Locally, the Death by Chocolate cake from Layers Sensational Cakes in Monterey is supreme.
Katie: What is your “&”—your bubbly to your beach reads—your must-have indulgence, comfort, or ritual to go along with your recipe development and writing process?
Caro: Babies??? I am so obsessed with babies. I just keep having them because I love having them around so much.
Katie: You get to cook a meal for the fictional character of your choice. What are you cooking and for whom?
Caro: Emma M. Lion!! Hawkes, Islington, and Pierce would undoubtedly all stop by at some point, so it would be like a four-for-one. I’m cooking her something REALLY fancy that Agnes would be crazy impressed by. Maybe the Life-Changing Beef Ragu (page 217) from my new book?! A saucy, beefy red pasta feels like something that would really infuriate Cousin Archibald and Aunt Eugenia, so Emma would love it.
Katie: Tell us about Make It Fast. How fast are we talking here? The title has me hoping for less time in the kitchen and more time with a book!
Caro: We’re talking so fast!!!!! Every single recipe in the book takes under 30 minutes. There’s a 15-minute chapter, a 30-minute chapter, and a “Walk Away” chapter where the actual hands-on work takes under 30 minutes, but then there’s at least an hour of walk-away time—slow braises, simmers, things like that.
Katie: I have made the Enchilada Rice Skillet (see above!) almost every week since your last cookbook, What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking, released two years ago—as have many BR&B readers! Based on this, what do you think our favorite recipe will be in MIF?
Caro: I love your love of that recipe so much. I’m really excited for you to try the Pork al Pastor Rice (page 125). The One-Pan al Pastor Enchiladas and the Enchilada Rice Skillet from book one are two major cult faves. This is kind of a worlds-colliding of those two recipes. It’s even easier than the Enchilada Rice Skillet and just SO cozy and delicious. Really fun—pineapple, pork, salsa verde. It’s so good. I also really want you to try the Super Simple Carnitas (page 226) in the “Walk Away” chapter. They’re embarrassingly easy, and people lose their minds over them.
Katie: What MIF recipe has been a new constant in your recent rotation?
Caro: Weirdly the Hot Honey Roasted Broccoli and Chickpeas with Couscous (page 81). It’s a recipe so basic that I almost didn’t even include it, but you make this really delightful limey, hot honey dressing that you pour over the roasted veg, and it’s just so, so good. To be honest, I usually don’t even make the couscous that’s a part of the recipe. I just eat a huge bowl of broccoli and chickpeas for dinner. I also like to add feta to it.
Katie: What’s your favorite cocktail or mocktail to drink while cooking—let’s say you’re not trying to make it fast!
Caro: I know you’re a Sophie James person too—I’m really into her Sauvignon Blanc this summer. It’s my cooking companion many nights. I’m also a big margarita person—equal parts tequila and lime juice, plus a splash of simple syrup. Shaking it with ice is, unfortunately, completely necessary. You can’t just stir it all together. The flavor is totally different and way better when you shake it!
Katie: For anyone who doesn’t know, you are a fellow avid romance reader! What’s the last romance novel you read that gave you butterflies?
Caro: Have I mentioned The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion [by Beth Brower]…?! I finished Vol. 7 last night and am dreading finishing 8 since we don’t know when 9 is coming out yet! Before that, I read Into the Blue by Emma Brodie, and I could not believe how astoundingly good it is. It’s so beautiful and heartwrenching and sexy.
Katie: Who is your current favorite book boyfriend?
Caro: You know who I was thinking about this morning? Henry Havenwood from The Poison Daughter [by Sheila Masterson]. I think he’s a vampire? But like, not a black cloak-y vampire, just a hot vampire. I loved that TPD was a standalone romantasy. As you and I often discuss, I hate when I get really into a romantasy (Quicksilver, Silver Elite, etc.) and then have to wait a full year for the next book. By the time it comes out, I have COMPLETELY forgotten everything about the prior book. I am dying to read the second Quicksilver and Silver Elite books, but I don’t have the time to go back and figure out what the heck is going on, so I’m putting it off!
Katie: What book would you recommend to someone in a reading rut who wants to get back into it?
Caro: This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum is so good on audio. It’s narrated by the queen of narration, Julia Whelan, and has tons of great effects and just totally sucks you in. I always recommend Big Fan by Alexandra Romanoff for anyone in a rut. It’s a novella, so super short, and it’s just SO GOOD—about a DC political strategist who gets the chance to work with her childhood boy band crush. Spoiler: THEY FALL IN LOVE.
Lauren: I love how you bring fancy recipes to life in a way that works for the working mom. How have you managed navigating being a mom of young kiddos, working, and being someone who enjoys a good meal? How have you discovered some of your shortcuts?
Caro: Thank you! I have always loved food and the way it gathers people around a table to slow down and enjoy time with each other. I like good food. But when I started having kids, I had less and less time to cook “good” food. So I found ways to create really beautiful, special-feeling meals in a fraction of the time. I practice what I preach—I really, genuinely, do not feel like cooking a lot of the time. I work full-time, and I have FOUR kids! I have become a one-pot, sheet-pan meal master because I loathe doing dishes, not because they’re trendy. So I think just living in this mindset and writing the recipes that *I* genuinely need and want right now has given me a lot of reps and helped me become really good at writing easier, more efficient recipes that are still really delicious.
Molly: How do you find time for yourself and the things that bring YOU delight with four small children and a thriving career?! Essentially, how does the figurative cake enjoyment happen?
Caro: Childcare!!! I hosted a dinner with Dr. Becky recently, and she said something that I can’t stop thinking about: If an airplane pilot showed up for work and was like, “Hey! I haven’t slept more than three hours in a row in four months, I’m anxious as hell, and I’m exhausted! Let’s fly this plane!” Everyone would be like, “NO, THANK YOU. I’M GETTING OFF THIS PLANE!” But in motherhood, we accept exhaustion and burnout as table stakes. That has to stop. With my first kid, I never had adequate childcare to both do my job and be a good mom, so I felt mediocre at everything. I never took the time to take care of myself. In fact, I only hired a full-time nanny this past February. My husband and I both work full-time, we have four kids, and we both travel for work all the time. And we’ve only had a full-time nanny supporting us for six months! I finally feel like I’m not constantly chasing my tail. And I’m definitely still chasing my tail most of the time—just not constantly. It’s an improvement!
Caity: I’m picturing you as Frankie in Our Perfect Storm [by Carley Fortune] now. Have you had a chance to read that yet? If you have, what did you think as a recipe developer yourself?
Caro: OK, I kept thinking about the Carley Fortune and Caro Chambers overlap girls and how they’d think this was my job! You know how Frankie works for her friend who writes, like, really basic-ass recipes that have mass appeal? And she low-key hates the job because she is creative, and her boss isn’t and just wants basic recipes? I think I am actually Frankie + her boss combined. I pride myself on writing REALLY approachable, easy, and efficient recipes. But I am also a Frankie, and I want them to feel exciting and stretch you out of your comfort zone! I love hearing that people tried new ingredients they’d never even heard of or new flavor combinations they didn’t think they’d like.
Kennedy: You have such a variety of creative recipes. Where do you draw inspiration?
Caro: EVERYWHERE! In the books I read and the incredible farmers’ markets all around Carmel. I travel for work and pleasure a lot, and I’m constantly eating and talking to people about what they’re eating. I’m constantly asking people what the most recent thing they cooked for dinner and really loved was.
How fun is Caro?! I can think of no one better to be Cake with Katie’s inaugural cookbook author. Preorder What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking: Make It Fast, out August 11, here. If you live around Chicago, come see me and Caro yap in person on October 21! Get tickets here. If you’re not local, Caro might be coming to a city near you (and her conversation partners are pretty insane!). Find her full book tour schedule here.
Subscribe to Caro’s bestselling Substack that inspired her cookbooks here (and get new recipes every Saturday!), and follow her on Instagram here. Finally, three Club Bubbly subscribers who leave a comment by Friday, August 14, will win a copy of Make It Fast!
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xoxo, Katie
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