Hi, I’m Joy, NOT Joyce. I grew up in the midwest, half of my life in Minnesota, the other half in Illinois. My husband Vinnie and I have gotten to live in some amazing cities together. From Minneapolis, to Dallas, to New York City, to where we currently live - Los Angeles! (Yep we have accidentally lived in the North, South, East, + West!)

I grew up helping my mom cook, there are 7 kids in my family so we always cooked for a crowd. We ate traditional midwestern food, pot roast, chicken & dumplings, casseroles, homemade bread, and plenty of warm delicious cookies. It wasn’t until I was in college that I started to branch out and cook with new ingredients and try new recipes. I was comfortable with the few things I knew how to cook, until one day when I turned on Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa on Food Network. She cooked simple, amazing food that I couldn’t wait to try! And so I tried, and tried, and here I am continuing to TRY making new food, learning new techniques, learning to use new ingredients, and it’s been the Joy of my life! I set up this blog to encourage any of you who are wanting to try new recipes and teach yourself how to cook. I have so much to learn, and I can’t wait to bring you along on my journey as I learn to cook.  It’s a big undertaking but I plan on continuing as long as I’m hungry!

All photos on this site were taken by Joy & Vinnie Thomas (My huz)