Daily Inspiration: Meet Courtney Hill

Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney Hill. 

Hi Courtney, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
My name is Courtney Hill (Cookbook Author) 

I grew up in Joplin and Webb City, MO, then moved to Kansas City in my adult years. I learned most of what I know about cooking from my mother, who learned from her mother. I didn’t grow up on the farm, but I have relatives who are farmers and, well, let’s just say we know a thing or two about good food! I learned the rest of my cooking knowledge from my formal education. 

I have a master’s degree in family and consumer sciences (FCS) in 2014 and I taught high school FCS for four years. I decided to stay home when my twins were born in 2012, and I loved being home with them. I still love teaching and the FCS umbrella of subjects. I think they are essential and teach us how to become functioning adults and members of society. I approach my recipes with an educator’s mindset. Hopefully, you find them easy to follow and easy to prepare. 

I am married to my love. We have been married since 2005. He is a very talented commercial photographer. We own 8183 Studio in downtown KC. We own a Production studio where we produce outstanding stills and motion adverting content for business and agencies. I work at the photography studio as the studio manager and chief financial officer. We have two children—fraternal boy/girl twins. Being parents’ twins have its unique joys and challenges, and we love them very much! 

I am a very crafty person, and I love to create and work with my hands. My hobbies include knitting, crocheting, cross-stitch and embroidery, sewing, quilting, canning, gardening, cooking, baking, and cookie and cake decorating. I also love to throw pottery but haven’t found the time in the last few years. My new favorite pastime is paint by numbers. It is such a stress-releasing activity for me and I’m not staring at a screen. I love to sing and am very active on my church worship team. I also have a side business where I make custom cakes and cookies out of my home. I am a mid-century girl at heart. I love the fifties and anything vintage. Some of my favorite pastimes are thrifting and antiquing. I enjoy listing to my oldie’s records and spending time with my family. 

While I was a stay-at-home mom, I found myself slipping away a bit. I was knee-deep in dirty diapers and schedules. I needed to do something for myself as a creative outlet. So, I created a video cooking blog to share my recipes and teach people how to cook simple and delicious meals for their families. I started it in January 2015 and have enjoyed every minute of it. This cookbook is a companion to the blog. I hope you enjoy the recipes and check out the how-to videos on my blog: www.cookingwithcourtney05.blogspot.com 

I want to inspire and teach a new generation how to cook great meals at home for themselves and their families. I want to bring back family meals and time spend together with loved ones in the kitchen preparing them. I bring a modern spin to classic vintage-style recipes. 

I love being from the Midwest. It’s the heart of the country, and there is so much wide-open space, even in the city. A lot of my recipes are inspired by my Midwest roots. I hope this cookbook gives you some staple recipes you will share with your families. Enjoy the food and the time together! 

The cookbook has always been a dream of mine and I guess I’ve been writing it as long as I’ve had my blog. It was always a distant dream of “someday I’ll write a cookbook.” I actually sat down and wrote the contents a couple years ago and in the early stages of the COVID shut down I just decided to send it to any publisher that was accepting unsolicited cookbook proposals. I got a lot of nos but then I got one yes. That was the motivation I needed to really give it a shot. I knew I wanted it to have a vintage feel and the shutdown actually gave my husband and I time to try out a few photos. I wanted them to have a 1940’s 1950’s and after the first 2 photos, I knew it was going to be awesome and so unlike anything on the market today. We are still in production but I’m so pleased with how it is turning out. It is truly a dream come true. The cookbook is a general cookbook with Classic Midwest American recipes as well as many of my own. Like most American cooking there is a mixture of ethnicities and genres all rolled into one. They are simple recipes, with real ingredients, that you’ll actually make. It includes the following categories: breakfast, appetizers, sandwiches, salads, soups, main dishes, side dishes, desserts, and cocktails. 

The cookbook is for any and everyone. It is a collection of easy-to-prepare recipes staples for every pantry. It is great for beginner as well as long-time cooks because there are a lot of cooking tips. I hope it will inspire and teach people to cook more meals at home. 

I would love to turn my blog into a cooking show. That has been a dream of mine since childhood. Cooking with Courtney, I called it and I even had a theme song, lol. I have a unique perspective, as I have an education background. I want to teach people to cook, not just show them how to make a complicated recipe they will never actually attempt to make at home. I want to teach a lifestyle of cooking at home and how it can be accomplished. It is so great for you family to cook meals at home, so much healthier for your body, your family’s mental and emotional health, and your wallet. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I started to blog in 2015. I loved it but never got much traction with it. I decided to try for the cookbook and I got a lot of rejections but it only takes 1 yes. Lots of things in life will slow you down or trip you up but if the dream is worth it, it’s worth fighting for. Sometimes it through patience and sometimes is through taking risks and pushing forward but any dream worth having is worth the effort. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Known for: good recipes and good food. 

Most proud of the cookbook 

Sets me apart – education background and vintage style. I also like to have a lot of fun in the kitchen too. 

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Honesty Integrity 

Quality 

Pricing:

• $35 is the price of the cookbook

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cookingwithcourtney05.blogspot.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/courtneyhill0505/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cookingwithcourtney05
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/courtneyhill05
• Other: https://mascotbooks.com/mascot-marketplace/buy-books/cookbooks/all/homemade-the-american-family-cookbook/

Image Credits
Ryan Hill