Vernell's Cookbook

Come on in this kitchen

The food that raised us — before it slips away

My grandmother never owned a cookbook. She cooked by her hands and her eyes and her nose, a pinch of this and a little of that, and she never wrote a word of it down. Most of the women who fed us that way are gone now — and a whole lot of this food went right on with 'em.

So I wrote it down. Every recipe in here is the old way — low and slow, cast iron, smoked meat, a pot of rice, and a little love. No fancy gadgets. No shortcuts. Just the real Gullah Geechee Lowcountry soul food of the coastal Carolinas and Georgia, written the way I'd tell it to you standing right next to you at the stove.

What's inside

Nine chapters, sixty-six recipes

Chapter One

The Sunday Main

Smothered oxtails, smothered chicken & pork chops, neck bones, old-way fried chicken, turkey wings, short ribs.

Chapter Two

Straight From the Water

Shrimp & grits, Frogmore stew, fried shrimp & catfish, deviled crab, she-crab soup, crab cakes.

Chapter Three

The Rice Pot

Gullah red rice, Hoppin' John, crab rice, chicken perloo, okra soup, chicken bog, seafood gumbo.

Chapter Four

Greens, Beans & Sides

No-boil collards, fried okra, candied yams, baked mac & cheese, green beans, butter beans, potato salad.

Chapter Five

Hot Bread

Cast-iron cornbread, hoecakes, hush puppies, buttermilk & sweet-potato biscuits, cornbread dressing.

Chapter Six

Something Sweet

Sweet potato pie, peach cobbler, banana pudding, pound cake, pecan pie, benne wafers, tea cakes.

Chapter Seven

Sunday Breakfast

Salmon croquettes, fried fish & grits, creamy grits, smothered potatoes, buttermilk pancakes.

Chapter Eight

Grandma's Dollar Stretchers

Red beans & rice, pinto beans, smothered wings, hamburger steak & gravy — feed the family on a little.

Chapter Nine

Something to Sip

Southern sweet tea, fresh lemonade, hibiscus red drink, peach tea, party punch.

Every recipe gives you real amounts (US + metric), how you know it's done, and a Big Mama's Rescue for when it goes sideways — plus Grandma's Measures, Sunday-dinner menus, and pages to write your own family's recipes.

Who's cookin'

Meet Big Mama Vernell

I came up on the Sea Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia — the Gullah Geechee Lowcountry, where my people been fishin' these creeks and cookin' this food for a long, long time. This book is my way of keeping it alive, so your children and your grandchildren can taste what we tasted, and know whose hands it came through.

You don't need to be fancy, baby. You just need a little patience and a willing heart. Season to your taste, cook till it feels right, and don't you rush it — the slowness is the love.

— Big Mama Vernell

Get your copy

Yours to keep, print & cook from forever

$12.99$29.99

Launch price — save $17 off the regular $29.99

66 recipes across 9 chapters
Real amounts — US & metric both
A "Big Mama's Rescue" on every recipe
Grandma's Measures + Sunday menus
Read on your phone, tablet, or print it
Instant download — yours forever

Download the Cookbook Secure checkout through Gumroad

A few questions

Before you buy

What do I get, exactly?

A digital PDF cookbook — 66 recipes across nine chapters, with real amounts in US and metric, a "Big Mama's Rescue" on every recipe, Grandma's Measures, and Sunday-dinner menus. After checkout you download it right away and it's yours to keep.

Can I read it on my phone?

Yes, baby. It opens on any phone, tablet, or computer, and you can print it out and keep it right there in the kitchen if you like.

Is this a physical book?

No — it's a digital download, so it costs less and you get it this minute instead of waiting on the mail. Print it yourself any time.

Are these the recipes from the videos?

These are the same old-way Gullah Lowcountry recipes I cook on the channel — written down, step by step, with my tips, all in one place.