🍗 Crispy Oven-Baked Chicken (the everybody-asks-for-seconds one)
Ingredients
6–8 chicken thighs or drumsticks
1 cup buttermilk (or milk + splash of lemon)
1 cup breadcrumbs or crushed cornflakes
½ cup grated Parmesan
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp melted butter or olive oil
How Grandma Makes It
Soak the chicken in buttermilk (30 min–overnight = extra juicy).
Mix coating: breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic powder, paprika, salt, pepper.
Coat chicken, press it in so it sticks.
Drizzle with butter/oil for that golden crunch.
Bake at 200°C / 400°F for 40–45 min, flip once.
Optional secret flex: broil 2–3 min at the end for extra crisp.
👉 Secret weapon move: Add 1 tsp sugar to the crumbs. Sounds weird. Tastes legendary.
🥔 Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes (the bowl that comes back empty)
Ingredients
1 kg (2 lb) potatoes
4 cloves garlic (boiled with potatoes or roasted)
½ cup warm milk or cream
3 tbsp butter
Salt + black pepper
How Grandma Levels It Up
Boil potatoes + garlic till super soft.
Mash with butter first (important for silky texture).
Add warm milk slowly.
Season generously.
Finish with a tiny drizzle of olive oil on top.
👉 Secret weapon move: Mash one spoon of cream cheese in at the end. People will swear it’s “restaurant potatoes.”
🍮 Old-School Vanilla Bread Pudding (the dessert that ends arguments)
Ingredients
4 cups stale bread, cubed
2 eggs
1½ cups milk
½ cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
Optional: raisins or chopped dates
How Grandma Does It
Whisk eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon.
Toss bread in mixture, let soak 10 min.
Dot with butter.
Bake at 180°C / 350°F for 35–40 min.
Serve warm (extra points with vanilla sauce or ice cream).
👉 Secret weapon move: A pinch of salt in sweet desserts makes the flavor pop like magic.
If you tell me:
what country you’re in
whether Sunday dinner is meat-heavy, vegetarian, or comfort-food style
and how many people you’re feeding
…I’ll give you a full “Grandma’s Sunday Dinner” menu that feels like a family tradition 🫶
