Bonnie runs the kitchen. I run the fire. Here's everything I know.
Come on out to the porch, friend. Sixty years of feeding firemen, farmhands and family off a pecan-wood fire, written down plain: what to do, why it works, and how to fix it when it doesn't.
This book is for you if…
You want the cooking your granddaddy did, not what comes out of a box.
Your cornbread crumbles, your chicken sticks, your pork chops come out dry, and you want to know why.
You own a cast-iron skillet, or you're fixing to, and want it to earn its keep.
You grew up in the South, or wish you had, and miss Sunday dinner the old way.
What's inside the book
79 recipes in 8 chapters, laid out the way a Georgia farm actually cooked.
Daybreak at the Cookshed
Fried eggs in bacon grease, cheese grits, country ham with red-eye gravy and hoecakes with cane syrup.
Daddy's Skillet
Hot-iron cornbread, fried chicken, pork chops and fried green tomatoes in the iron that's older than I am.
The Big Black Pot
Brunswick stew, beans and greens, and the pot liquor you never pour out.
Friday Fish Fry
Catfish, hushpuppies and a crust that stays crisp, the fire department way.
Low and Slow
Pulled pork, smoked chicken and ribs over pecan smoke, each with an indoor method too.
Peanuts & Pecans
Boiled peanuts, toasted pecans and everything a Georgia orchard gives you.
Bonnie's Kitchen
Pecan pie, biscuits, peach cobbler and banana pudding from the woman who's always right in the end.
Nothing Goes to Waste
Bacon grease, ham hocks, cornbread crumbs and leftovers, all put to work.
Every recipe comes with
- 01Plain ingredients from any grocery store, with exact amounts.
- 02Short, numbered steps in big, easy-to-read type.
- 03Why it works: the farm reason behind each step, in plain words.
- 04If it goes wrong: what happened, and how to fix it next time.
- 05Safe temperatures where they matter, so you never have to guess.
Hot-Iron Skillet Cornbread
8 wedges · 10-inch skillet- 2 cups stone-ground cornmeal
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp sugar, optional
- 2 large eggs
- 1¾ cups cold buttermilk
- 4 Tbsp bacon grease
- Grease in the skillet, skillet in a 425 °F oven till the grease shimmers.
- Stir dry, then wet. About 15 strokes; leave the lumps.
- Pour into the hot iron. Listen for the sizzle.
- Bake 20–25 min, till golden.
- Flip it out on a board right away.
Hot iron, cold batter. The crust sets the second it hits the pan.
No sizzle when the batter went in? The iron wasn't ready. Wait till the grease shimmers.
Also in the book, at no extra cost
Large-print edition
The whole book in big type. Easy on the eyes, easy to print and keep by the fire.
20 printable recipe cards
My favourites on 4×6 cards: ingredients on the front, steps on the back.
One Fire, Four Suppers
Light one fire on the weekend and get four suppers out of it, with the safe way to keep what's left.
Fire & Iron Kitchen Card
Safe temperatures, frying heat, fire and fryer rules and cast-iron care, for the kitchen wall.
About Papa Royce
I was born in 1942 on a pecan and peanut farm in Dougherty County, Georgia, near Albany. I worked that farm for fifty years, and for decades I was head cook at the volunteer fire department fundraisers: fish fries for three hundred, Brunswick stew in the big black pot.
I'm no chef. I'm a pecan farmer who's been feeding firemen, farmhands and family off a wood fire for sixty years. Bonnie runs the kitchen. I run the fire.
Papa Royce is the storyteller of our channel, a character inspired by real South Georgia farm cooking. Every recipe is a traditional farm dish, written in our own words and checked against trusted cooking and food-safety sources.
Cookshed Book
- The Cookshed Book: 79 farm recipes, PDF
- Large-print edition
- 20 printable recipe cards
- One Fire, Four Suppers plan
- Fire & Iron Kitchen Card
Cook one supper from the book. If it isn't the kind of cooking you were hoping for, write within 7 days and get every penny back. No hard feelings, friend.
Questions before you buy
Do I need a smoker or a wood fire?
No. Every smoker, grill and fire recipe in the book also has a full method for your own kitchen. A cast-iron skillet and a big pot will carry you a long way.
I'm not a good cook. Is this too hard?
These are everyday farm suppers in short steps and big type, and every recipe tells you what to do if it goes wrong.
Is this a printed book?
No, it's a digital download (PDF). Read it on any device, or print the pages you want.
I'm not good with computers. How do I open it?
After you pay, you get an email with a download button. Tap it and the book opens. You can download it again any time from that same email.
Are the recipes the same as in the videos?
The tricks from the videos are all in here, plus plenty of recipes that never made it on camera.
What if I don't like it?
Write to us within 7 days and you'll get a full refund.
Low fire, good company, and nobody leaves hungry.
Get the Cookshed Book — $24.99