Why A Food Blog?

Am I a professional chef? Hardly. I graduated from Lubbock Christian University with a Bachelor's in Humanities and worked in the nonprofit sector for a few years before becoming a stay-at-home mom.

I am a self-taught cook who fell in love with developing recipes and blogging during the pandemic. I needed something to fill my time and slowly started pecking away at building the website you see now.

Rufus For Real started as a hobby and has turned into a full time job for myself and I couldn't be more excited!

What You Will Find Here

I make low‑prep, high‑payoff comfort food the entire family will love — real meals with big flavor and minimal steps.

Every recipe is designed for the whole family — shareable, kid‑approved, built to bring everyone to the table without the extra work. And, when I say kid-approved, I mean I've got two that aren't afraid of sharing their opinions!

Life is busy and schedules keep us going nonstop. The recipes should be easy and the recipes on Rufus for Real are just that!

I believe everything in moderation. We do some lighter bites and some more indulgent ones. Here, you can have your cake and it it, too!

I hope my recipes inspire you to not only create wonderful masterpieces in your kitchen, but also help you fall in love with cooking. Food should not only be nourishing to the body, but it should also feed the heart and the soul.

As I do have close family that have celiac's disease, I do try my hardest to incorporate as many recipes as I can that are either naturally gluten-free (like my gluten-free gumbo)or easily adapted to be sure. I will also do the same for my dairy-free peeps (you gotta try my peanut noodles). I believe we should all be able to enjoy easy, delicious recipes and I will do my very best to make it happen!

What You Won't Find Here

You will not find any recipes centered around diet culture here. I believe in making good, quality ingredient recipes that are whole food centered. There shall be no trendy diet recipes here.

You also won't find boring, bland flavors here. I love to play with a variety of seasonings, spices, and herbs to achieve maximum flavor with minimal effort!

Expect one‑pot dinners, sheet pan meals, 30‑minute classics — comfort cooking that doesn’t require hours in the kitchen!

Thank You For Being Here

Come on in, sit down, and enjoy recipes that are family-friendly, full of bold flavor, and are easy to make. Good food shouldn't be difficult, but it should be delicious and leave you wanting more.

That's exactly what you'll find here at Rufus for Real. It's real food, for real life.

Let Me Hear From You

I love my little community and am so grateful for all of you! It means the world to me if try one of my recipes and fall in love with it. So, leave me a comment or send me an email to say hi!

And, if you ever have any questions at all, please let me know. I love helping you walk through recipes and troubleshoot! Even if you just have the smallest question, let me know!

Even if you just want to say hi I would love to hear from you! I can be reached at therufusforreal@gmail.com. You can also tag me with the recipes you make on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok!