About

Hello! My name is Leah, and I’m so grateful you dropped in today!

I created this food blog to stand up to the impossible standards we see in modern food blogs. After catching myself comparing my own meals and finished plates to the photos that besieged me online, I decided to give the world something real to digest.

This blog is the equivalent of me going out in public without makeup.

The photos I use have no filters, no professional equipment, and no editing. These are the real photos I take when I make the recipe in my own kitchen to eat that same day. If it isn’t a dish I would make again, I won’t post it. I will take a moment to share the modifications I try at home as I accommodate my own changing food sensitivities.

Food allergies included.

I believe that good recipes should be accessible to everyone, whether you keep to a budget or juggle multiple food allergies. That’s why you’ll see a lot variations and suggestions for modification in my posts. Read each recipe as an idea and seek to learn as you practice by making your own changes. As I experiment with meals, making frequent substitutions due to my own revolving allergies, I’ll share what you need to know to make any recipe work for you. No one gets left out!

You are enough.

So much of advertisement these days is about convincing us that we are not enough. My goal here at The Ugly Food Blog is to leave you feeling more important, capable, and cared for, while wasting no time in delivering reliable and realistic recipes. You are already enough! Whether your next recipe turns out like a five star dish or you end up throwing the whole pan in the trash, you will still be enough. Let’s celebrate that together!

Keep it short.

I promise you will find me striving to keep my recipe posts short so you can get right to cooking or baking. I aim to create more of a recipe resource than a food blog so that you can continue to grow as you practice on your own. I’ll include several variations you can try, or advice on how to create your own substitutions. I encourage you to step outside your comfort zone! That’s how we grow.

Real is better than perfect.

I hope you’ll be encouraged as you adventure through your own creations. You are enough! In your biggest kitchen fails and minor blunders, try one of the phrases I am practicing in my own growth process, “What did I learn?”

The process is more important than the outcome.

I hope you’ll keep stopping by, comment below with questions and tips, and come up with your own ugly recipes to share with friends and family. Be brave! And remember, you’re already enough.

Warmly-

Leah Ruth