About Me

Hello, I’m Sharon Rigsby, the cook, blogger, recipe developer, photographer, and videographer in training for Grits and Pinecones™, a southern cooking and hospitality blog.

I live in Tallahassee, Florida, with my husband Terry, and I’m all about creating delicious recipes with a Southern flair, which are quick, easy, and PERFECT to share with family and friends. Nothing fussy or complicated, just easy “go-to” dishes with everyday ingredients, for the home cook.

Culinary Experience:

As the oldest of six children, I started cooking at a very young age and have well over 50 years of experience in the kitchen. There is nothing I like better than cooking, developing and reimagining recipes for my family and friends, and I love to share my culinary creations with others.

Several years ago, I started the Grits and Pinecones blog to share some of my favorite recipes. Now, with almost 500 posted recipes, I’m also sharing expert tips and tricks, which I have learned along the way with you.

In addition, I also been a guest columnist and had my recipes featured in the weekly TLC Taste section of the Tallahassee Democrat-USA Today Network-Florida newspaper for over four years.

What you will find on Grits and Pinecones:

Quick and easy recipes made with everyday ingredients. If you are looking for something special, check out my category pages which separate all of my recipes into categories like appetizers, bread, breakfast, condiments, chicken, game-day, desserts, and healthy. Additional categories include holidays, lunch, main dish, seafood, side dishes, snacks, soup, and salads. I also have a special holiday section with classic recipes for the holidays including Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Fourth of July, Mardi Gras, Cinco de Mayo and more. Great taste in half the time!

If you are looking for southern recipes, you are in the right place. My southern recipe category runs the gamut from main dishes, desserts, appetizers, to side dishes, and is exactly what you need when you’re craving comfort food from the South. I have over one hundred southern recipes on my blog, and all are incredibly quick and easy and give you great taste in half of the time.

From some of the South’s most iconic dishes like Southern Fried Chicken, Old Fashioned Pecan Pralines, Homemade Fresh Peach Ice Cream, Easy Southern Cheddar Biscuits, Southern Style Baked Mac and Cheese, Southern Sweet Potato Pie, Southern Style Cornbread and one of my most popular posts, Southern Potato Salad, these recipes are guaranteed to please even your “pickiest eaters.”

Expert Tips: I add helpful tips and tricks to ensure that when you make one of my recipes, it turns out perfectly the first time, and every time you make it. I also try to include ideas for substitutions to help you avoid an extra trip to the grocery store.

Here’s a small sample of what my readers are saying after preparing my recipes:

Marie says: “This is an excellent recipe. I love the rub, glaze and peach salsa. Very clear steps and it has turned out great twice. Just ate it for supper tonight. Thank you for teaching me how to grill pork tenderloin.” Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Peach Salsa
Susan says: “This recipe is AWESOME! I’ve never cooked fresh-picked white acre peas before and was a little nervous. I’ve followed several of your recipes before and have had great success so I figured I’d give this one a try. SUCCESS! You make this recipe so easy and so good. Thanks for the tips too. I’m now blanching the rest of the white acre peas so I can freeze them and have this awesome dish again and again. Much appreciation to you!” Easy Peasy Southern Field Peas
Cindy says: “I made this cake last night. Brought it to work today, OMG, this cake is awesome! I have gotten so many compliments from my co-workers on this one!!! Sharon, Thanks so much for the yummy, yummy cake recipe. I will be making this one again real soon.” Southern Pecan Praline Cake
Martha says: “I recently made the quick and easy creamy shrimp creole. Loved it! So did my guests. Can’t wait to make it again when family visits in July.” The Ultimate Quick and Easy Shrimp Creole Recipe
Jim says: “This pork tenderloin w mustard sauce was AMAZING! We modified the cooking instructions to do it on the grill, and both the marinade and mustard sauce were incredible. Thanks for your blog- we are never disappointed when we try one of your recipes….” Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Spicy Mustard Sauce

Besides scrumptious well-tested recipes on Grits and Pinecones, you will also find:

Expert cooking tips and tricks,
Step-by-step tutorials and videos, and
Step-by-step process photos for each recipe.

Just a few places you can find featured recipes on Grits and Pinecones:

Better Homes and Gardens, Taste of Home, TODAY.com, Country Living, Parade, Community Table, Country Cooking, Tallahassee.com Community Blogs, Des Moines Register, FoodGawker, Shari’s Berries, Buzzfeed, Red Tricycle, Muckrack, YouTube, and MSN

And, my recipes have been showcased in the following print magazines:

Tailgater, and Cowgirl

Plus, I have been a guest presenter on the ABC affiliate, WTXL-TV Sunrise Morning Show cooking segment.

A copy of one of my recipes as featured in the Tallahassee Democrat, USA Today Network, Florida.

I am so happy that you are here! Please don’t be shy, when you try a recipe; please leave a star rating. Also, feel free to ask questions. Or, leave a comment to let me know what you think or how you liked it. I love to hear from you, and I always try to respond promptly.

Also, I would love it if you introduced yourself and let me know what types of recipes you would like to see on Grits and Pinecones.