About

hey there!

Hi, I'm Jess!

I'm a food photographer and recipe creator based in the Chicago suburbs. I'm deep into the sourdough journey and excited to share my easy baking and sourdough discard recipes with you. Let's get baking!

How It All Started...

I've always had a passion for cooking and baking (family friends will remember a months-long 8th-grade project all about baking!). I started taking photos of my cooking and baking creations to share with friends and family, then getting more and more into food photography. I took some wonderful food photography courses and attended summits and knew this intersection of food, baking, photography and storytelling was where I wanted to be!

This Jess Cooks is a way for me to share my recipes, tips and resources, and help other bakers try new things. Baking (and sourdough) doesn't have to be complicated, and I'm excited to share this baking journey with you!

Why Sourdough? And Why Discard?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, I was one of the (seemingly) millions of people who made a sourdough starter! We were all stuck at home, and a time-consuming baking project seemed like just what I needed. Soon enough, I realized that I liked the ritual of maintaining a sourdough starter, but I also realized that I had a LOT of sourdough discard.

At the time, there weren't many recipes sharing how to use sourdough discard, but I didn't want to waste it. I had just spent weeks creating this sourdough baby, and to have to throw away so much of it with each feed was literally painful. That's when This Jess Cooks went deep into the world of sourdough discard recipes.

I also wanted to help dispel some of the misconceptions that sourdough is complicated. It doesn't have to be. You can get into complex hydration percentages, specialty ingredients, and unusual techniques if you want to, but you don't have to.

There is a growing community of sourdough bakers who aren't looking for complicated and aren't looking for bakes that take 18+ hours. I like to think I'm part of that community making sourdough accessible.

What You will Find at This Jess Cooks

Simple baking and sourdough discard recipes suitable for beginner and intermediate bakers. And when I say simple, I really mean it. My intention is that if you can read directions, you can make these recipes.
- A few true sourdough recipes, too! Get started with this Easy Sourdough Bread recipe.
Tips for beginning your sourdough journey, including a sourdough starter recipe, and in-depth posts on how to feed sourdough starter, how to use sourdough discard, and tips for struggling sourdough starter.
- Plus, a free, downloadable guide on "How to Make a Sourdough Starter"!
An email newsletter where I share new recipes, updates, tips, and tricks. A newsletter is sent out weekly.

And What You Won't Find at This Jess Cooks

Baking should be for everyone, whether you're baking in a gourmet kitchen or a small college apartment. With that, there are a few things you won't see at This Jess Cooks:

Recipes that require specialty equipment. Yes, there are certain pieces of equipment that I think make baking easier (like a stand mixer), but they're not required. If something is truly required to make that recipe, I'll call it out!
- Check out my favorite kitchen gear and essentials that I use every day to make my recipes. These are pieces that you will use constantly!
Recipes that use obscure, uncommon ingredients. Very few recipes on This Jess Cooks require an obscure ingredient (and if they do, it's for a good reason). No one wants to have to buy something special to make one recipe, then have the rest of it sit in the back of your pantry for years. If you have to buy something to bake with, I'll make sure it's really worth it!

A crowd favorite

Sourdough Discard Cinnamon Roll Focaccia

One of my favorite recipes for brunch or an afternoon sweet treat.

Get the recipe

More About This Jess Cooks

Can I make your sourdough discard recipes with active starter?

Yes, you can! Nearly all of my sourdough discard recipes can be easily adapted to use active sourdough starter rather than sourdough discard. There are notes on how to do this in each recipe.

Does your sourdough starter have a name?

She does, and her name is Betty!

Will you be sharing more non-sourdough recipes?

Eventually! Right now I'm focusing on sourdough and sourdough discard, but I do plan to expand beyond that.