Meet the Chef
Hey y’all! I’m Eden Westbrook, the creator of Sweet Tea and Thyme. I’m a classically trained chef with over a decade of experience in the food industry and a deep love for cooking.
Sweet Tea + Thyme is the go-to site for down-home and refined Southern cooking, dishes from my childhood, and must haves for the holidays and entertaining.
As Seen On
A little About Sweet Tea + Thyme
I built Sweet Tea + Thyme for home cooks who want more than basic meals. My readers come here for crispy buttermilk fried chicken, creamy baked mac and cheese, rich short rib ragu over crispy handmade gnocchi, flaky biscuits, and slow-simmered collards. Recipes that feed people and become traditions of your own.
You’ll find the dishes your grandma made, updated with the techniques I learned in culinary school and the lessons I picked up from working in the food industry for the past decade.
I don’t cut corners unless it makes the dish better and I don’t publish anything I wouldn’t serve to the people I love.
Why You Can Trust Sweet Tea + Thyme
- I grew up surrounded by amazing, award-winning home cooks and restaurateurs (aka my grandma, mama, and aunties!).
- I am classically trained and went to Le Cordon Bleu in Miami, FL.
- I’ve worked in professional kitchens and in the front of the house.
- I’ve created recipes for restaurants and food companies around the world.
- And I’ve spent over a decade building Sweet Tea + Thyme into a trusted resource for millions of readers.
You’ve seen my work in Taste of the South, Buzzfeed, Good Housekeeping, and Essence, but more importantly, my recipes show up in real kitchens: on busy weeknights, at holiday tables, and your weekly Sunday suppers.
I don’t publish anything I wouldn’t serve to the people I love. I test everything myself, down to the last detail. I break each recipe down so you don’t have to guess. I keep the flavor high and the nonsense low, and I treat your time and ingredients with respect.
I’ve lived all across the South -- Georgia, Texas, Florida, and Virginia -- and now I’m raising my family in the Virginian Hunt and Wine Country. We grow figs and grapevines, shop local markets, and build our life around the table.
What You'll Find Here
- Southern staples with real soul: collards in potlikker, skillet cornbread, red beans and rice, peach cobbler with biscuit topping, and of course my famous, foolproof fried chicken.
- Modern takes on favorites: bourbon cream sauce on a perfectly pan-seared steak, mac and cheese with crispy bacon breadcrumbs, and lobster risotto!
- Recipes that teach: step-by-step guidance, tested techniques, and notes that explain why things work
new to my site?
Start Cooking Here
If you’re new to Sweet Tea + Thyme, welcome! These are the recipes my readers make on repeat and the ones I come back to over and over again in my own kitchen.
Whether you’re looking for a show-stopping main dish, the kind of side that steals the spotlight, or a dessert that makes people lose their minds a little… start here:
1
Southern Mac and Cheese
With over 4k happy reviews, many TikTok recreations, and over 1 million returning readers every year, this is the best mac and cheese you'll ever have.
2
Apple Fritter Bread
This beginner-friendly bread is a huge hit with y'all! Studded with cinnamon apples, swirled with spiced brown sugar and drizzled with a vanilla glaze...it's a fan and family favorite when the weather cools down!
3
Chicken and Waffles
Fluffy Belgian waffles meet crunchy, juicy fried chicken thighs drizzled with a spicy honey butter sauce. It's good y'all, just ask the 300k readers who made it last year!
Frequently Asked Questions
Sweet Tea + Thyme started from a mix of things: culinary school, I had friends back home who wanted my recipes now that they were leaving home, and I really wanted to share my love of cooking with everyone. It turned into what it is now when I realized people were making careers from sharing their own love of food, too!
I’m a classically trained chef with experience in restaurants and a decade in recipe development working with many national and international brands, but my love for cooking really comes from my family and growing up all over the South. I’ve lived as a military brat and spouse in Virginia, Texas, Florida, Maryland, and Georgia, and all those experiences shaped the way I cook today.
Many of my recipes are inspired by old family traditions, Southern favorites, and my time in culinary school. Sometimes I find inspiration in cookbooks or online, remixing old favorites and putting my spin on trends. I also love experimenting with new flavors, especially incorporating Latino and Caribbean influences from my life in Florida and Abuela.
Absolutely! Start with basic techniques, learn the very basics of recipes first. I always say you want to learn what the rules are so you know what you can rules you can bend and change up to your liking. I include step-by-step instructions and process photos in each post, so you’ll feel confident cooking every recipe, especially if you're a beginner!
Features and Interviews
- Food Blogger Pro | How Eden Westbrook Shifted Her Mindset and Became a Full-Time Food Blogger
- Tastemaker Conference | How to Start a Food Blog
- Eat Blog Talk | Episode 295: Building Your Perfect Audience with Eden Westbrook
