Hello and welcome to my food blog. Grab a cup of coffee, a cookie and have some fun while surfing through my blog.
I was born in Romania in the 70s and in the 80s my family and I moved to Canada. I always enjoyed cooking and baking as a kid, I was always in the kitchen with my mother helping her out. That’s where I learned how to make most romanian dishes that I have posted here in my little corner of the world. I don’t have a career in the food industry, as a matter of fact I work in IT, far from cooking and baking. I just enjoy being in the kitchen and trying to cook new recipes that I try out on my poor husband, who is quite a picky eater but has no choice but to try my food.
I wanted to create this blog to share my love for food with friends and family, because life should be delicious and because I need a place to store all my recipes. I’ve tried writing them in notebooks but somehow I always lose them. These recipes are recipes that my family and I have enjoyed over the years, so share them with your friends and family as you choose. Please leave your comments if you have tried any of the recipes and have enjoyed them, I love reading to see what people think.
I understand people have different tastes and some dishes are not for everyone. If you’ve left a comment and it has been deleted, well that is my right to delete comments I don’t like, as this is my blog. 
All the pictures on this blog were taken by myself or by my husband with our Canon DSLR camera. I like to try all different kinds of cuisines, I love Indian food, Thai food, Chinese food, etc. I love to experiment and try all these recipes myself.
Occasionally, I will bore you with pictures of my dog, whom I love dearly and is just my best friend in the world. Her name is Mia and she is a 7Â 8 year old beagle, who is the cutest beagle in the world. At least in my eyes. She is the biggest fan of my cooking and will pretty much eat anything you put in her plate. She watches me cook every single time and awaits anxiously for food bacon to make its way on the floor. You never have a dirty floor with her around, that’s for sure. She’s a great cleaner upper.
If you’re looking for a recipe you may not find easily, please use the search bar in the top right hand corner, or check out the recipe index for all available recipes.
Please do not use my pictures or recipes on your website without asking me first.Â
Also if you’re a food blogger like me, please check out my latest project very dear to my heart, Tips for Food Bloggers. This is my latest and greatest blog where I share my knowledge about food blogging with other bloggers who are interesting in maybe learning a tip or two. Hope to see you there.
Feel free to email me at jo@jocooks.com with any questions, or post a comment here or on any of the recipes.
Hi, Jo!
I came to the US in 2001 and have been super busy ever since: I now have a family with three kids under the age of 8. 
My baking adventures usually happen at night, after they go to bed. 
Just came across your web-site via Pinterest. I love so many of your dessert recipes- I have to try them all very soon! I love baking and have a blog called 4 goodness bake!, so I will have to check out your tips for food bloggers too:). I was also born in the 70′s only not in Romania, but in Bulgaria- I feel like we are neighbors.
Loved the picture of your cute dog, Mia! If you were the photographer- wow! I am making my baby steps with the DSLR camera I have and really appreciate good photography, as I now know it doesn’t happen easily. I will keep checking back here, as I have now bookmarked your blog. I will be sure to link back to you if I blog about any of your recipes, as I try them out.
Hi Nadia,
Thank you so much, I checked out your blog, you have some unbelievable desserts. Photography is one of the hardest things I find about blogging, but you only get better with practice. You’re already ahead since you have a DSLR camera so you’ll do find.
PS… a dump cake is simple, simply southern… melt a stick of butter in a 9X13 pan, and after coating the pan, reserve the butter. Pour your choice of pie filling in the bottom of the pan. We like apple or cherry pie filling. Top with cake mix, usually yellow or white, right from the box into the pan, then drizzle the butter on top. You can use chopped nuts on top too, if you want. Pecans are good. After baking in a medium oven for about 45 minutes, just serve it up with a large spoon and top with ice cream or whipped topping. Warm is good!!!!!!
I am glad I ran across your blog while grazing Pinterest! What caught my eye are your boards “TexMex”, “Cajun” and “Southern”… as I am a Cajun raised in Texas! I was just sure you were from my world, so I was surprised to see you are in Canada. Then I presumptuously thought you must have been a transplant from the south… only to learn you are originally from Romania! No matter…. I have read your recipes and you are a southern cook nonetheless. I will enjoy following your pinterest boards!
Hi Sandi,
I’m glad you found my blog and enjoying my recipes.
Hi Jo,
I am so happy I found your blog. I am also Romanian, also born in the 70s and my family also moved to Canada in the 80s. Today, I was looking for an alternative to the good ol’ stuffed peppers recipe
Thanks for sharing and keep them coming!
Hi Anca,
I’m glad you found my blog too and I hope you come by often.
So glad I found this website…I printed off almost every recipe!! Love all these different ideas, but was most excited about the Antojitos!!!! Thanks again!!
Thanks Wendy, I really appreciate it.
Hi, it’s me once again! I just want to say “Congratulations” for your nice website. I’m sorry that I’ve tried a dozen of your recipes first before doing this. This morning I opened your website to make scrambled egg in puff pastry, which by the way lasted in the table for only 10 minutes, and I’ve got orders of doubling them next time, when I saw the new collection of desserts that you posted. It looks all delicious and my only problem now is which one should I try first. I’ll be keeping in touch! Thanks and God bless!
Thank you so much. I really appreciate it, and love getting comments like yours. It makes it all worth while.
Jo – thank you so much!, I love your site and I very much appreciate your new project. I’ve thought of creating a blog for quite some time and your tips have been so helpful. I’ll write back with the website info once I get it up and running.
Hi Julie,
I’m glad you found it helpful. Come back often because there will be a lot more information. I’m looking forward to seeing your website once it’s up and running.
Hello Ms. Jo!
I’m currently in the process of making your croissants. Is there any way you could post a video of you showing how to fold them? I’m kind of confused when it comes to rolling out the dough then folding it again.
Thanks!!
Hi Samantha,
I don’t have a video for this but I found a great one for you on youtube which shows you the rolling and folding process. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKtljYdV0Ss&feature=rellist&playnext=1&list=PL185A62431701160D
Hello Jo,
Well isn’t this an exciting find!! A Fellow Canadian who has, by the quick glance I just did has a catalog of amazing recipes! And to top it all off she a fellow Albertan too! Am I in heaven!?! Not only will I be able to find recipes but I will have a greater chance of finding ingredients. I can’t begin to express how frustrating it is trying to shop for a recipe and not being able to find an ingredient….Grrrrr. I live in Grande Prairie so we have shopping choices but not a great deal of ethnic choices other then the isles in Superstore and Safeway. I am so excited, I love to cook and try new things……my family and I can’t wait to try some of these recipes. Nice to meet you JO, I’m Lorna I think this is going to be the beginning of a long and tasty friendship!! Well I’m hoping! Wait my family and I are overweight……….never mind we will walk the dog more……..were good to go!!
Hi Lorna,
I’m so glad you found me and to make you feel better we only shop at Superstore and Safeway, so you’re bound to find the ingredients I use there. I hope you stop by often and try some of my recipes. Thank God for dogs, eh?
Nice website! I just had to comment saying that I too was born in Romania, moved to Canada (Alberta), have a very hungry 14 year old Beagle, and love to cook. So many similarities I just had to share!
Thanks Laurel, glad you like it and I hope you stop by often.
Hey Jo!
I am online a lot looking for new recipes, and after a while I realized I kept coming back to your site! So I have it bookmarked, and love love love many of your recipes! And I have a small request, could you play around with portobello mushrooms? I find them interesting and want some new ideas! Thanks!
PS: I’m from Sask!
Hi Cindy,
So far I only have this stuffed portobello mushroom recipe http://www.jocooks.com/main-courses/vegeterian/stuffed-portobello-mushrooms/. Hey we just drove through Sask a couple weeks ago on our way to Ontario. Very boring drive, lol. 
Will do, I like portobello mushrooms too.
So happy to have found your blog. You live in Canada? Me too. I am in Toronto.
Calgary here! I’ll be checking out your blog.
Thanks.
Hi JO!!! I am Violetta, an italian blogger. I like very much your posts.
I will stay tuned.
Hi Violetta,
Thank you so much. I will check out your blog as well.
Do you have a recipe…I think it was called Dump Cake….and you can use frozen mixed berries instead of fresh fruit? I think you also use a cake mix.
Thankyou.
.I am making your Baked Penne with Italian Sausage tonight, as it sounds very good!
Hi Dee!
Great choice on the baked penne, it’s very good. I have never heard of dump cake, is that similar to a cobbler or an upside down cake? If you have mixed berries, you can always do a trifle, if you have some whipped cream, cream cheese or mascorpone cheese, some vanilla pudding you could mix these 3 ingredients together and make a nice trifle with it. Or for the grandkids I really recommend you make that sex in a pan dessert, you can call it something else for them, but they would love it. Let me know what you end up doing.