20 Recipes Like Grandma Used to Make
Updated: Jun. 07, 2022
Rediscover these comforting recipes for a trip down memory lane.
Make Once, Eat Twice Lasagna
Grandma always made her sauce for lasagna from scratch. But you can save time by using a gourmet jarred spaghetti sauce, then adding seasonings (and lots of cheese!) for flavor.
Cauliflower Casserole
This zesty recipe dresses up the “educated” vegetable with a cheesy sauce, making it one of our favorite tasty (and healthy) makeovers of favorite family recipes.
Super Simple Scalloped Potatoes
Hearty meals at Grandma’s house often featured these stick-to-the-ribs potatoes, which are baked in a creamy sauce and topped with cheese.
Favorite Chicken Potpie
When it came to making turkey or chicken pot pies, Grandma’s rule was anything goes. Some grandmas topped their pies with dumplings. Others used pastry, as in this recipe. If you sub chicken for another poultry, this pot pie is a great way to use up any leftovers from a holiday turkey.
Easy Chicken Corn Chowder
Use canned cream-style corn to make this down-home chowder in a jiffy. It makes a warming appetizer.
Roasted Chicken with Rosemary
Slowly roasted chicken makes a wholesome main dish full of rich old-fashioned flavor. Carrots and potatoes round out the meal.
Grandma’s Biscuits
Southern grandmas will tell you good biscuits should be crusty on the outside and soft and crumbly on the inside. Northern grandmas insist biscuits should be high, light, and flaky, like these.
Easy Chicken Tamale Pie
Try this easier take on the traditional corn-husk wrapped tamale. A slow cooker means you can fix it and forget it.
Maple-Glazed Ham
A time-honored favorite, maple-glazed ham is a showstopper on any holiday.
Flounder with Shrimp Stuffing
This elegant party dish has a bite, thanks to Worcestershire sauce and a pinch of cayenne. To make sure your fish rolls look picture-perfect, choose fish fillets that are uniform in size and thickness.
Crown Roast of Pork with Mushroom Dressing
With an impressive platter like this, your guests will never guess how easy it is to throw together. Serve it up during a dinner party and prepare for the compliments.
Slow-Cooker Beef Stew
This hearty stew is guaranteed to warm your soul on any winter night.
Mediterranean Rack of Lamb
This roasted lamb, flavored with oregano and lemon, will have all your guests asking for seconds. No need to feel guilty about eating homemade comfort food—especially not these 10 comfort food dishes professional chefs cook at home.
Glazed Cornish Hens
Cornish hens are a great alternative to a full chicken. Serve half of a hen to each diner for a stunning plate.
Shrimp Scampi
In Italy, this dish was made with scampi—tiny relatives of the lobster. Italian immigrants to America adapted the recipe for shrimp. To keep either scampi or shrimp tender, cook them just until they turn opaque.
Mama’s Potato Salad
Egg salad or potato salad? Get the best of both worlds with this classic summer side dish.
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
In the 1950s, an inventive cook created a fluffy mixture by folding beaten egg whites into a creamy pie filling. The result was so light and airy it looked like a pile of chiffon, and so the name for this recipe was coined. This new take on a vintage pie gets that creamy texture with less work by using cream cheese and vanilla pudding.
Big & Buttery Chocolate Chip Cookies
What would be a trip to Grandma’s without being greeted with freshly made cookies? These thick and chewy cookies will bring you back to your childhood—just like these other classic cookie recipes straight from Grandma’s recipe box.
Strawberry Pretzel Dessert
Jell-O was always a staple in Grandma’s dessert recipe box, and this sweet-and-salty dish is easy to share at a potluck.
Memaw’s Banana Pudding
Easy to throw together, but worth every “mmm” you’ll get, this trifle would make Grandma proud. But, you shouldn’t wait till you’re Grandma-age to learn to cook great recipes—certainly not these 35 recipes everyone should know by the time they’re 35.
