Hi! I’m Ali, and I am so happy that you found your way here.
I created Gimme Some Oven to celebrate life around the table, with recipes that are simple, fresh, and full of flavor. With two littles underfoot these days, I know how relentless the dinner grind can feel. My hope is that this space can offer a bit of inspiration for everyone — and make everyday cooking feel a bit more fun.
So whether you’re throwing together a quick weeknight dinner, hosting a cozy brunch with friends, or just craving a warm batch of cookies, I hope you’ll find recipes here that feel doable and delicious.
Cheers!
About Ali
About Me
When I began Gimme Some Oven back in 2009, I was working full-time as a musician by day and spending my evenings cooking, photographing, and sharing recipes just for fun. Over time, that creative outlet grew into a full-time career — and for more than a decade now, I’ve had the absolute joy of writing and developing recipes here on Gimme Some Oven.
Even after all these years, it still feels like magic to create a recipe in my kitchen and see it come to life on tables all around the world! Your trust in my recipes means the world to me, and I work hard to make sure each one is thoughtfully developed, thoroughly tested, and truly worth making — the kind of recipe you’ll want to return to again and again.
Beyond the blog, my husband and I are now settling back into life in Kansas City with our two young boys after spending six wonderful years living in Barcelona. My favorite things include sunny days, an excellent plate of nachos, lingering around tables with good friends, and always dreaming up our next adventure. I occasionally share more about life behind the scenes here if you’d like to follow along.
About Gimme Some Oven
So what kinds of recipes will you find here?
Short answer: a bit of everything.
The recipes I share here are the ones we’re actually making and eating in our home. My husband is pescetarian, our boys are still a bit veggie-suspicious, and I enjoy a wide range of foods — so our meals reflect that mix. We do our best to cook seasonally, and most weeknights are all about quick, flavorful recipes that come together in 30 minutes or less. But I also love slowing down on the weekends with a cozy cup of coffee and baking our favorite 1-Hour Cinnamon Rolls, or inviting friends over for a big pot of chili with homemade guac and margaritas.
You’ll notice here that we’ve got a soft spot for Mexican food, big bowls of soup, noodles in all forms, and cookies of just about every variety. While most of my recipes lean fresh and lighter, you’ll also find your fair share of fun treats and comfort food favorites — we’re all about balance!
My hope is that you’ll find recipes here that work well for real life, whatever that looks like for you right now. And if there’s ever a recipe you’re craving, I’d love to hear from you!
My Favorite Recipes
FAQs
I can’t take the credit. 😉 The name actually came from my former bandmate, Jay, who tossed it out during a rehearsal years ago when I mentioned I was thinking about starting a food blog. It made us all laugh — and it stuck! Now it feels like a fun little reminder of my past life as a full-time musician.
You bet! Every single one of the 2000+ recipes on this site has been developed and tested in my own kitchen. I now have a team of recipe testers who join me each week to test old and new recipes to help ensure they are as clear, reliable, and delicious as possible. We want each recipe to be the best it can be when it reaches your table!
The best way to ask about substitutions is to leave a comment on that specific recipe post. That way, we’ll be sure to see it, and other readers can benefit from the answer too.
Yes! We’re constantly retesting, updating and rephotographing older recipes to make sure they’re as reliable and delicious as possible. Whenever we make a significant change, we do our best to note it clearly in the recipe notes so that you know what’s been updated.
No. We made the decision back in 2018 to stop publishing sponsored content on Gimme Some Oven. While we were grateful to partner with brands we genuinely loved in the past, it’s important to us that readers know all product mentions are now completely unpaid — just things we personally use and recommend.
This is probably the most-asked question we receive. Sorry, not yet! I keep putting it off, but someday I look forward to finally writing one. 💛
Giving Back
While we love creating and sharing recipes here, we also recognize what a profound privilege it is to have consistent access to fresh food, clean water, and a safe place to gather around the table. Not everyone has that — the statistics are sobering, and they remind us how important it is to keep working toward change.
That’s why we donate a portion of our profits to support three organizations working to fight food insecurity and expand access to nutritious food and clean water around the world. Every time you visit this site, your pageviews directly help support that work too, and we’re so grateful. We’d love for you to learn more about these incredible organizations and consider supporting them in whatever ways you can too.
It’s our hope that this space not only inspires delicious meals, but also plays a small part in supporting communities far beyond our own kitchens.
TWP is a community-led initiative in Mali focused on developing economic opportunities for women through organic food production, access to clean water, and a commitment to environmental stewardship.
Cultivate Kansas City is a locally-grown nonprofit working to grow food, farms, and community in support of an equitable, sustainable and healthy local food system for all.
World Central Kitchen is first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises.
Hi Ali,
I just happened to stumble on your site, and I’m so happy I found you!
I just love all of your recipes, I was just searching for some great vegan recipes, and I’ve found so much more!!
Some of your recipes look so easy to make , and I don’t need to go out and buy special ingredients like some sites I’ve been on!!
Thank you so much,, I’ll definitely be a regular on your site!!
Hi ali,
Love the blog and all things cera de espana! I’m trying to find your recs for Barcelona and can’t find them on your blog. What’s a good hotel or ABnB in Barcelona.We’ll be there for about 5-days and are fairly good travelers Trying to avoid the ramblas area and something near public transportation. Also, are the beaches good? worth packing a bathing suit for late May?
I also live in the midwest and frequent KCTY.
Thanks.
PS …and the list of favorite restaurants in Barcelona….? Can’t wait to read it.
I am looking forward to trying some of you recipes!!
Hello! I have followed your site for a while and made several of your yummy recipes. I recently signed up for your newsletter and loved seeing the highlights of your trip to Madrid and that you’re living now in Barcelona. I am an American living in nearby Luxembourg with my family, going on 2 years now. I LOVE living in Europe, but definitely agree, there is a lot to learn and understand – culturally, politically and bureacratically. :)
I’m a dietitian and mom, and love cooking. Keep those amazing recipes coming. And if you ever want to visit Luxembourg, let me know. I’d be happy to show you around!
Best,
Diana
Thank you for providing this blog. It is my first time visiting and the recipe you provided for baked chicken was great. Although I am over 50, after many years of eating out or fast food, I want to learn to be a good cook. This was a very nice place to start.
Mmm! Recipes look fantastic!
Can’t wait to try some of your recipes! They look great!!!
Hey Ali!
My name is Cyndi and I’m a native Arizonan. I guess they call us Zoni’s? :) Anyway, my wonderful husband and I live in Fountain Hills and I’ve been using your recipes for about 2 years now so I figured it was high time I introduce myself.
I love everything about you and your life and your new husband and your dogs! We have 2 dogs…Annie (our golden retriever) and Drama, yes you heard right…Drama (our female rescue border collie mix). Trust me, the name fits the dog, ha! And I LOVE that you guys took a leap of faith and moved to Barcelona.
I’m half Spanish, half English. My mom’s family came from Madrid, Spain and my dad’s from Cornwall, England. Nice mix.
Anyway, you are simply ADORABLE & BEAUTIFUL and I always look forward to your recipes.
Wow, sounds incredible Ali. I am a single female discovering how important healthy and FUN eating is! I am not a techie at all (don’t even own a Smart phone; no T.V. for over 10 years through choice – I can download anything on my laptop, right?!!), but really enjoy reading about interesting topics online, and love your great recipes! I am leery of subscribing to most things online as I really guard my privacy, loathe fake people and excessive promoting, have a limited income and actually often times prefer to read real BOOKS!. But you strike me as a real person, who truly walks your talk so I shall subscribe! Eek! thanks for your great blog:)
Omg! I just stumbled upon this beautifully constructed site! So much inspiration. Beautiful!!!!