Tag: Any Way You Knead It

Partner Cooking for Your Sabbatical: Soul-Aligned Meals & Shared Joy
It’s the absolute best. You’re working toward one gloriously delicious goal, divvying up the glamorous jobs (rolling pasta) and the soul-crushing ones (scrubbing the cheese grater). You’re laughing, learning new tricks from each other, and—let’s be honest—quietly judging technique while some 2010-era hip-hop or total silence blasts in the background. Whatever floats your shared boat, as long as it ends with everyone stuffed and happy.

Making legit meals from scratch has approximately 9,472 steps, which is exactly why doing it as a team is pure magic. Planning the menu, hunting down ingredients, deciding who’s on onion duty (the true test of love), and timing everything so the pasta isn’t mush while the sauce is still cold… it’s a full-on partner WOD.

Delicious Steak and Mushroom Soup

How to Turn Your Kitchen Into a Partner Style Workout

At Wildfire CrossFit we’re experienced with partner workouts—“you go, I go,” trading burpees and encouragement (or playful trash talk). Turns out the exact same concept is undefeated in the kitchen. One person sears the grass-fed ribeye while the other makes the chimichurri. You rest when they work, you cheer when they almost burn the garlic, and somehow dinner comes out perfect and you both feel like absolute legends.

How to Pick Your Kitchen Partner (Choose Wisely or Suffer Hilariously)

You can do this with literally anyone who isn’t a total liability with a chef’s knife: spouse, best friend, neighbor you’re trying to convert to the no-seed-oil cult, your sibling who owes you from 2009. Skill levels don’t even matter that much—just attitudes. I’ve cooked with pros in many different kitchens AND with friends who think “julienne” is a French girl’s name. Some sessions were comedy gold, some were… lessons in patience lmaooo. Choose your partner wisely, but always, ALWAYS choose to have fun and not take it too seriously.

Zero Seed Oils, Maximum Gains

We go hard on fresh, organic ingredients because there’s zero reason to spend two hours cooking just to drown everything in inflammatory garbage. Maximum flavor, maximum nutrients, maximum post-dinner pump. Your body and your taste buds both hit a PR. Seriously, convenience foods like packaged breads, crackers, bottled dressings are FULL of disgusting bullshit. Please just make your own – it’s super easy and I promise that I’ll help.

So easy to make your own and avoid poisons!

Local Beer = Secret Weapon (and We’re Not Gatekeeping)

Pro tip from your favorite gap-year chefs: swap water for local craft beer in basically everything and thank us when you hit flavor nirvana. Tortilla dough made with a spicy green chili ale from Fate Brewing? Stupidly tender. Pizza dough fermented with a crisp lager from Lake Pleasant Brewing? Next-level chew and tang. French onion soup deglazed with a roasty porter from Kitsune Brewing? I need a minute. And don’t even get me started on chocolate stout brownies or milk-stout ice cream floats for dessert—your taste buds will file for divorce from anything else. Supporting local brewers while getting a subtle buzz into the food? That’s not cheating, that’s winning at life. Grab a six-pack next time you’re meal prepping and watch your “healthy” dinner turn legendary.

Kitsune Brewing!

Why This Style of Partner Meal Prep is Elite
- You only cook when you’re in a good mood → everything tastes better
- You get to add rich flavor layers as you go instead of panic-salting at the end
- Two sets of hands = twice the fun, half the time
- Leftovers level-up instead of going downhill (reheat a slice of that homemade lasagna and tell me you’re not happy)
- You get to make out mid-stir because nobody’s rushing to a Zoom
- Your coworkers (aka your cats) become jealous of your lunch and that’s a power move
Lake Pleasant Brewing!

Our Simple System When Time is No Longer the Enemy
1. Choose Your Co-Conspirator(s): Spouse, bestie, sibling, neighbor who owes you a favor—doesn’t matter. Just make sure they’re fun (especially when hungry)
2. Pick the Window: Saturday morning or Wednesday night—whatever time slot feels like a treat, not a chore.
3. Make Something Ambitious (Because You Finally Can) Normal life: “Let’s do tacos—takes 15 minutes.” Time-freedom life: “Let’s slow cook a roast, knead our own tortillas, and make three salsas from scratch because it’s Tuesday.”
4. OR Choose One Big Sexy Thing + One Easy Support Act. Example meals we rotate:
- Steak and Wild Rice Soup + fresh garlic knots
- Green chile chicken enchiladas + homemade fresh tortillas
- Smash-burger patties + brioche buns from scratch + burger sauce that ruins fast food forever
- Homemade ravioli (yes really) + brown-butter sage sauce.
1. Shop Like Civilized Humans: I keep a running Albertsons cart on my phone. When the menu is decided, I hit “buy”, schedule for delivery, and we’re golden. → Steal my expert trick here: https://www.albertsons.com
2. Divide & Conquer Like You Actually Like Each Other: He sears like a boss, creates glorious sauces, trims raw meats and anything that otherwise grosses me out. I do all the dough, breads, and aggressively flavored butters. Find your lanes and protect them with your life.
3. Eat the First Portion Together That Night: Because you deserve to taste it fresh and hot while wearing sweatpants and giving zero forks.
4. Save leftovers for the next meal or to play a supporting role in the next creation; portion out meals to take on the go or freeze.
Stout Steak Marinade

Sneak Peek: The Cookbook We’re Building for People Who Have Time to Cook Like They Mean It

(Working title: “A Few Good Hours: Scratch-Made Meals for Couples Who Want to Eat Like Kings Without Losing Their Weekends”)

Already tested on lazy Sundays, long weekends, and full-on sabbaticals:
- White Chicken Chili + Same-Day Sourdough + Spicy Honey Butter (yes, same-day)
- 3-Hour Bolognese That Will Ruin All Other Pasta for You
- Build-Your-Own Dumpling Party That Feeds 10 and Takes All Afternoon
- Biscuits & Sausage Gravy So Good You’ll Cry Into Your Plate
Want the first five recipes free + first dibs when the book drops?

→ Drop your email below and join 1,000+ other gloriously unhurried humans.

Now You

Drop in the comments:
- How many hours a week do you actually have for this kind of magic?
- What’s the one dish you’d make if you had a guaranteed 3-hour partner cooking date?
Let’s build the happiest comment section on the internet.

Happy chopping, happy kissing, happy leftovers!

Xoxo Amy – your professional gap year guide and partner cooking superfan

P.S. Our favorite cooking collab brewers are: Kitsune Brewing, Lake Pleasant Brewing Co., AZ Wilderness Brewing, and Barrio Brewing.

P. P. S. Share this with the person you want to cook with in the kitchen. Tag us @atrautinez and we’ll send you our secret “lazy smash burger” sauce recipe. Legit life-changing.

P. P. P. S. Come suffer and laugh with us in person at Wildfire CrossFit — first week of class free if you tell them Amy sent you for partner cooking vibes. http://www.wildfirecrossfit.com
December 7, 2025
Kneading Joy: Baking, Flavors, and Finding My Fire
I’ve always loved kitchen time, baking bread, crafting desserts, and creating dishes that unite people. During my gap year, I swapped finance stress for flour-dusted counters, transforming my kitchen into a creative haven. With my husband, my flavor-savvy partner, I experimented with all the different kinds of breads, zesty vinaigrettes, and infused butters. Each recipe sparked joy, deepening my passion for culinary arts and revealing life’s possibilities.

From Good to Great: Elevating Breads and Flavors

Cooking was always a joy, but a demanding job left little time for kitchen experimentation. With teenagers at home, the pressure to avoid risky recipes was real—time was too scarce to gamble on new spices ruining dinner. However, a gap year filled with endless hours dreaming up ideas, testing bold flavor combinations, and sharing creations with family and friends transformed my approach.

Our Phoenix herb garden sparked inspiration, with rosemary and thyme elevating savory sandwich breads, comforting soups, and vibrant sauces. As my confidence grew, I blended tangy salad dressings and baked havarti-studded sourdough, now a household favorite. Cooking and baking became a creative outlet, where intuition and inspiration merged to craft unforgettable dishes. My new found time freedom allowed me to dive deeper, honing my craft and discovering the joy of flavors (and hobbies!).

Why Bread is My Soulmate

My new found creative hobby sparked a full-on obsession with bread-making, and it’s become the heart of my next big adventure: launching “Any Way You Knead It,” my Phoenix micro bakery and non-profit. Here’s why bread has me hooked:
- It’s F-ing Delicious: Freshly baked sourdough or warm, buttery rolls? Total bliss. There’s nothing like tearing into a crusty loaf hot from the oven.
- It’s Alive: Kneading dough is like partnering with a living, breathing creature. It grows, stretches, and transforms into something magical—AND you get to eat it!
- It’s Therapy: Shaping loaves or rolling biscuits soothes my soul and sparks creativity. It’s my zen, opening doors to new ideas and calm.
Through “Any Way You Knead It Bakery,” I’m turning this passion into a reality, baking herb and cheese infused breads like thyme-parmesan-roasted garlic, chive-gouda-carmelized onion, and easy savory weekday sandwich breads. The non-profit arm, “Any Way You Knead It Community Foundation,” will share fresh baked goods and offer baking classes to promote bread making skills and mental health to kids and adults, because kneading dough is as healing as it is delicious. Stay tuned for our launch—we can’t wait to share the joy of bread with you!

Fresh vs. Store-Bought, The Health Win

Baking my own bread isn’t just about taste—it’s a health game-changer. Fresh bread, like my sourdough or focaccia, uses simple ingredients: flour, water, salt, and starter. No preservatives, no seed oils, no mystery chemicals. Store-bought loaves often hide additives like dough conditioners or high-fructose corn syrup, which can mess with your gut and energy. My homemade breads, especially when paired with garden herbs, are easier to digest (thanks, fermentation!) and packed with flavor, not fillers. It’s the same reason I make my own peanut butter, condiments, and dressings—control what goes in, feel better when you eat. “Any Way You Knead It” will share this wholesome vibe with every loaf.

Homemade mayo, ketchup, and BBQ sauce are easy and delicious!

Ditching Store-Bought Junk

Researching new recipes and experimentation time in the kitchen turned me into a homemade food nerd. I started a regular practice of making our everyday staples—jams, jellies, mayo, ketchup, salad dressings—to skip the chemicals and seed oils. (Seriously, my peanut butter with honey and salt is NEXT LEVEL). These aren’t just healthier; they’re stupidly easy. A vinaigrette with garden herbs takes less than 3 minutes, including herb snipping time. Sauces and dressings add luxury vibes and delicious layers to your meals—think scandalously tasty marinades for your meats and veggie dishes, or compound butters with garlic, flavored salts, and fresh herbs—without the toxic junk. Pinterest and I have your back for ideas!

A Taste of My Gap Year Journey

As my gap year unfolded, each knead of dough and swirl of flavored butter taught me more than just recipes—it showed me how to savor life’s simple joys and embrace creativity without fear. My kitchen became a space to connect, experiment, and uncover what truly lights me up. Below, I’m sharing a couple of my favorite creations from this journey: a zesty vinaigrette and super quick dinner rolls to spark your own culinary adventures. Here’s to finding your passion, one delicious moment at a time.

Recipes to Spark Your Own Journey:

Zesty Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette

Why I Love It: This bright, versatile dressing adds a burst of flavor to any dish, and it’s so easy to whip up!

Ingredients:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme or basil, chopped (or ½ tsp dried)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl or shake in a jar until combined.
2. Taste and adjust seasoning. Drizzle over salads, roasted veggies, or grilled fish.
3. Store in the fridge for up to a week; shake before using.
Easy Dinner Rolls

Why I Love Them: These rolls are a hug on a plate, bringing warmth and connection to any meal. They’re simple enough for a weeknight but special enough to spark joy and smiles at the table.

Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup warm water (about 110°F)
- 2 tbsp melted butter (plus extra for brushing)
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 ¼ tsp (1 packet) active dry yeast
Instructions:
1. In a large bowl, mix warm water, sugar, and yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
2. Add melted butter, salt, and 2 cups of flour. Stir until combined, then gradually add the remaining flour to form a soft dough.
3. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 3–5 minutes until smooth and elastic. (This is a great step to enjoy the calming rhythm of kneading!)
4. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a towel, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled.
5. Punch down dough and divide into 12 equal pieces. Shape into balls and place in a greased 9×13-inch baking dish.
6. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F.
7. Bake for 12–15 minutes until golden. Brush with melted butter for a soft, glossy finish. Serve warm.
Share your ideas for at home creations and drop your go-to recipes in the comments. Can’t wait to check out new, cool ideas!

xoxo Amy – your professional gap year guide and connoisseur of crusty breads
July 5, 2025