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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#270: The Perfect Recipe

Writing can often feel like trying to follow the perfect recipe: with the right inciting incident, you can push your character out of their status quo or comfort zone, and if you sprinkle some challenges in there, you get character development. Then, you turn the heat up until you reach a boiling point — maybe you even toss in a third-act crisis — and just before it spills over, you add the finishing touches and plate it up.

But sometimes, no matter how carefully you stick to a recipe, things don’t turn out as planned. That’s when, like any great chef, you realize it’s better to forgo exact steps and simply season to taste.

This week’s prompts take inspiration from the world of food, so grab your aprons and preheat your ovens — let’s get cooking!

This week's prompts

Write a story in the form of a recipe.

Short Story – 82 stories

Start or end your story with two people discussing an important matter over a meal.

Dramatic – 60 stories

Write a story inspired by the saying “Revenge is a dish best served cold.”

Angst – 59 stories

Set your story in a kitchen, either early in the day or late at night.

Short Story – 82 stories

Write a story about someone searching for a missing ingredient, literally or metaphorically.

Dramatic – 53 stories

Stories

“Serves Who?” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #270

Note: the following recipe allows for variations and additions, but the list of ingredients and instructions has been collated by experts with many years of experience in this field.*Ingredients:SaltPepperSpinachEggsMilkGarlic Sun-Dried TomatoesBreadMustard (Dijon, perhaps)Extra-Virgin Olive OilCoffeeAlcohol (choice left up to you)*Instructions:1. Realize that you have woken up on the first day after it ended – truly ended – with no food in the house. She was the one who always cooked on weekends because you spen...

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“Questionable Differences” by Abbie Pedrotte

Submitted to Contest #270

A server sets a basket of bread between Luca and Harley, followed by a bowl containing four pats of butter wrapped in shiny gold paper. They drove to Antonio’s in their separate cars, both of them having left from work. When Harley got there, Luca was already waiting at their table. He stood and pulled the chair out for her. As he tears into a piece of bread, lips greasy from the butter that turns out to be margarine, he still can’t recall ever meeting Harley for dinner; he’s certainly never pulled a chair out for her. When high school...

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“A Not So Simple Cake” by Rani Jayakumar

Submitted to Contest #270

Note: This story contains sensitive content, including loss of life and mention of knives and cutting. 1. First get a bowl. Not the bowl Grandma gave you that time when she called you in the kitchen with her cane in hand, and asked you to get it from under the cabinet, the one you thought was not even a cabinet but just a false panel because no one ever opened it. Not that bowl, which has been superglued again and again until the glue cracks are a new pattern on the blue and white chinoiserie. Blue Willow, she called it before she gave it to...

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“A Conversation with my Father” by Sabrina Chacon

Submitted to Contest #270

"How was your day?" I asked dad as he started opening his sandwich. I began to open mine as well, my mouth watering over the food. We sat together at his dining room table, the windows open and the evening sun coming in. "Good," he replied, taking a bite of his meal. "How was work?" He shrugged. "Good." This man. I took a deep breath and sighed before biting into my own sandwich. Part of me desperately wanted to leave, but I also knew that he never went out besides work. I tried to come over once a week, but the single hour I spent with him ...

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“The Surefire Recipe” by Lily Finch

Submitted to Contest #270

The Surefire RecipeHer mother yelled at her, “Susanna! Why can’t you be a good little girl? You know your brother is such a good little boy always.” She shook her head and began wiping the milk from the floor. Susanna hid in her princess tent next to the television in the living room. She hated it when Mommy yelled at her, which was often lately. It was always because of what Charlie did, but it made it look like Susanna had done it by the time Mommy looked or noticed.“Mommy, what does it take to be a good little boy or girl?” Susanna asked ...

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“Cheap Wine and Woodchips” by Kailey Blount

Submitted to Contest #270

The chicken nuggets simmer beneath the microwave light. I watch as candle wax drips onto the countertop in a mind-numbing descent, illuminating the kitchen in shadows. Beth perches on the head of Dad’s recliner, rocking back and forth til the sun sets and all she can see is her own reflection staring back at her. The microwave beeps slicing through the news anchor on the TV. “Dinner!” I call. “Turn of the tv...

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“Cold Roasted Dragon Heart” by KA James

Submitted to Contest #270

You have just slayed the fire breathing behemoth, the ageless and fearsome dragon that has terrorized the countryside for decades, if not centuries. And while the villagers were initially grateful beyond measure, they have since grown somewhat petulant concerning the huge, pungent pile of rotting dragon flesh that still lies half submerged on the banks of the Crystalline Coast. No one ever worries about what to do with such a carcass when their more immediate concern is if their home will be torched from the skies at any moment. But give it ...

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“At Dinner: The Scent of Rosemary and Regret” by Sofia Palmerston

Submitted to Contest #270

Samantha’s rental apartment, was a haven of personal touches and warm colors. Usually, it hummed with the anticipation of intimate dinners and whispered conversations, the soft glow of candlelight dancing on the mismatched china she’d collected over the years. Tonight, however, the air crackled with a tension thicker than the rosemary and garlic scent clinging to the faded floral curtains.David shifted in his chair, the worn wood groaning beneath him like an old man complaining about a long day. He swirled the expensive Cabernet Avignon in h...

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“The Recipe” by Jennifer Luckett

Submitted to Contest #270

Love is messy. Some people can’t live without it, the chaos and the confusion, and they will give everything for love. Charlie never understood the fuss, content to work and find fulfillment in her friendships. “You just haven’t met the right person, Char,” Her best friend Mary rinsed a plum in the sink. “Do you want anything else while I'm in here?”She yanked another eggroll from the box. “No thanks Mar, I’m good."“Are you really, though?" Mary sank into the armchair and pried the tag from the wrinkled skin of her fruit. "You need some...

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“The Love Impulse” by Geir Westrul

Submitted to Contest #270

"Miss, we don't serve his kind in this bar." The bartender looked at Susan, not at me, just twitched his head sideways in my general direction, then pointed at the sign: 'No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service ... oh, and No Synths Served'."He doesn't drink," Susan said. "Doesn't eat either. He's an older model. Huxley's been my brother's companion since Alex was a young boy, and that was a long, long, long time ago. Huxley's just here to guard me, keep me out of trouble, aren't you, Huxley?""That is correct," I said to the bartender, who still didn...

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“Essence” by Adelino Carbonera

Submitted to Contest #270

The night before, Tom had spent the evening at the pub with his friends. When Helen walked in, he was sulking, and he didn’t even notice her. He had just been beaten at tetherball by Bunting’s son, the one with the scruffy cap and long beard.He, the ladies’ man, with his tight white jacket and confident smile.She, on the other hand, with her red pants, mascara, and daring neckline, certainly didn’t look like a schoolgirl in trouble. In fact, as expected, she stole the show.All she was missing were fishnet stockings and black lace; she had ev...

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“Making Tortillas with Mom” by Katy Dream

Submitted to Contest #270

Roxy sat in the living room playing with her dolls. She told her dad goodbye as he left to go to work at his night job at his company.Setting her dolls down she ran into the kitchen just as she heard her mom humming in the kitchen to the radio. “There you are!” Her Mom said. “Did you come to help me? Remember that I told you your uncles are coming over tonight for dinner?” Her Mom said. “Oh yay!” Roxy clapped her hands together. She remembered it was Saturday night and it was he...

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“Meaty” by Susan O'REILLY

Submitted to Contest #270

Ah, a brand new slab of fresh meat. It took a lot of time and energy getting it too here and deserves my full attention to make it perfect, or at least tastier than the last time. I’ve gotten myself a hook to hang the meat don’t know exactly what this is for, I’ve heard the term curing being mentioned but for me it's just an easy way to admire my catch. The word reminds me of healing but there ain’t no doctor that can heal this creature. As I place the meat on the hook a pool of blood begins to form and congeal at my feet, this is a messy bu...

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“Not by the Recipe” by Maya&Mama SoulArt

Submitted to Contest #270

"Double-check if you have the recipe," Master said as I was heading out. I paused, took it from my bag, and waved it with a smile. "Don’t worry, Master. Even if I forget it, it's all up here." I tapped my temple. As soon as I left, Mrs. Winfield greeted me with a nervous grin, pressing three silver coins into my hand. “For you,” she said.I quickly declined, knowing these coins meant a lot to her. But she insisted, “Young man, I know my life may not be worth much, but my grandson, due next spring, certainly is. Your master's prescription call...

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“Loving Concentration” by Rebecca Hurst

Submitted to Contest #270

Julia Child gets her knickers in a twist about the difference between sautés, stews and fricassées. I myself, who cannot claim to be anything more than a competent cook, shall defer to the mistress of French cuisine. After all, a misplaced apostrophe provokes my conniptions, and she is entitled to feel the same about fricassée. But I must use frying chicken. p.271 is a little greasy after all these years, but I know she is Goldilocks-ey about this. The flesh of a young chicken is too soft and tender, so it dries out ...

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$250

Prize money

336

Contest entries

133

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 04, 2024 EST

Won by Jay Wayne 🏆

Title: Add Vodka to Taste

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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