Country singer Jessie James Decker has spent years balancing music and business with raising a growing family, but some of her favorite moments happen around the dinner table.
Decker recently released “The Secret Sauce: A Family Cookbook Seasoned with Love,” which she wrote with her mother, Karen Parker, and sister Sydney Rae Bass.
The cookbook draws on the family’s Southern, Sicilian and Cajun roots, bringing together recipes and traditions passed down through generations and shared at family gatherings. It includes everything from weeknight meals and game-day dishes to holiday recipes and desserts.
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For Jessie James Decker, food is closely connected to both family and faith.
The singer and author told Fox News Digital that her Catholic faith has long played an important role in her family, something she credits her mother with passing down.
“Faith has always been a big part of my life and our lives,” Jessie James Decker said.
She said her mother taught the family to turn to prayer during both difficult and joyful seasons of life.
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“You just have to trust in Him, because His plan is so much greater than you could ever imagine,” Jessie James Decker said.
Those values also carry into life at home with her husband, former NFL wide receiver Eric Decker, and their four children.
One of the family’s traditions is sitting down together for dinner, with electronics put away, so everyone has a chance to catch up.
“It’s not even that hard to get rid of the electronics when it’s time for dinner because we want to talk to each other,” Jessie James Decker said.
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“We just get so excited to have that time with each other, to be present, to ask about each other’s day.”
Jessie James Decker said she often goes around the table and asks each child a question, sometimes something silly, to get everyone talking.
“Those memories and moments with my family around the dinner table are just my favorite,” she said.
Cooking itself has become another way Jessie James Decker connects with her children.
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She described making food as one of her strongest “love languages,” saying she takes pride in preparing meals for her family and watching her children enjoy them.
“I just get such pride, such joy from making food to nourish their bodies and fill their tummies,” Jessie James Decker said.
Her children have already developed their own favorites from her kitchen.
Daughter Vivi loves seafood gumbo, while sons Eric and Forrest enjoy her pasta dishes. Her youngest, Denver, is also a gumbo fan, Jessie James Decker said.
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Eric Decker’s favorite is her chicken pot pie, while steak, salads and balsamic green beans are among other dishes that make their way onto the family table.
Her husband’s football background has also shaped some of their food traditions.
On game days, Jessie James Decker said she typically makes chili, barbecue meatballs and some type of dip, occasionally adding wings to the spread.
“Every game day we definitely get after it,” she said.
That mix of family recipes, traditions and memories helped shape “The Secret Sauce,” which Decker said is ultimately about more than what is being served.
“The secret sauce is just the love and joy that you put into cooking, and it’s not just about the food,” she said.
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“Once you put that heart and soul and you serve it up, everyone feels it.”