Baking from Potluck Desserts: Joyful Recipes to Share with Pride (The Countryman Press) was a joy from the start. The recipes feel familiar but with a creative edge, and with many “I used to love those” and “wow, let’s make this” desserts inside. The cookbook hit shelves during Pride Month in 2025, celebrating queer gatherings and the spirit of sharing something sweet with chosen family. Author Justin Burke, who lives in Columbia, South Carolina, with his partner and son, weaves history and personal tales into the book. Since the 1950s, queer potlucks have provided a welcoming and laid-back space for the community to share dishes and stories, inspiration and comfort. Burke’s first queer potluck had a tremendous impact on him, shaping his experience in the LGBTQIA+ community and encouraging self-love.
Burke is a professional pastry chef, but he wanted Potluck’s recipes to feel doable. “I had to keep checking myself—Is this too chef-y? Am I contradicting the welcoming tone I set at the start?” says Burke, who ended up scaling way back on the number of desserts. “I think what’s left is a beautiful range: nostalgic, homey, playful, a little unexpected—but all rooted in the idea of bringing something sweet to share.” The result is a colorful collection of lighthearted yet beautifully crafted desserts that translate to everyday life. The recipes do take a bit of skill, but are not overly complicated.
This book feels like summer to me, with bright colors and no-bake options. South Carolina summers are no joke, so I looked for quick bake times and chilled treats. The chapters are broken up into cooking vessels like sheet pans and casserole dishes, and the recipes include time labels like Thirty Minutes or Less, and An Hour Or So. I decided on Jasper’s “Tastes like Cookie Dough” Fudge (named after Burke’s son), Chocolate Strawberry Cobbler, and the Scotcheroos, recruiting my friend Abby for an extra hand and someone to share with. We spent a Saturday afternoon making desserts in her sunny kitchen, and I got to know the author through his stories and recipes. “This is more than a cookbook to me,” says Burke. “It’s lived experience, shared through sweets. I’m proud of every page.”
Q&A with Potluck Desserts Author, Justin Burke
TLP: What did writing Potluck Desserts mean to you?
