The Dolly Parton Recipes We’ll Never Stop Making
Dolly Parton gave so much of herself to the world — her music, her generosity, and, as it turns out, some genuinely wonderful recipes. In her memory, we’ve found ourselves wanting to spend some time in the kitchen with her, cooking through the recipes she shared with the world over the years. After all, the woman could write a country song and cook a casserole with equal skill. This is our small way of saying thank you to a star that never once acted like one: by spending some time in the kitchen with the dishes she shared over the years, from Southern classics to the simple, homey desserts she was known for. Here are the Dolly recipes we’ll always keep coming back to.
Dolly Parton’s Five Layer Dinner
This one might be the most “Dolly” recipe on the list: simple, unfussy, and somehow more than the sum of its parts. Sliced potatoes, browned ground beef, onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers get layered into a baking dish, seasoned as you go, and left to bake low and slow until everything’s tender and the flavors have had time to really get to know each other. No sauce required, no fuss involved.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s Five Layer Dinner
Dolly Parton’s Chicken and Dumplings
Chicken and dumplings has always been a 12 Tomatoes favorite, so when we found out Dolly had her own version, we knew we had to make it. Her take skips the shortcuts and it’s worth it. A whole chicken simmers low and slow for real flavor, and the dumplings are simple squares of homemade dough rather than anything gussied up. It’s the kind of dish that makes a kitchen smell like pure comfort.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s Chicken and Dumplings
Dolly Parton’s Stampede Soup
If you’ve ever caught the dinner show at Dolly Parton’s Stampede in Pigeon Forge, you already know this soup. It’s the one that shows up before the biscuits do, and it sets the tone for everything that follows. A simple butter-and-flour roux gets built out with chicken stock, mixed vegetables, and a splash of cream at the end, and somehow it manages to taste like more effort went into it than actually did.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s Stampede Soup
Dolly Parton’s Coconut Cake
We adapted this one from-scratch, and it might be the most requested Dolly recipe in our archive. Toasted coconut, a tender melt-in-your-mouth crumb, and a cream cheese frosting smooth enough to make any home baker feel like a professional… this cake tastes like the classic Southern dessert it’s meant to be, without ever tipping into overly sweet territory.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton Coconut Cake
Dolly Parton’s 5-Ingredient Casserole
Some nights call for a dinner that doesn’t ask much of you, and this casserole is exactly that. Shredded chicken, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, cheddar, and a crushed butter cracker topping come together in about the time it takes to preheat your oven. It’s easy enough for those days when you’re workin’ 9 to 5 (sorry, we couldn’t resist) and comforting enough that no one at the table will guess how little effort it took.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s 5-Ingredient Casserole
Dolly Parton’s Macaroni Salad
This one made its debut in our Celebrity Macaroni Salad Showdown, going up against Guy Fieri, Mark Wahlberg, and Alex Guarnaschelli — and Dolly held her own. Elbow macaroni gets tossed with cucumber, green pepper, relish, and hard-boiled egg, then coated in a creamy mayo-sour cream-milk dressing that gives it an unexpectedly tangy, almost tzatziki-like freshness. It tastes somehow both unique and totally classic.
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s Macaroni Salad
Dolly Parton’s Coleslaw
This one goes all the way back to 1989, first published in her cookbook Dollywood Presents Tennessee Mountain Home Cooking, and it’s stuck around for good reason. It’s a classic, no-nonsense slaw, the kind where the cabbage and carrots get a little pickled as everything sits together, so the flavor actually improves the longer it hangs out in your fridge. Simple, reliable, and the perfect sidekick to just about anything off a grill. Is there anything she wasn’t good at?
Get the full recipe here: Dolly Parton’s Coleslaw
Dolly Parton’s Cuppa Cuppa Cake
If you’ve seen Steel Magnolias, you know this one before you even read the ingredient list! It’s the cake Dolly’s character, Truvy, famously says is so easy “you don’t even need to write it down.” A cup of flour, a cup of sugar, and a cup of fruit cocktail (juice and all) get stirred together and baked until golden and bubbly. It’s humble, a little retro, and exactly the kind of effortless sweet treat you’d want after a long week.
Get the full recipe here: Cuppa Cuppa Cake
And One More: Dolly Parton’s Scrambled Eggs Hack
Not quite a recipe, but too good not to include. Dolly used to make scrambled eggs for her husband Carl every single weekend, and her one trick — a few drops of ice water added while cooking — is the kind of tip that sounds too simple to work and then absolutely does. Fluffier eggs, zero extra effort. Try it out this weekend and think of her while you do.
Get the full details here: Dolly Parton’s Scrambled Egg Hack
We’ll never forget Dolly, and we have a feeling her recipes will make sure of that along with her music. Every time we make one of her casseroles or slice into one of her cakes, she’ll be right there in the kitchen with us. Thank you for the music, the laughter, and the meals, Dolly. You’ll be deeply missed.