My Cedar Swamp: A Guest Post by Old Time Hawkey
If you’ve scrolled through TikTok late at night when you’re definitely supposed to be sleeping already, there’s a good chance you’ve heard Fritz’s warm welcome: “Well hello, buddy.” While we’ve loved his cozy indoor and outdoor recipes and exploring his cedar swamp through our screens, now we can enjoy even more Old Time Hawkey on the page. Here’s an exclusive essay from Fritz on how he began his TikTok journey and what it means to find your own cedar swamp.
Hardcover $32.00
Old Time Hawkey's Recipes from the Cedar Swamp
Old Time Hawkey's Recipes from the Cedar Swamp
In Stock Online
Hardcover $32.00
Recipes for indoor or outdoor cooking, this unique book pairs a retro aesthetic with stories from Fritz, making this a highly original and engaging exploration of culinary adventure.
Recipes for indoor or outdoor cooking, this unique book pairs a retro aesthetic with stories from Fritz, making this a highly original and engaging exploration of culinary adventure.
Everyone has a “cedar swamp.” Though not every cedar swamp is a wooded marshland, it could be anything deeply personal like a childhood home, an old journal, or something as simple as a scent or an old song—a place where the past meets the present. For me, my cedar swamp is in Northern Michigan, where I first learned to appreciate meals cooked over an open flame, under sprawling branches and starlit skies.
Creating the cookbook “Old Time Hawkey’s Recipes from the Cedar Swamp” was a way to bottle up the essence of my childhood and the uncomplicated, comforting food that came with it.
This book isn’t just a collection of recipes; it’s an invitation to embrace simpler, more deliberate ways of cooking and living. It offers a pause from the pace of modern life, where the only sounds are the soothing crackling of logs, moving water, and the songs of birds in the trees. The scents of fresh pine, moss, and, if you’re lucky, the pleasant aroma of roasting marshmallows, from my famous “Foiled Sweet Potatoes.”
Our journey began in my Cedar Swamp, the place where I grew up and where I started making videos in the spring of 2020. Before the world knew us as “Old Time Hawkey,” it was just me and my two Australian Shepherds, Donnybrook and Kris Draper.
“Old Time Hawkey’s Recipes from the Cedar Swamp” is more than a cookbook. It’s a reflection of a lifestyle that values simplicity, where every meal is an opportunity to create lasting memories. As you explore the pages, I hope you’re inspired not only to try the recipes but also to create your own—from your own corner of the world—your own cedar swamp. In doing so, I hope you too can find the same comfort, love, and inspiration that I do when I cook them.
All my love,
Fritz
