Best Served Hot: February 8–14, 2026

Such sad news from Nagi of RecipeTin Eats, who shared last night that her beloved dog, Dozer, has passed away. The depth of their bond resonated with so many that the Sydney Morning Herald honored him with a front-page obituary today.

Elsewhere, Substack is rapidly evolving. The platform recently announced custom website designs and recipe cards, features that have got people talking. While it’s a good start to a clear demand, it still has a long way to go to match the full flexibility of WordPress.

On a lighter note, new seasonal ingredients are hitting the charts this week! We’re seeing a surge in raspberries and strawberries as food bloggers prepare for the warmer days ahead!

If we haven’t yet met, I’m Rachel Cunliffe, food blog designer + statistician at cre8d design. Every Sunday, Best Served Hot provides exclusive trend analysis, clear-cut insights, and industry news you need to know.

Methodology: Top food blogs are defined as those running Raptive ads with 100K+ combined followers on Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and Facebook. Lifestyle, cocktail-only, and aggregator sites are excluded. This week, we’re tracking 1004 sites.

Cover: National Pizza Day, February 9

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If you’ve been waiting for an incentive to upgrade to a paid subscription, now’s a great time to give yourself a gift that supports your food blogging success, at an amazing discount.