diff --git a/internal/recipe/runner.go b/internal/recipe/runner.go
index cc008a8..e38fab5 100644
--- a/internal/recipe/runner.go
+++ b/internal/recipe/runner.go
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import (
 	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
+	"os/exec"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
 
@@ -46,7 +47,16 @@ func (r *Runner) Run() error {
 			r.handleApplyStep(refactorJSONs)
 			continue
 
+		// === NEW: Safe shell command execution ===
+		case strings.Contains(titleLower, "initialize") || strings.Contains(titleLower, "create") ||
+			strings.Contains(titleLower, "run") || strings.Contains(titleLower, "shell") ||
+			strings.Contains(titleLower, "poetry") || strings.Contains(titleLower, "git") ||
+			strings.Contains(titleLower, "tea"):
+			r.executeShellCommands(step, previousResults)
+			continue
+
 		default:
+			// fallback for any other step
 			prompt := fmt.Sprintf(`Recipe Overview:
 %s
 
@@ -244,3 +254,101 @@ func createUnifiedPatch(changes []FileChange, patchPath string) error {
 	}
 	return nil
 }
+
+// NEW: Safe shell command execution
+func (r *Runner) executeShellCommands(step Step, previousResults []string) {
+	prompt := fmt.Sprintf(`You are executing shell commands for this step.
+
+Recipe Overview:
+%s
+
+Previous step results:
+%s
+
+=== CURRENT STEP ===
+Objective: %s
+Instructions: %s
+
+Return ONLY a JSON array of commands to run. Each command must be in this exact format:
+
+[
+  {
+    "command": "poetry",
+    "args": ["new", "{{.project_name}}"]
+  }
+]
+
+Only use commands from the allowed list. Never use cd, rm -rf, or anything that could escape the project directory.`,
+		r.Recipe.Overview,
+		strings.Join(previousResults, "\n\n---\n\n"),
+		step.Objective,
+		step.Instructions)
+
+	messages := []map[string]string{
+		{"role": "system", "content": "You are Grok, built by xAI. Precise expert programmer and refactoring assistant."},
+		{"role": "user", "content": prompt},
+	}
+
+	response := r.Client.Stream(messages, r.Model)
+	fmt.Println()
+
+	// Parse JSON command list
+	type ShellCommand struct {
+		Command string   `json:"command"`
+		Args    []string `json:"args"`
+	}
+
+	var cmds []ShellCommand
+	start := strings.Index(response, "[")
+	end := strings.LastIndex(response, "]") + 1
+	if start == -1 {
+		fmt.Println("   ⚠️  No valid shell commands returned — skipping.")
+		return
+	}
+
+	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(response[start:end]), &cmds); err != nil {
+		fmt.Printf("   ⚠️  Could not parse shell commands: %v\n", err)
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Resolve boundary
+	cwd := "."
+	if v, ok := r.Recipe.ResolvedParams["package_path"]; ok {
+		if s, ok := v.(string); ok && s != "" {
+			cwd = s
+		}
+	}
+
+	for _, cmd := range cmds {
+		fullCmd := cmd.Command
+		if len(cmd.Args) > 0 {
+			fullCmd += " " + strings.Join(cmd.Args, " ")
+		}
+
+		fmt.Printf("   Running: %s\n", fullCmd)
+
+		// Whitelist check
+		allowed := false
+		for _, allowedCmd := range r.Recipe.AllowedShellCommands {
+			if strings.HasPrefix(cmd.Command, allowedCmd) {
+				allowed = true
+				break
+			}
+		}
+		if !allowed {
+			fmt.Printf("   ❌ Command not allowed: %s\n", cmd.Command)
+			continue
+		}
+
+		// Execute with strict cwd
+		execCmd := exec.Command(cmd.Command, cmd.Args...)
+		execCmd.Dir = cwd
+		output, err := execCmd.CombinedOutput()
+
+		if err != nil {
+			fmt.Printf("   ❌ Failed: %v\n%s\n", err, string(output))
+		} else {
+			fmt.Printf("   ✅ Success\n%s\n", string(output))
+		}
+	}
+}