And dailymealcenter is my little corner of the internet!
I launched dailymealcenter in 2018 after spending five years as the head chef in a small public‑school kitchen in Portland, Oregon. I was juggling lesson plans, lunch menus, and a growing craving for sharing the quick, family‑friendly dishes I was inventing on the fly. One rainy evening, I posted a photo of a five‑minute chickpea stir‑fry on a personal blog, and within a week I had 1,200 page views. That tiny spark turned into a full‑time project later that year.
Fast forward to March 2025, and dailymealcenter now hosts more than 250 tested recipes, 15 step‑by‑step video tutorials, and a weekly newsletter that reaches 120,000 subscribers. I’ve added a searchable ingredient database, a seasonal meal planner, and a “Kids Cook” section that has already helped over 8,000 families get kids involved in the kitchen. The site’s traffic has grown by an average of 32 % year over year, and I’m humbled to see readers from 45 countries leaving comments in the comment section.
I live in Asheville, North Carolina, with my husband Mark and our two energetic kids, Maya (7) and Leo (4). When I’m not whisking, I’m probably hiking the Blue Ridge Mountains, digging through my vinyl collection for a good jazz record, or kneading a sourdough starter that’s now in its third year. My favorite things are fresh basil, sunrise coffee, and the sound of a skillet sizzle.
One fun fact: the first recipe I ever posted on dailymealcenter was a simple “one‑pan lemon garlic shrimp” that I actually cooked for my own family on a Tuesday night. It still sits at the top of my “most loved” list, and I still get requests for it at every family gathering.