Experience

Melissa has spent much of her career as a recipe developer for magazines, websites, cookbooks and national brands, and now brings that culinary knowledge and hands-on experience to editing and writing. She began working with Taste of Home in 2024 as a freelance writer before joining as a full-time contract Updates Editor in 2025. Her primary responsibilities include editing recipe collections and writing articles and recipes as needed. 

Before Taste of Home, Melissa worked for Food Network for 10 years in the test kitchens, creating original recipes and content for the Food Network Magazine and website. She has also created content for HexClad, TheKitchn, Parade, Tasting Table and The Pioneer Woman Magazine. 

Melissa is a passionate baker in her free time, including cookies and sourdough bread from her well-aged sourdough starter, Bella Dough-na. When she’s not in the kitchen, you can find Melissa cycling on her Peloton through the latest power zone challenge and slowly relearning how to play her acoustic guitar.