Meet Our Residents

Hey there, Food52er! Welcome to our Residents hub, where you can get to know our community of experts—from pastry pros to cocktail connoisseurs—and explore their top recipes and videos. Whether you're a novice in the kitchen or a seasoned home cook, our Residents are here to guide on you on what's guaranteed to be a delicious adventure.

Erin is a recipe developer, cookbook author, and (luckily for us) F52's Resident Baking BFF. When she’s not giving us pointers and pep talks on her show Bake It Up A Notch, she’s likely sharing A+ recipes, like her All Butter Pie Crust Dough or Grilled Flatbread. Erin has been sharing her encyclopedia of baking knowhow with the Food52 community since 2009.

Mary Heffernan of Five Marys is Food52's newest Resident, and in the video series Raised on the Ranch, she'll be sharing everything from ranching routines to family-friendly meals. Along with her husband and their four daughters, Five Marys takes care of livestock like Black Angus cattle, Navajo-Churro sheep, Berkshire hogs, and a wide variety of laying hens, using ranching methods that reflect their beliefs in respecting the animals and raising them humanely.

Five Marys' Kitchen & Grilling Essentials

Maine-based bartender and writer Harper Fendler is the host of our brand-new series Cocktail Class, where he'll (you guessed it!) show you how to make all sorts of sips—starting with the classic Manhattan—and demo essential techniques, like how to freeze alcohol for slushie drinks.

Harper's Bar Cart Essentials

Drawing on his sprawling knowledge of all things drinks (from radlers to teas and beyond), Resident John deBary's show Drink What You Want reminds us that the best bevs are playful, joyful, and fun—no matter the season or occasion.

Kristen is a writer, editor, and prolific hunter of the internet’s smartest, most talked-about recipes. Her best discoveries are compiled in her James Beard Award-nominated Genius Recipes column—and when you become hooked (it's inevitable), Kristen’s accompanying cookbooks, like her latest, Simply Genius, are required reading.

Lucas Sin—the chef behind Junzi Kitchen, a fast-casual Chinese spot based in the Northeast—is our go-to Resident for improving foundational skills in the kitchen, like steaming eggs, stir-frying greens, and searing tofu. In 2020, he was also on Forbes' list of 30 Under 30 (yes, we're impressed!).

A member of the Food52 community since 2013, cookbook author and recipe developer Mandy Lee's dishes use unexpected pairings to bring surprise and delight into our home kitchens. Her Miso-Stewed Beef French Dip and Mochi Bread Doughnuts With Salted Honey & Cardamom are two delicious places to start.

The chef and owner of Hudson Valley’s Catbird Cottage, Melina Hammer is a hosting pro. She serves her guests seasonally informed dishes, like Porcini & Ricotta Quiches and Chile-Garlic Chicken With Spinach Pesto Pasta, and has been sharing the recipes behind them with the Food52 community since 2014.