Meet Melissa
Cookbook author. Whisk slinger. Empty nester.
The Southern Whisk™ began as a simple landing place to preserve my recipes for posterity. Over time, it’s grown into much more—a full food blog with video tutorials and an e-commerce hub where you can find my cookbooks.
Born in southwest Texas, raised in both Far North Dallas and the rural southwest, I have strong native Texan roots with my family dating back to Texas being The Republic of Texas. I spent a large portion of my childhood with my grandparents on their ranch. My grandmother, Eileen, was raised in Houston, Texas by a German mother and Lebanese father. She taught me to cook and set a high standard for family traditions and holiday formality. My first cookbook, The Southern Whisk: A Well-Rounded Palate, is dedicated to her and my adult sons, Austin and Bryce. Whether it was homemade French toast for breakfast or chicken ‘n’ dumplings for dinner, I could always depend on flavor, balanced side dishes, and a hot meal on the table 3 times per day at her house. When I became a mother in 2000, I began to pay closer attention to her techniques and stories. She and my granddad traveled the world a few times, and she would bring the cuisine from her travels into her kitchen—which inspired me to do the same for my first cookbook and my own children.
The Southern Whisk: A Well-Rounded Palate took me 4 years to complete as I was maintaining a 7-5 job during that time. In 2024, I hunkered-down and spent 8 months finishing my book. The initial version of the cookbook has a completely different font than the current version; one of many obstacles I had to learn and overcome. Designed, written, edited, and self-published by yours truly, AWRP is my gift to posterity, my late grandmother, and those of you looking to broaden your palate and have some neat extras like Pantry and Kitchen Inventory, a Season Produce Guide, Culinary Glossary, Substitutions for dietary and allergy-prone families, and more. As glorious as it is, I certainly got a bit overzealous with it. It’s 401 pages of over 460 recipes, so printing costs are, uh, high. Whoops. Well-established television “chefs” with cooking shows can offer the same size cookbook for much less because their publishing companies offer “offset printing,” meaning they cover all of the printing costs so the book is affordable. I’m just little ole me, so there’s no offset anything. BUT. Should you choose to gift or purchase my initial cookbook, I can promise you it will serve you well for decades! Multiple recipes across a multitude of cultures, categories, and creations.
The Southern Whisk: Nourishology dropped in August of 2025. Back in 2011, I lost my entire colon (colectomy) at age 31 after living with Ulcerative Colitis for 4 years. I missed my youngest son’s pre-school graduation, was in the hospital for 10 days, and it took me over a year to truly come to terms with my new way of life. No one in my family had ever endured anything similar, so we deduced my loss was due to years of a high-stress environment and a truly poor diet between meals (high sugar, high caffeine, fried foods, only one “real food” meal per day). So, I began to educate myself over the years. There’s a plethora of information available on grains, sugars, additives, and blood types; has been for decades. What was missing? Guided nourishment for a supported body targeting each organ and system of the body. Nourishology covers what to cook/eat and over 150 supplement suggestions for over THIRTY-THREE organs and systems of the body. I’ve had family members ask me questions like, “what should I take for prostate health” or “what can I take to help my thyroid.” It’s covered in my cookbook, but I also cover how to nourish specific areas of the body through real food! Whether you’re soothing inflammation, supporting your skin, or boosting circulation, you’ll find practical recipes with real benefits. No promises, no health claims, no MD or PhD, no certifications here; just real food, real recipes, real life experience, and thorough research from credible sources to help me create recipes and offer suggestions that have worked for me for almost 15 years.
And while you’re here, consider taking a gander at Whiskwell™—my newest venture. As someone who spends much of her time cooking and baking, I wanted to share a true taste of Texas with you: Texas Pecan Oil. Cold-pressed from the drupe of the State Tree of Texas—the pecan tree (Carya illinoinensis)—our oil boasts a buttery, nutty flavor and a remarkable ~470°F smoke point. Made from American Native pecans, it’s as versatile as it is authentic. Launching mid-October 2025, I can’t wait to demonstrate how I use it in my cooking. Till then, happy whisking!