36 Quotes by Molly Yeh

I had been blogging for a few years when Jonah Straus, my now-literary agent, reached out to see if I'd consider writing a cookbook. At the time, I didn't feel ready; I was still getting adjusted to life in the upper Midwest, and I was still finding my recipe voice.

There were a lot of publishers that I loved, so the book went to auction. An auction is where you sit nervously by your phone and eat potato chips for two days waiting for your agent to text you numbers of the highest bid for each round. I ultimately went with Dervla Kelly at Rodale Books.

Writing a blog that is free to read on the internet is one thing, but taking up physical space in the world with a product that costs money ups the ante, so the quality has to be at a high enough level for that.

Having an agent who had been through the process a million times and who could walk me through the process freed up a lot of mental space for me to just focus on the creative. I also worked with recipe testers, photographers, and assistants who were invaluable in creating a book that I'm truly proud of.

By the time a meal I'm preparing rolls around, I'm usually so full from tasting that I'm not hungry any more.

I love finding ways to bridge the gap between my heritage and my new farming community. An ingredient such as za'atar might be foreign, but throwing it into something familiar - a hot dish or an eggbake - makes it more approachable.

I live about five hours away from a Whole Foods and Trader Joe's, so I have to make extra sure that I get everything I need, otherwise I'm totally screwed.

My journey from the blog to my books to the show has been fueled by a love of food and sharing it with others, and being able to pursue my passions as a career is a dream come true.

Question: How do you make a plate of hummus filling enough for a bunch of big burly farmers? Answer: Put meat all over it.