about blackberry babe

Meet Michelle

Nice to meet you! I’m Michelle, a professionally trained cook and cookbook author living in Kansas City, Missouri. I’ve been sharing award winning recipes here on Blackberry Babe since 2014.

I believe that home cooked food can bring your family together. Eating together around the table every evening is a priority for my little family of three!

I use this recipe blog to both share my love of cooking and give back to others.

In 2019, I left my job as a recycling executive to work on Blackberry Babe full-time! I am always looking to grow as a cook. I’m proud to say I’ve completed the 9-week Pro Series at the Culinary Center of Kansas City, and published my first cookbook in 2021.

In addition to 500+ free recipes to browse, I put together FREE e-mail series with 4 of my most valuable tips to becoming a more confident home cook. This series shares tips that can be used across most recipes. I promise it will help!

My goal here at Blackberry Babe is to help you become a more confident cook! My recipes are down-to-earth and inspired by my Midwestern roots.

The ingredients I use are common, and easy to find! I value using the ingredients I already have in the fridge (or pantry), so I will ALWAYS give you ideas for ingredient substitutions!

The Inspiration Behind Blackberry Babe

The name of my blog was inspired by my maternal grandmother, Clara.

Grandma Clara was a wife, farmer, and mother to 11 children. She lived to the age of 86 and was sharp and active until she passed.

And, that woman could cook! Her coleslaw recipe is a classic and one of my most popular recipes. I still dream about her soft homemade bread (no, she didn’t write down the recipe)!

As a little girl, I helped her pick buckets and buckets of wild blackberries to make jams and pie. Those memories inspired the name of my blog (plus, I’m a sucker for some good alliteration).