When it comes to eating we can fall into a few categories. There are those that love to cook, there are those to love others to cook.  Some of us are very happy setting the table and doing the dishes if someone would just cook for us!  I happen to fall into the category if you cook it, I will eat it, probably!  Don’t expect me to only eat green, unless the green is a tomatillo salsa with decent chips.

My guest on the May 16th edition of the Born To Talk Radio Show is Chef Melissa Mayo.

Born and raised in a South African Orthodox Jewish home, Melissa remembers that cooking was very important to her family culture. From a young age, she paid attention to her mother. Her advice was to watch and learn, not by following a traditional recipe but by paying attention to how food tasted.

She learned her lessons well and developed her own cooking style that is uniquely her own.  If you love to cook, you likely love to eat.  Nothing makes Melissa happier than cooking and eating her way through travels around the world with her husband and teenage daughter.  No restaurant food for Melissa, she wants a kitchen. Bring on the spices and local ingredients of any spot she visits and she will make the food magic happen.

Combine healthy eating habits and exericise, particularly Yoga and you will understand when she says, “Abs are made in the kitchen, not in the gym. It’s 70% diet and 30% exercise.” She likes to mix it up, as you can see here.

Have you ever been the person preparing the dinner party and found yourself stuck in the kitchen with last minute preps?  Here is another piece of advice from Melissa; serve food family style, at room temperature so you can enjoy your guests, while you share stories over a good meal.

How she took her love of cooking and became a super chef is a great success story and one you will want to hear about on the show.  Let me drop a name of someone that played a part in her journey.  Are you curious now?

As she developed her cooking style she also realized that she had a passion for sharing her unique style with others.  Thus became the next chapter in the Melissa, “This is My Life Cookbook.” (I made that up, but it’s not a bad idea based on what I know about her!)

She began teaching cooking to others in her own kitchen.  Can you imagine that? Take what you love and share it with others. That’s the beauty of Melissa, both inside and out.

As a brief example, check out these mouth-watering photos. Pasta Alla Vodka.Grilled Salmon and Nicoise PlatterMaybe a little South African Cheesecake for dessert?

You want more?  Check out her website  www.melissamayo.com

Maybe one of her 2 minute videos would inspire you.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldTHzX7gIVw

Any way you slice it, Melissa is a charmer. Congratulations to her on her first cookbook that came out just in time for Passover last month.  You’re not Jewish, you don’t celebrate Passover, no problem, you don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy the delicious recipes in her book.

This is what I found to be so exceptional about this book. The photo and recipe with ingredients and instructions are all on one page!  This works for me. I may even tryout a few of these recipes myself. Now, someone will need to alert the media!!Join me as I have a conversation with Melissa on www.latalklive.com at 1:00 pm PT on my Born To Talk Radio Show where Conversations + Connections = Community.

If you miss the live show which is available both audio and visual, the archived link will be posted later in the afternoon.