School
The Institute of Culinary Education, Columbia University
Expertise
Weeknight Dinner Recipes, Baking Expertise, Ingredient Knowledge
- In "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" Season 3, Melissa was part of a small team baking and building a 4-foot gingerbread replica of the Empire State Building.
- She has been a judge in chili and pickle competitions, as well as a featured diner on an episode of "Top Chef."
- As a line cook in New York City, Melissa prepared dishes for celebrities such as Seal, Lenny Kravitz, and Nicole Kidman.
Experience
Melissa has worked as an editor, recipe developer, and food writer for over 20 years. She previously worked as a full-time recipe developer and food editor at The Food Network, where she created and edited recipes, tips, and headnotes for the Food Network Magazine and wrote feature articles for the Food Network website. She has also written notable features or developed recipes for a variety of leading media outlets, including Art Culinaire, Real Simple, and Fine Cooking magazines, in addition to contributing to cookbooks such as "The Joy of Cooking," "The Fiamma Cookbook," and "The Beauty Diet."
Education
Melissa received her culinary diploma from The Institute of Culinary Education and a bachelor's degree in English from Columbia University.
Tasting Table’s editorial coverage hails from a veteran group of writers and editors with expertise in their respective fields in the food and drink, hospitality, and agriculture industries. Outside experts are also consulted to help deliver factual, up-to-date information and original recipes.
We strive to publish knowledgeable, engaging articles to give readers the information they're looking for, whether that is the news of the day; cooking tips, tricks, and trends; or reviews and recommendations. In an effort to provide the most comprehensive, current, and accurate content, our team is constantly reviewing and updating articles as necessary. Click here for more information on our editorial process.
-
Five Guys milkshakes are delicious, but the fun starts with mix-ins. We looked for some favorite blends and then tried and ranked the most popular combinations.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Dirty potato chips aren't potato chips that have fallen on the floor. Dirty Kettle Style Potato Chips is a brand. Here's everything you need to know.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Cooking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
In addition to the stellar line-up of ingredients, the real secret to an amazing panzanella salad is time.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Non-Alcoholic
By Melissa Gaman
As non-alcoholic hop waters rise in popularity, there are more options than ever out there. We reviewed and ranked several hop water brands to find the best.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Jeni's Ice Creams is known for releasing unique seasonal flavors. Here's our review of the brand's new 2025 spring collection of ice cream flavors and bars.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Baking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
This cake, named for the appearance and texture of what it mimics, is the best cake to bake for a sublime tres leches recipe that properly absorbs all the milk.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Trader Joe's
By Melissa Gaman
Trader Joe's is known for its unique items and low prices, so we set out to figure out if their most expensive entree still provided a good deal.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Kitchen Tools
By Melissa Gaman
Making sourdough bread can be stressful, with tips and tricks to remember to get everything right. You probably haven't even thought about the proofing bowl.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Although the tea menu at Dunkin' isn't as extensive as the coffee-based offerings, there are still some options - except you can't get a London Fog.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Bakeware
By Melissa Gaman
Before you decide not to bake the buttery, sweet cake you crave, there is a very easy, quick way to find the capacity of your Bundt pan.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Cooking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
Refrigerating a can of coconut milk will allow you to use your ingredient in more ways than one, and will help avoid food waste at the same time. Here's how.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Although Synergy offers several fresh, bold flavors like Mystic Mango and Guava Goddess, one flavor was a let-down, leading it to fall dead last in the ranking.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Trader Joe's
By Melissa Gaman
Trader Joe's offers a wide range of nut butters including several varieties of peanut butter, but they are not all created equal.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Utz is a century-old chip company that makes dozens of flavors both classic and novel, and we ranked 22 of the offerings from worst to best.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Zapp's is known for its colorful variety of unique chip and pretzel flavors. After sampling every Zapp's product, we ranked them from worst to best.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Fever-Tree uses quality ingredients to create some truly delicious cocktail mixers. Still, we identified the worst Fever-Tree mixer in our ranking.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Coffee and Tea
By Melissa Gaman
Peace Tea is a convenient, canned ice tea that can be found in stores across the country. We tasted all of its flavors to see which was worth sipping on.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Our recipe developer tested out the Toshiba Air Fryer to see how it measures up in the crowded market of air fryers, and it passed with flying colors.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
'Tis the season for pumpkin. We sampled some of the most popular pumpkin coffee brands on the market and ranked them from worst to best based on their flavor.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Food Facts
By Melissa Gaman
Popular squash types like butternut often dominate the market. But there are two lesser known squash varieties that were created to improve your fall dishes.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Cooking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
If you're wondering why recipes seem to use too much or too little garlic, you're not alone. Fortunately, it's quite easy to adjust garlic usage to your liking.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Whole Foods
By Melissa Gaman
Enterprising food scientists push the envelope on staple fruits and vegetables. A new type of squash, the Honeypatch, is coming to Whole Foods.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Coffee and Tea
By Melissa Gaman
The viral fluffy latte coffee craze is easy to make at home, but getting the best results means choosing the right Nespresso pod for the job.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Sweet potatoes are a prim example of an easy-to-cook, nutritious, and versatile vegetable that transforms in a short time on a hot grill.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Food Facts
By Melissa Gaman
Whipped cream comes in many flavors, including a sweetened vanilla version known as Chantilly cream. We explore the differences between the two toppings.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Baking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
Over-ripe bananas are good for more than just banana bread, especially if you find yourself short on time or only have a spotty banana or two.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More
-
Cooking Tips
By Melissa Gaman
To bridge the gap between store-bought and homemade teriyaki sauce, you need just one ingredient: ginger.
By Melissa Gaman
Read More