marilou suszko

What’s a great day for me? One spent outdoors in the company of an Ohio farmer or indoors in the kitchen surrounded by fresh, locally grown or raised ingredients just looking for a delicious recipe to buddy up to. I’m a fan of homegrown foods and in- season flavors but an even bigger fan of those who work hard and thoughtfully to bring homegrown—OHIO grown—to our tables. 

I’m Ohio born, raised and educated, graduating from the University of Toledo with a degree in communications and journalism. My career has put me in the path of fabulous food for many years, working for magazines within the restaurant and food industries and as a feature writer for a variety of newspapers and consumer magazines. If I make you taste or make your thoughts linger on the foods I write about, then I’ve done my job well.

I’ve met hundreds of food enthusiasts over the years at various culinary schools around the country and as an avocational instructor at Laurel Run Cooking School in Vermilion, my hometown. Whether it’s helping someone perfect a simple cooking technique, introducing them to a new flavor, or a introducing a different take on a familiar one, I’ve discovered that you can make lots of friends over shared tastes and a passion for great foods. 

At home, I have a modest yet productive vegetable garden I call “Boxed Acres,” small in size, mighty in terms of yield, and I’m a beginner beekeeper. I’m also the author of Farms and Foods of Ohio: From Garden Gate to Dinner Plate. (Hippocrene Books, NY 2007) It chronicles one of the most memorable years of my life when I traveled to small family farms in all four corners of the Buckeye state and everywhere in between. I’ve spent a lot of times in the fields and barns of some of the finest stewards of Ohio’s farmland who were always generous with their time and information about food and farming. You’ll find 123 great recipes in the book but it’s the stories that provide that extra flavor. And that’s what I hope to share with you From My Ohio Kitchen to Yours on Our Ohio.

Marilou Suszko

Marilou's recipes on OurOhio.org