BIO
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Marisa is a chef, recipe developer, and writer with two decades of professional experience in the food and beverage industry. Her work focuses primarily on pastry recipe development and plant-based cooking. She is a graduate of the Le Cordon Bleu California Culinary Academy’s Baking and Pastry Arts Program and has a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from the Center of Nutrition Studies.
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Marisa began her culinary career in the pastry kitchen of Reed Hearon’s late gem, Rose Pistola in San Francisco. Following formative stints at the Michelin starred Michael Mina and Cortez, she moved to Colorado to study International Affairs and Italian at the University of Colorado. It was her time studying abroad in Florence, Italy during her senior year in college, where she experienced the vibrant slow-food movement of Tuscany; laying the foundation for her love of seasonal cooking and eating.
Shortly after college, Marisa accepted the head pastry chef position at Bradford Heap’s farm-to-fork restaurant, SALT in Boulder, Colorado, running both the dessert and bread program. Eventually, her longing for California sunshine and sourdough brought her back to San Francisco where she landed
the head pastry chef position at Jesse Cool’s seasonal, market-driven restaurant, Flea Street Café in Menlo Park. Growing and harvesting their own herbs and honey, Marisa developed a deep passion for ingredient-driven baking and supporting sustainable food systems. She went on to become the Executive Pastry Chef for the South Indian restaurant group, DOSA, running the dessert programs for both San Francisco restaurants, and later developing the dessert menu for their fast-casual concept dosa by DOSA in Oakland. In 2017 she accepted the Executive Pastry Chef position at the James Beard Award-winning restaurant, Slanted Door spearheading their hyper-seasonal pastry program.
Marisa is passionate about supporting local farmers, artisans, and sustainable food education. She creates seasonally inspired desserts that are whimsical, transporting, and refined. She is available for hire for recipe development, consulting, and writing projects. In the Spring of 2020, she founded Orange & Blossom, a modern, farm-focused and plant-based patisserie in Portland, Oregon. The brick & mortar patisserie opened in NE Portland in the Fall of 2023. In 2024 the patisserie was named Best Vegan Bakery in America by Veg News.
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Previous consulting clients include:
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Sustainable Restaurant Group (Bamboo Sushi)
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