On this episode of Taste Buds with Deb, host Debra Eckerling speaks with Chef Rossi aka the anti-caterer! The founder of The Raging Skillet (which happens to be the name of her first memoir), Rossi is all about making fun, surprising foods that people love, as well as putting love into everything she makes. This shines through in her writing, as well.

Whereas “The Raging Skillet: The True Life Story of Chef Rossi” shares the behind the scenes of how she became a chef and caterer (complete with kooky recipes), her latest, “The Punk Rock Queen of the Jews” is kind of a prequel; it’s her wild, queer coming-of-age true story, she explains.

“I never quite wrote anything like that where I made myself so vulnerable,” Rossi says. “I wish so much that I had been able to read something like that when I was 16 years old, because I felt very often like I was the only person in the entire world who understood what I was going through.”

Rossi talks about her books, her personal and professional journeys, and how to put love and kindness into food … and into the world. She also shares cooking tips, as well as her gluten-free recipe for the ultimate comfort food: mac n cheese, which you can find at JewishJournal.com.

“I think the secret ingredient is just really taking the time,” she said. “If you rush through it, you might not have the great balance; you want to really whisk it with a lot of love in your heart.”

Follow @ChefRossiNYC on Instagram and learn more at TheRagingSkillet.com. Find “The Punk Rock Queen of the Jews” at Bookshop.org or at your favorite place to buy books. For more from Taste Buds, subscribe on iTunes and YouTube, and follow @TheDEBMethod on social media.