Amy Barnes

Experience: Amy Cipolla Barnes has 25 years of freelance writing experience, with a focus on food, family, travel, and lifestyle including food writing and recipe development. She was an International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) 2020 cookbook judge and contributes regularly to McSweeney's "Reviews of New Foods" columns. She's fascinated by odd foods, limited-edition products, regional specialties, nostalgic recipes, and hyper-local favorites with a heightened radar for all quirky foods.

Amy has written for a wide range of lifestyle publications, including Chowhound, Forbes, Farm Flavor, Parade Media's Relish, Tennessee Home & Farm, Clean Plates, Gayot, Allrecipes, Realtor.com, Well+Good, and Simplemost. She is also a recipe developer and tester for Relish. In addition to food articles, Amy is an editor for Ruby Lit, a food-related literary journal publishing food fiction and creative non-fiction.

From judging cookbooks to developing recipes, Amy has been part of all aspects of food writing. Whether she's researching the history or backgrounds of international and regional foods or interviewing authors, food creators, small business owners, or corporate food companies, she has her finger (and spatula) on the pulse of the food and recipe world. In addition to freelance writing, Amy is also an avid foodie that doesn't just explore restaurants; she's also been to food factories like the Golden Flake Chips and Blue Bell Ice Cream factories.

Education: Amy has a bachelor's degree from Wichita State University with continued studies in business and non-profit management from Kansas Newman College and Duke University. Additionally, she's continued her writing education by taking courses from a wide range of sites and individuals.

Amy's favorite Allrecipes.com recipe is Grandma's Gingersnap Cookies. There's something about the addition of molasses that makes these not just a favorite recipe but also favorite cookie ever (for her, her daughter, and a lot of the Allrecipes audience.)