ICE at 50: Meet Alumni Honoree Kristen Miglore, Media Star and Genius Cooking Hack Hunter

Kristen Miglore is the queen of cooking hacks. But don’t take our word for it; take it from Genius Recipes, the long-running and wildly popular column she wrote for Food52, a digital food and lifestyle company. Following its launch, Miglore, who graduated from ICE in 2008, became the food world’s go-to source for smart tricks that make home cooking easier and more efficient.

Her work was nominated for a James Beard Foundation award, and she went on to publish three cookbooks in the Genius franchise — "Genius Recipes," "Genius Desserts" and "Simply Genius," all of which earned awards from the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

Becoming a food writer and recipe developer wasn’t always Miglore’s plan. She began her professional life as an economic analyst, but quickly realized that she thought more about food than finances. The question then became how to turn that passion into a career.

Kristen found the answer in two places: the Food Studies program at New York University and the Culinary Arts program at ICE. It was at ICE that she acquired the practical skills needed to thrive in a test kitchen and, eventually, the world of food media.

Miglore left Food52 in 2024, after 13 successful years. Today, she’s a mother and a freelance food writer, contributing stories to outlets like "The New York Times" and co-authoring a book called "The Montessori Kitchen." Here, Miglore reflects on her legacy at Food52, her pivotal time at ICE, and the number one kitchen hack she learned at culinary school.

*The following interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. 

ICE: What do you consider to be your biggest professional achievements?

Kristen Miglore: The most lasting achievements are authoring the cookbooks. I love writing for the Internet and for print, but they don't feel as permanent. There's something about cookbooks and the fact that they pretty much can't change once you publish them. That feels like the thing I'm proudest of, that I can really point to when I'm trying to explain to my kids what I do.

ICE: To what factors do you contribute your success so far?

KM: I think one is going after what I really love. I had a previous career before I went to ICE, which was in economics. I enjoyed economics in school, but when I got to the entry level office jobs, the work I was doing was really different. There were things that I found interesting, but by and large, all I did was think about what I was going to cook for dinner.

Also, being willing to try out a variety of jobs. The things I did in culinary school and while getting my Master’s at NYU still inform what I write about now. I almost wish that I had done more.

ICE: When did food become something that you wanted to pursue professionally?

KM: I spent two years at a company analyzing portfolios full of car leases. I don't care much about cars, but that was just the job I could get. I had a good work life balance, but the whole time I was thinking in the back of my head, what if I could spend my time doing the thing that I'm actually thinking about as I'm running these analyses? That was a turning point.

I googled Food Studies because I didn't think I had the stamina to work at a restaurant kitchen, but I desperately wanted to work in food. I found the Master's program at NYU, and at the time, you could get credit towards the Master’s if you got a culinary diploma.

ICE: Since you had publishing in mind, why did you also want to get a culinary education?

KM: A little selfishly, I just wanted to become a better cook. I wanted the hands-on training. But I also knew it would inform my writing. To have this foundation of techniques would give me more credit as a recipe developer or recipe tester.

ICE: Do you feel like you got that foundation at ICE? How much did ICE training help you?

KM: I still think about the lessons I learned from Chef Ted… He was my module one chef, and I still think about the .

ICE: What are you up to now? 

KM: I'm working on "The Montessori Kitchen" cookbook with a co-author, Junnifa Uzodike. She is a Montessori educator in Nigeria. She's bringing the Montessori knowledge, and I'm bringing the food side of things. I'm juggling that and freelance assignments, mainly for the New York Times.

ICE: What does a typical day look like for you now? And what do you love most about your work?

KM: There isn't a typical day. It really depends on where I am in the course of writing an article or working on a chapter of the cookbook. It could be in the kitchen testing recipes. It could be in the library researching techniques. It could be holing up at a coffee shop and writing all day. There's a ton of variety. One downside people should know about is that it can be solitary. And it's hard to develop relationships with editors and publications. That's most of the work; being able to develop trust and to be the person that the editors think of when they have an assignment, whether it's a cookbook or a newspaper or magazine.

I do like the flexibility. I have a deadline, and I have to hit that deadline, but how I get there is up to me. If I need to go pick up my kids early from school because they're sick, or if we want to go on a family vacation, I don't have to get that approved by anyone.

ICE: When you think of ICE, what is the first word that pops into your mind?

KM: Challenging, but that doesn't totally sum it up. ICE will push you beyond what you think you can do.

ICE: What drew you to ICE?

KM: To be honest, a lot of it was that it was in the heart of New York City. And the value compared to other schools. Given that I was layering it on top of another graduate degree, that was really helpful. The schedule worked for me too. I chose a [morning schedule] and then I would go to an internship at Martha Stewart TV.

ICE: What did you learn at ICE that has helped you in your career?

KM: I learned a lot of chef-y tricks from people who had worked in restaurants for decades. The one thing I use the most from ICE is putting a damp towel under your bowl to sturdy it when you're whisking. It's similar to the idea of putting a damp towel under your cutting board. I've put that in my cookbooks and credited it to culinary school.

ICE: Transitioning out of culinary school, was that easy? Did your ICE experience help with that transition?

KM: The connections that I made helped. I did my externship in the Saveur magazine test kitchen and on the editorial side. The people at your externship might help you get a job or maybe they connect you with a different chef or editor.

ICE: Did you have mentors? Are you mentoring anyone now?

KM: The deepest relationship would be with Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, who co-founded Food52, because I worked with them for 13 years. I still consider them mentors. Even though I was the first technical hire at Food52, I certainly don't think that the mentorship went one way with the people I hired. Part of the reason I was happy to stay as long as I did is because I was able to learn from all of the amazing people who worked there.

ICE: Do you have any advice for people who are considering culinary school? Or anyone who might also be interested in publishing and media?

KM: I don't think that you will be as good of a writer if you just go to culinary school and then try to write. I think you really need to be willing to work in a wide variety of places. Culinary school can give you the foundation, but you need to find things to say that will differentiate you from everyone else.

QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS

Favorite kitchen tool? Right now, a boning knife. It’s a happy medium between a chef's knife and paring knife.

Salty or sweet? Can I say both? Salty sweet.

Favorite food holiday? Thanksgiving.

Favorite food city? New York.

In order of preference, cook, bake, eat? Eat, cook, bake.

Favorite cuisine? It's something different every day, that's the truth.

Go-to “easy” recipe? A shortcut grilled cheese. It is something I've been perfecting my entire adult life.

Go-to “wow” recipe? Pork shoulder ragu from Jenny Rosenstrach and Andy Ward. Jenny writes the "Dinner: A Love Story" cookbook but her husband is the one who mainly came up with this recipe. 

Most frequently used non-pantry ingredient? Lemons.

Favorite food season? Summer.