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About Vanessa & My Dominican Kitchen

Hi! I’m Vanessa

¡Hola! I’m Vanessa, award-winning food photographer, nationally recognized content creator, and founder of My Dominican Kitchen.

I was born in Santo Domingo, the capital city of the Dominican Republic, and grew up in a matriarcal household surrounded by amazing cooks. My interest in food began as a child visiting the Farmer’s Market with my mom, and watching my grandmother and aunts cook delicious traditional Dominican meals. But it wasn’t until adulthood that I learned how to cook, while pregnant with my first child, living in New York City and missing my family’s home cooking. I started this blog as a way to preserve my family’s recipes and share with the world the flavors of la comida criolla.

Here you’ll find authentic traditional Dominican recipes and some tasty Latin-inspired dishes influenced by my home away from home, New York City.

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FAQs

Yes! My cookbook is currently in production and will be released in April 2023. If you’d like to be notified when the cookbook is available for preorder, sign up here.

All of our recipes can be prepared using tools and equipment you already have at home. However, there are some tools that will make your cooking experience a bit easier. You can review the list of our essential kitchen tools and equipment and decide which ones you’d like to have in your kitchen.

This blog does not accept guest posts. However, if you have a really cool collaboration idea, send it my way, and if it’s a good fit, we will consider it.

My background is in marketing communications and influencer marketing. Throughout my career, I worked in public relations, handling consumer brand accounts. I worked for big corporations, supporting their marketing efforts, and in influencer marketing, managing small and large campaigns for Fortune 500 companies geared towards the Latinx community. In 2021, I left my 9-5 to dedicate myself fully to my business.

Yes. I work with bloggers one-on-one to help them grow their blogs into profitable businesses. If you’d like to learn more about my 1:1 coaching services, email me directly at vanessa@mydominicankitchen.com to schedule a discovery call.

Work with Me

Are you interested in partnering with My Dominican Kitchen? We love collaborating with brands that support our vision.

Here are some of the ways we can work together:
  • Sponsored Content
  • Recipe Development
  • Food Photography
  • Brand Ambassadorship
Contact me

If you would like more information on how we can work together, or if you have questions, comments, or feedback, feel free to reach out to me at vanessa@mydominicankitchen.com.

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    My Dominican Kitchen on the Web

    Press

    We Are Cocina – Q & A with the incredible Vanessa Mota from My Dominican Kitchen

    Dishing Podcast – Vanessa Mota | My Dominican Kitchen

    Mom 2.0 – Iris Awards 2021 – Best Photography

    Good Housekeeping – 17 Delicious Hispanic Desserts for Any Celebration

    BeLatina – CafeMedia Launches New Edition of Remarkable Voices, an Accelerator Program To Empower BIPOC Content Creators

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    Available Now!

    The Dominican Kitchen is a collection of 80+ authentic recipes created with easy-to-find ingredients and featuring comforting traditional Dominican flavors. Check out our cookbook page for more details.

    Buy Now
    The Dominican Kitchen Cookbook by Vanessa Mota

    Explore Our Recipes

    Browse our collection of authentic, traditional Dominican recipes and some tasty Latin-inspired dishes. Here you’ll find hundreds of easy and flavorful recipes to cook at home.