Welcome to Shovel and Crunch!

Hi everyone. I’m here to share my passion for heirloom gardening and enchanting vegan cooking from around the world. With intriguing flavors, personal stories, and captivating recipes I know you’ll love. I think it’s important to save heirloom history in seeds, and to build healthy soil. And I’m happy to share my love of food and gardening with friends around the globe.

🌱 Here’s what I’ll share:

• Vegan recipes rooted in tradition and authentic flavors

• Heirloom gardening inspiration from my home garden, using regenerative agriculture and permaculture techniques

• Seasonal cooking, tons of mistakes and humility, beautiful harvests, and constantly testing out new herb, veggie, flower, and fruit varieties

• Taste tests, behind-the-scenes projects, and (plenty of) laughter along the way

🌻 Subscribe for free to get all new posts sent straight to your inbox. Or just come wander through the garden and kitchen with me any time. You're always welcome here!

(It's free! And if someday I offer paid options like bonus recipes or special garden guides, it will always be optional and only if it feels like a good fit for you.)

A little about me

I'm Shell- a passionate home gardener, plant-based cook, and lover of rare heirloom herbs, veggies, flowers, and fruit that are grown regeneratively and with love. I’m also an advanced master gardener, former engineer, and mom of 5.

I believe that recipes and gardens are best when they’re shared, and that flavor is always worth chasing.

When I'm not tending my heirloom plants or testing a new dish for the millionth time, you'll probably find me in international grocery stores, doing yoga or indoor rowing, reading, or hanging out with my husband (the adorable Frenchman), 5 kids, 2 cats we rescued in Shanghai, and 2 Bernese mountain dogs. And I’m always up for a great belly laugh with friends!

For a more detailed bio, please check out my Shovel and Crunch About page. It has some hilarious photo reenactments years apart with the kids, photos from my garden and harvests, my husband and me, our 2 dogs and our 2 cats. I look forward to connecting with you!

Thank you so much for being here. I’m so excited to share this journey with you! 🌼