The Food Blogger Pro Podcast

Writing a compelling book proposal, demystifying the financial reality of cookbook publishing, and sharing what publishers are looking for in a cookbook author with Sally Ekus from The Ekus Group. ----- Welcome to episode 567 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Sally Ekus. How to Write a Cookbook Proposal and Land a Book Deal with Sally Ekus Have you ever wondered what it actually takes to get a cookbook deal — and whether your platform is big enough to make it happen? Sally Ekus, a literary agent specializing in the cookbook space, is here to pull back the curtain on the entire process. In this episode, Sally shares exactly what she looks for when evaluating potential cookbook authors, how to build a proposal that stands out, and what a realistic book deal might look like depending on the size of your audience. Whether you're dreaming of a cookbook or just starting to explore the idea, this episode will give you a clear and honest roadmap for what the path forward actu

Navigating the AI Search landscape and advocating for fair traffic for food bloggers with Adam Gallagher from Inspired Taste. ----- Welcome to episode 566 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Adam Gallagher from Inspired Taste. What Food Bloggers Need to Know About AI Search and the Fight for Fair Traffic Adam and Joanne Gallagher have been running Inspired Taste since 2009 — long enough to have lived through every major shift in how Google works, from early SEO best practices to AI Overviews. But what's happening right now feels different, and Adam isn't staying quiet about it. In this episode, Adam and Bjork dig into the current state of search from the perspective of a creator who has spent 15+ years playing by Google's rules — only to watch those rules change in ways that feel fundamentally unfair to creators. This is also a conversation about what comes next — equal parts anxiety and optimism — and what creators can actually do right now to advocate for a more fair

Prioritizing joy-led content creation, leaning into email, and building a sustainable business as a food creator with Ashlea Carver from All the Healthy Things. ----- Welcome to episode 565 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Ashlea Carver from All the Healthy Things. How to Keep Creating Without Burning Out Ashlea Carver has been creating food content for ten years, and in that time she's built a well-rounded and financially diversified businesses. But longevity in this industry isn't just about strategy — it's about learning how to navigate the harder parts of being a creator online. In this episode, Ashlea and Bjork dig into the mindset shifts that have kept her going — how she handles comparison and how she's made a deliberate choice to lead with joy in her business decisions to avoid burnout. They also get into the practical side of her business — why her blog is still her most valuable platform and biggest revenue driver, why she's prioritizing email, and how she

What happens when SEO stops working, rebuilding after a major traffic drop, and navigating AI and the future of blogging with Carrie Forrest from Clean Eating Kitchen. ----- Welcome to episode 564 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Carrie Forrest from Clean Eating Kitchen. Reinventing a Food Blog After an 80% Traffic Drop Carrie Forrest has been blogging since 2009 and has experienced the full range of highs and lows that come with building an online business. When Bjork first interviewed her in 2018, she was already growing Clean Eating Kitchen with simple, healthy recipes and a strong foundation in SEO and keyword research. Between 2022 and 2024, that strategy paid off in a big way — Carrie grew her site from a few hundred thousand monthly pageviews to nearly one million. But with the rollout of AI Overviews, many of the keyword-driven and how-to posts she relied on were hit hard, leading to an 80% traffic drop almost overnight. In this episode, Carrie shares how she

How to use AI to manage information overload, simple ways to start using AI tools in your business, and what OpenClaw is and how it works with Jason Glaspey. ----- Welcome to episode 563 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Jason Glaspey. Using AI to Eliminate Busywork and Unlock Creative Time AI is everywhere right now — and for creators, it can feel equal parts exciting and overwhelming. Between shifting algorithms, constant platform changes, and an increasingly noisy internet, many creators feel like they're stuck in "defense mode" just trying to keep up. In this episode, Jason Glaspey shares his journey from internet entrepreneur to AI builder and explains how creators can start using AI tools in practical ways to simplify their workflows. Bjork and Jason talk about the current state of the internet, why creators often feel stuck reacting instead of exploring new opportunities, and how AI can help shift that mindset. Jason also introduces OpenClaw, an AI-powered tool

Growing a 20-year food blog in today's search landscape and building engagement through authenticity with Rachel Kirk from Laughing Spatula. ----- Welcome to episode 562 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Rachel Kirk from Laughing Spatula. The Road to 1 Million Pageviews with Rachel Kirk from Laughing Spatula Rachel's mom, Kathi, started Laughing Spatula 20 years ago, and it has now grown into a full-time business for both women. In this interview, Bjork and Rachel talk through the changing search landscape, the challenges of the last few years as food creators, and what is keeping them going. Rachel is working towards a goal of 1 million monthly pageviews (they're currently around 300,000 - 500,000 pageviews a month) and Bjork provides his advice on what changes he would recommend to move the needle. If you're looking to increase your pageviews or revenue this year (hello, who isn't?) and want to join Rachel in her challenge, don't miss this episode! Three episode tak

Growing to 5 million followers on Facebook and turning social video into traffic and revenue with Alia and Radwa Elkaffas from Food Dolls. ----- Welcome to episode 561 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Alia and Radwa Elkaffas from Food Dolls. How Food Dolls Turned Facebook Into Their Top Traffic Source Alia and Radwa, the sisters behind Food Dolls, join Bjork on the podcast to discuss how they built a thriving food business with a Facebook-first strategy. With over 5 million followers on Facebook, Food Dolls has become a case study in adapting to platforms, navigating algorithm changes, and continuously evolving content formats. In this episode, Alia and Radwa share how they got started, how they divide responsibilities today, and how they think about analytics, monetization, recipe development, and platform-specific strategies in 2026. Whether you're just beginning on Facebook or looking to rethink your traffic mix, this episode is filled with actionable insights and

The time, tech, tools, and strategy behind launching a successful food blog with Jessica Wine from Whisk & Wine. ----- Welcome to episode 560 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Jessica Wine. Strategically Launching a Food Blog with Jessica Wine In this episode, we're chatting with Jessica Wine about what it really takes to launch a food blog from the ground up. Drawing from her background in the tech start-up world, Jessica shares all of the details about her launch process and why she intentionally built in a learning and development phase before ever hitting publish. From branding and backend tech to time management and AI, this conversation is packed with practical insights for anyone preparing to start — or restart — a food blog the right way. Three episode takeaways: Building before launching — Jessica explains why she didn't rush to launch and instead focused on education, systems, and structure first. She shares how this upfront work helped her feel more con

The shifting search landscape, AI-generated recipe errors, and leaning into email newsletters with Bjork Ostrom and Emily Walker from Food Blogger Pro. ----- Welcome back to another Food Blogging News Roundtable! In this episode, we're diving into the biggest stories impacting food creators right now. Bjork and Emily discuss everything from the "SEO is dead" panic to AI-generated Frankenstein recipes, smarter email automations, paid newsletters, and what's actually working on Pinterest in 2026. Three episode takeaways: Search isn't dead, but it is shifting — Data from Graphite shows SEO traffic is only down slightly (–2.5%), and overall search traffic has remained relatively stable, even ticking up slightly in 2025. Bjork shares how Pinch of Yum's search traffic has changed in the last year (and what they're doing about it) and we discuss why the recent search changes feel so different than past algorithm updates, how you should change your strategy, and lean into other methods of discovery. Google's Persona

Building a food content business by creating what comes naturally, growing to 1 million followers on TikTok, and monetizing Substack with Claire Dinhut from Condiment Claire. ----- Welcome to episode 558 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Claire Dinhut from Condiment Claire. Trusting Your Creative Instincts to Build a Million Follower Food Brand Claire Dinhut first started sharing food content on TikTok when she lost her job working on a food and travel docuseries during the pandemic. Since then, she has grown to over 1 million followers on TikTok, published a cookbook, and started a Substack blending food, travel, and history into a cohesive content brand. Claire's journey is a good reminder that you don't need to follow a rigid formula to succeed online. By leaning into what felt natural — documenting her interests, telling stories she genuinely cared about, and creating without overthinking — she built a business that feels aligned, sustainable, and creatively fulfi

Infusing your culture into your brand, launching a digital zine, and building your brand with Krista Linares. ----- Welcome to episode 557 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Krista Linares of Nutrition Con Sabor.  Infusing Your Culture into Your Brand and Launching a Digital Zine with Krista Linares In this episode, Bjork is sitting down with Krista Linares, a dietitian who made the bold choice to transition back to a full-time job to reclaim her mental bandwidth (and yes, solve the health insurance nightmare). It's a refreshing look at why stability might actually be the secret ingredient to better creative work. She didn't just change her job, though! She completely overhauled how she shows up online. With the nutrition space getting flooded by generic AI content, Krista realized standard blogging wasn't cutting it anymore. She opens up about her pivot to a "digital zine" — a mix of recipes, hot takes, and cultural deep dives — and why leaning into your specific, un-

Pivoting from the courtroom to the kitchen, building an authentic brand, and how systems can help you run your business. ----- Welcome to episode 556 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Tanya Harris of My Forking Life.  The Reality of Career Pivots and Building an Authentic Brand with Tanya Harris Have you ever wondered what it takes to walk away from a "prestigious" career to chase a creative dream? In this episode, former attorney turned food blogger Tanya Harris gets real about the guilt, identity shifts, and mental hurdles of trading in the courtroom for the kitchen. She opens up about the challenge of redefining success on her own terms and why aligning your work with your personal values is the secret to longevity. But it's not just about mindset—Tanya also pulls back the curtain on the business side of full-time blogging. From the dynamics of working with her spouse to using AI tools to avoid burnout, she shares practical strategies for building a sustainable bra

Actionable advice for finding success on Pinterest, building trust with users, and showing Pinterest (and your audience) that there's a real human behind your content with Kate Ahl from Simple Pin Media. ----- Welcome to episode 555 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Kate Ahl from Simple Pin Media. Pinterest Strategy for Food Creators in 2026 Pinterest has changed a lot in the last year — and food creators are feeling it. With the rise of AI-generated content (aka "AI slop"), many established bloggers have seen traffic declines, while newer creators are still finding success on the platform. In this episode, we're joined by Kate Ahl of Simple Pin Media, to break down what's really happening on Pinterest right now. We talk about how AI has impacted the platform, whether Pinterest still offers a strong ROI for food creators, and what strategies actually work in 2026 — especially if you're an established creator wondering whether Pinterest is still worth your time. Kate a

The SEO balancing act, the evolution of social platforms, and the importance of diversifying across different platforms. ----- Welcome to episode 554 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork is sitting down to chat with Emily Walker from the Food Blogger Pro team!  Food Blogging News Roundtable: The State of SEO, Pinterest Search, and the Facebook Algorithm If you've been feeling like the ground is shifting beneath your feet as a creator lately, you aren't imagining things. Between Google's constant updates and the changing habits of social media users, the content creator's playbook looks a lot different than it used to. In this episode, Bjork and Emily break down why SEO isn't actually dying — it's just evolving into something that demands a lot less robot-speak and a lot more human connection. They'll also dive into how Pinterest is quietly becoming the search engine of choice for Gen Z and discuss the fascinating new ways Instagram is letting users "hack" their own algorithms to se

Pivoting to Substack, balancing creativity with strategy, and building a brand with Phoebe Lapine. ----- Welcome to episode 553 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Phoebe Lapin from Feed Me Phoebe.  Reclaiming Your Audience and Moving Beyond Google with Phoebe Lapine In this episode, Phoebe joins us to talk about her evolution from the early days of blogging to the current landscape, opening up about why the constant SEO headaches finally pushed her to pivot toward Substack. She shares exactly how she's reclaiming her connection with her readers and why shifting your focus from "content creator" back to "writer" might be the best move for your brand right now. But this conversation isn't just about switching platforms; it's a masterclass in creative longevity. Phoebe gets real about the systems that keep her from burning out, including the game-changing decision to hire an SEO team so she could get back to doing what she loves. We also dive into why picking a niche that

Attracting the right reader, understanding search intent, and adapting to the evolving search landscape with Liane Walker from Foodie Digital. ----- Welcome to episode 552 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Liane Walker from Foodie Digital and the Siftr SEO Newsletter. Why Search Intent Matters for Food Bloggers In this episode, we're joined by Liane Walker to talk about what's actually working in search for content creators right now. Liane breaks down why understanding your brand, defining a clear niche, and owning your expertise are more important than ever — especially as search continues to evolve. Bjork and Liane also dig into search intent: what it is, why it matters, and how mismatches between intent and content can quietly hurt your performance. Liane shares practical advice on writing clearer, more intentional recipe titles, avoiding the pitfalls of keyword chasing, and adapting keyword research in a world influenced by LLMs. Plus, we cover how to evaluate ex

Expanding your reach, republishing content, and prioritizing your time with Chris and Scott Scheuer of The Cafe Sucre Farine.  ----- Welcome to episode 551 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, we're sharing the replay of a Coaching Call that we released earlier this year with Chris and Scott Scheuer of The Cafe Sucre Farine.  Coaching Call: Expanding Your Reach and Republishing Content with The Cafe Sucre Farine In this Coaching Call, Bjork is joined by Chris and Scott, the husband-and-wife team behind The Cafe Sucre Farine, their daughter Cait, and daughter-in-law Lindsay! On their site (which they started 14 years ago!), they share food that tastes amazing and actually works in real life through easy, elegant recipes that bring people together and help build meaningful connections around the table. Their goals for their blog include expanding their reach through social media and email marketing, introducing new team members to their audience, republishing and updating their arsenal of

Welcome to episode 550 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, we are sharing a replay of our December Live Q&A from within the Food Blogger Pro membership — our annual Ask Bjork Anything session. ----- Every month within the Food Blogger Pro membership we host a Live Q&A for our members to attend. For most of these Q&As we welcome Food Blogger Pro Experts — people like Casey Markee, Andrew Wilder, and Allea Grummert — to answer questions based around their expertise. But every December we like to host an 'Ask Bjork Anything' to answer a wide range of questions from members! We wanted to share an edited version of the Q&A with our podcast listeners over our holiday break so that you could get a taste of what the Q&As are like in the membership and learn from all of the great questions our members asked! Happy Holidays! Here's a quick overview of the questions answered during the episode: Can you please refer a good SEO audit person for a small and newish blogger? What a

The power of authenticity, website usability, and new monetization opportunities with Rachel Cunliffe. ----- Welcome to episode 549 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Rachel Cunliffe of Cre8d Design.  Finding Your Authentic Voice and Scaling Your Food Blog with Rachel Cunliffe This episode is packed with wisdom on thriving in the current food blogging landscape! Rachel Cunliffe, who tracks all the trends in her Best Served Hot newsletter, emphasizes that you absolutely have to stop chasing every trend out there and lean into your own style. Your authentic voice and that irreplaceable "human touch" are the only things guaranteed to truly connect with your audience, even as AI enters the mix. This is your number one priority for sustainable growth! Beyond the content, Rachel reminds us that the basics still matter: website usability and good design are often neglected, but they are crucial for keeping users happy (and staying monetized). With the food blogging market con

Navigating partnership trends, comparing the big three AI platforms, and Pinterest best practices. ----- Welcome to episode 548 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork is sitting down with our very own Emily Walker to talk through the updates shared in our latest blogging newsletter.  Food Blogging News Roundtable: Brand Partnership Trends, AI Platform Comparisons, and Pinterest Best Practices In this episode, Bjork and Emily break down exactly how to navigate the "Big Three" AI tools (ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude) and explain why building deep brand authority is your best defense in the changing search landscape. If you want to future-proof your business, doubling down on your niche expertise is no longer optional — it's essential. They'll then shift gears to practical platform strategies, covering why Pinterest is suddenly obsessed with your site's user experience and the specific metrics that actually drive YouTube growth. Whether you are planning your holiday marketing or just tryi