Hey, I’m Marly — Rouxbe-certified plant-based home chef, recipe developer, cookbook author, and the person behind Namely Marly.

I grew up in the Midwest, where food meant love, and comfort meant a big pot of something on the stove. That hasn’t changed. Only the ingredients have.

I Call Myself a Secular Vegan

No dogma. No guilt. No purity tests.

I eat plants about 95%++ of the time…and I genuinely love it. But if I’m in New Orleans, I might have a beignet. If a friend brings back macarons from Paris, I’m eating one. I don’t interrogate restaurant waitstaff about the bun on my veggie burger.

I believe that eating more plants is one of the best things you can do for yourself and the planet. And I also believe that perfection is the enemy of progress.

If you’ve ever felt like you don’t belong in vegan spaces because you’re “not vegan enough,” this is your place. Whether you’re 100% plant-based, plant-curious, or just trying to get more vegetables into your week without losing your mind — you’re welcome here.

My Story

Growing up in a rural small town in the Midwest, I was surrounded by meat-and-potatoes cooking and family gatherings where food was how we showed up for each other. When I transitioned to plant-based eating, I wasn’t willing to leave those flavors behind. So I did what any stubborn Midwesterner would do: I figured out how to make them better.

That meant teaching myself to cook all over again, and eventually getting serious enough about it to earn a certification in Plant-Based Cooking and Vegan Desserts from Rouxbe Cooking School, one of the most rigorous online culinary programs out there. I also have a Master’s in Business, which sounds like a strange combination until you realize that getting a great recipe from my kitchen to yours is actually a lot of work, and I take it seriously.

Every recipe on this site is tested until it’s right. Simple ingredients, clear instructions, and flavors that make you forget you’re eating plants.

In 2019, I published The Everything Vegan Meal Prep Cookbook, with 300+ recipes designed to make plant-based eating fit into real, busy life. It’s a great starting point if you’re new to cooking this way — or just want a week’s worth of meals that actually come together.

• The Everything Vegan Meal Prep Cookbook on Amazon
• The Everything Vegan Meal Prep Cookbook at Barnes and Noble

What You’ll Find Here

Recipes that actually taste good. From decadent layer cakes and cozy weeknight dinners to fresh salads, hearty sandwiches, and everything in between. I focus on approachable, satisfying food — not complicated techniques or hard-to-find ingredients.

You’ll also find:

• A Vegan Startup Guide if you’re just beginning
• A Recipe Finder to help you search by category
• A Guide to Vegan Baking and other practical resources

Let’s Cook Together!

One of my favorite things I do is sharing my weekly YouTube Cooking Demos. It’s genuinely like having friends in the kitchen. We cook together, swap tips, answer questions, and talk through the why behind great plant-based food. Come hang out. It’s casual, fun, and a real community.

Meet Shawn

Namely Marly is a two-person operation, and I’d be telling half the story if I didn’t mention my husband Shawn. While I develop and test every recipe, Shawn is the one making it all look (and sound) beautiful.

He’s also my number one eater! Shawn is a recipe tester’s dream because he will eat just about anything I make!

He’s been shooting the food photography since 2015, and he also builds and maintains the website, creates the graphics, and composes the music for our podcast. Now we can add videographer to his list of skills.

He’s the quiet engine behind everything you see here.

Want to stay connected? Join me for my weekly YouTube Videos, sign up for my newsletter, or follow along on Instagram [@namelymarly] for daily inspiration and behind-the-scenes fun!

Namely Marly in the Press

Plant-based eating has gone mainstream — and Namely Marly has been part of that conversation. From Cosmopolitan to Good Housekeeping to VegNews, here’s where you’ve seen us.

Contact

If you’d like to connect, use our contact form or leave a comment on one of our posts. We read each and every one! You can also send an email to marly at namely marly dot com.

Health + Happiness,

Marly

Some images on our site provided by depositphotos.com