From Jewish-Chinese chef, urban-country cuisine

A new Food Network show stars best-selling blogger and chef Molly Yeh, whose recipes are inspired by her Jewish-Chinese roots, the Midwest and farm life.

In the seven-episode show, “Girl Meets Farm,” viewers are invited inside her farmhouse on the Minnesota-North Dakota border, where she lives with her husband, Nick Hagen, a fifth-generation farmer.

“We put together such a fun colorful lineup of recipes that each tell a story and that I care about a lot,” said Yeh, 29. “My dad comes for an episode, and we make Chinese food together, and my mom comes for an episode, and we make her brisket together, so there are a lot of personal aspects to it.”

Yeh, whose father is Chinese and whose mother is Jewish, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. She always loved food, though she was a picky eater as a child.

“My mom is an amazing cook and baker, and my dad is a human garbage disposal, so I grew up around food lovers and just thought that everyone loves food as much as we do,” said Yeh. “It wasn’t until I moved to New York that I got inspired to try new foods. I made up for lost time and jumped at every opportunity to try new things; it was a very delicious time.”

Post-high school, Yeh moved to New York and attended the Julliard School, where she studied percussion. She moved from Brooklyn to a Midwestern farm with her husband five years ago.

“There were a few things about the transition that were rocky,” she said. “Like suddenly being very, very far away from good bagels, but then I learned to make them, so I’m OK now.”

Jewish cuisine is one of the biggest influences in Yeh’s cooking. She no longer has the luxury of buying a Jewish-inspired meal — if she wants one, she must make it from scratch.

“It opens up opportunities to put homegrown ingredients in my favorite comfort foods,” she said. “My Chinese background also plays a large role in how I cook on an everyday basis.”

On Instagram, Yeh often shares dishes connected to Jewish holidays, including Passover, Chanukah, Purim, Shavuot and Tu B’Shevat. Among her numerous creative recipes are maple-tahini cupcakes with labneh frosting; kale matzah pizza; onion jam and za’atar sufganiyot; marzipan challah; French yogurt malabi; molten halvah lava cakes; falafel sliders; and salt-and-vinegar potato “knishentaschen,” which is like a marriage between a knish and a hamantasch. She once shared a picture of her “l’chaim-ing into the weekend” with a pistachio-rimmed frozen cocktail that included strawberries, cream, cardamom and local Minnesota vodka.

Yeh told JNS that her favorite thing of all to make is challah dough.

“Whenever I make challah dough, I usually make one regular loaf and then use the other half of the dough to play with. It’s such a versatile, delicious dough. I like frying it into doughnuts, flattening it out to make pizza, dipping it in a baked baking soda bath to make pretzels, waffling it … the options are endless.”

“Girl Meets Farm” premieres on Sunday, June 24, on the Food Network.