During the pandemic, Dan “Grossy” Pelosi quit his job as a creative director for Ann Taylor to focus on sharing his Brooklyn home cooking online. He dubbed himself a “gay male Pinterest mom,” and built a following by sharing the recipes he grew up with in an Italian- and Portuguese-American family. He compiled his recipes and cooking tips in the book “Let’s Eat: 101 Recipes to Fill Your Heart & Home.” Pelosi is visiting New Orleans and will discuss the book with Joy the Baker at The Elysian Bar at Hotel Peter and Paul at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8. Tickets are available via eventbrite.com, and VIP tickets include a reception with Pelosi. For more on Pelosi, visit danpelosi.com.

Gambit: How did you get started cooking?

Dan Pelosi: I grew up in the kitchen — an Italian- and Portuguese-American indoor kid. I loved being in the kitchen with whoever was cooking, which was pretty much everyone. I was a great kitchen helper and observer. My family was keen on letting me get my hands dirty and do lots of tasting and talking about food. My dad would share recipes from his childhood. My mom would spend the weekend in the kitchen trying to create all kinds of great food. That was my safe space, the kitchen. It always has been.

We ate dinner every night of the week together as a family. My grandfather’s meatballs inspired my meatball recipe. Everyone had their own take on marinara sauce. I have a whole chapter in my book about my marinara and all the things you can make with marinara. My mom’s Italian bread was always at the table. That recipe is in the book. It’s all the staples that got us through.

The majority of my childhood was Italian-American, but we did a bit of Portuguese food. There’s a recipe in the book for pasteis de nata, which are the egg custard cups. There also is a pumpkin-whiskey fritter called filhoses, which are a beautiful dessert or snack. There’s a kale, bean and linguica (sausage) skillet, which is inspired by the kale and bean Portuguese soup. I wanted to make that into a quick, easy weeknight meal.

The book takes you into my world and shares my experiences.

Gambit: How did you start cooking online?

Pelosi: I would cook on weekends, cooking all weekend leading up to a Saturday or Sunday night dinner party with friends. I did that because I worked in a big city — San Francisco or New York — and during the week, I’d go out to dinner or have leftovers. When work from home happened, I found myself cooking every single meal. I started documenting it on Instagram, because I had a lot of time and energy. Finding joy in that experience during tough times was really relatable for and informative for people. I started using my background in design and marketing to make content for people. It just took off, and I was like, let’s see where this goes.

I am a home cook. I don’t have professional experience. A lot of people who found me during the pandemic had never cooked before. I found that having people asking me questions daily allowed me to take those questions and put them into the book. There are a lot of guides in the book. Here are four ways to cook an egg. And what temperature meat and fish should be cooked to. I want the book to be enjoyable for all levels, but especially entry-level cooking. I have a chapter on dressings, toppings and spreads, but every one of them has a store-bought alternative, so if you’re not someone who wants to make homemade chili crisp, you can still cook my recipes that call for it.

Many of my followers have been with me from the beginning. It’s about much more than food. You can see it in the book. I share my family, I share my boyfriend, I tell all these really personal stories. These are people who are interested in food but also the type of community that is possible. And if you can take my recipe and make it your recipe, that’s exactly what I want to happen.

Gambit: How is it relating to people in online spaces?

Pelosi: I share my whole self. I think it allows people to share themselves. I also talk a lot about boundaries, especially with food and diet. There’s a real desire for a lot of people to comment on food and say food is bad for you, or food is the devil or, “If I eat that, I would be 300 pounds.” Comments like that are hurtful, and we talk about it. This is a space where we express food as being joyful, and if you think the food is not going to make you happy, then unfollow or keep it to yourself. Some people have said thank you for teaching me that I can say that to people in my life too. A lot of people who have disordered eating thank me because my page is a place where they can follow and not be triggered.

Don’t let people yuck my yum. I actually made T-shirts that say that. People will be like, “Ew, raisins, I hate raisins.” I am like, I don’t care. If I am sharing something with a smile on my face, why are you telling me you don’t like it? You would never walk up to a person in a restaurant while they are eating something and say, “That looks so gross.” My sharing something online is not inviting you to do that.