Barbara Abdeni Massaad was born in Beirut, Lebanon. She moved to Florida, U.S.A. at a young age and gained her real culinary experience while helping her father in the family owned Lebanese restaurant Kebabs & Things. After moving back to Lebanon in 1988, she entered university and gained a degree in Advertising-Marketing. She worked for an array of respected institutions then decided to pursue her passion for cooking. Determined to gain proper experience within the culinary world, Barbara trained with several renowned chefs at Lebanese, Italian, and French restaurants.

Growing up with the influence of her father, a professional photographer who became very famous in Lebanon in the 70's for his artistic portraitures, Barbara inherited his passion and decides to combine both culinary and photography to create her first book Man'oushé: Inside the Street Corner Lebanese Bakery, winner of the Gourmand Cookbook Award 2009 and The Lebanese Academy of Gastronomy 2009.

Mouneh: Preserving Foods for the Lebanese Pantry, winner of the Gourmand Cookbook Award 2010 and Prix de la literature Gastronomique 2010, continues Barbara's quest to discover and preserve another aspect of Lebanese culinary heritage. She is currently working on her third book dealing with local dairy products while simultaneously developing her blogs: My Culinary Journey through Lebanon and Barbara's Lebanese Mezze. She is a founding member of Slow Food Beirut, a delegate of the International Terra Madre Community and Slow Food Italy. Barbara hosts a TV segment on LBC Helweh Beirut every week introducing viewers to culinary tours around the country focusing on local foods. She is a contributing editor to local and international publications. She has also worked on an extensive portfolio dealing with children's portraiture. She lives in Beirut with her husband and three children, and her four pets who are all very much involved in her culinary journey.