Darlene Schrijver grew up in Los Altos, California. She worked in market research and as a financial analyst before retiring, and later volunteered in classrooms and competed in triathlons, including an Iron Man. She raised her son, Morgan, and daughter, Athena, while managing her daughter’s athletic career as a youth and Jr. Team USA Olympic weightlifting athlete. The Salad Lab was born during the 2020 lockdown when everyone else was baking sourdough bread on TikTok. A friend suggested Darlene to post her recipes on social media, and that is how it all started. In addition to growing a community of salad fans, Darlene found creating salads on social media to be therapeutic as well. She enjoyed doing research for recipes and learning the history of each salad and the sometimes unusual ingredients. Her following soon grew into the millions, and she continues to strive to celebrate all cultures through her recipes. Darlene lives in Sonoma County, California.