I’m so thrilled for season 4 of Kelsey’s Essentials to air. This season was a true labor of love as pre-production happened quickly and I was just transitioning from my 1st to 2nd trimester of pregnancy. So in a sense…this is Oliver’s big television debut! I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that certain pregnancy cravings may have influenced some of the episode choices. We even went as far as to create a junk food favorites show. I know, you can turn your nose up and walk away now, but don’t deny the fact that you wouldn’t watch a show that included Homemade Banana Split Funnel Cake, Cotton Candy Lemonade, and Boardwalk Dogs with a field trip to Coney Island to top it off. That episode shows up later in the season, but the episode that will kick things off is all about grilling on the go. The images above are all behind the scenes shots of this day. I loved shooting this episode which includes a rooftop grilling party with my friends and a visit to master chef Floyd Cardoz at North End Grill in Tribeca to learn a few of his go-to tips when it comes to grilling. The menu lineup is super tasty with Grilled Strawberry Shortcake Sandwiches, Sweet & Sour Barbecued Picnic Drumsticks, a Spicy Avocado Dill Dip, and Veggie Kebabs with Halloumi Cheese. Do you know about halloumi cheese? It’s one of the only cheeses that you can grill. It’s firm enough to stand up to the grill, but gets soft and melty on the inside. It will blow your mind.

The show is moving to a primetime slot (yay!) on Saturdays at 8:30 pm ET. I always get super nervous to watch new episodes and admittedly I sometimes avoid watching them altogether. Something about watching myself and listening to my voice on television makes me super vulnerable and bashful (especially when the episode was shot when I was 6 months pregnant!) I hope you’ll tune in and let me know what you think! Big thanks to everyone who supports the show season after season. I truly have the greatest job in the world thanks to all of that continued support.

p.s. Crazy fact about filming- because of the structure of our filming schedule, we shot the location portion of this episode at North End Grill on the first day of filming and the kitchen and rooftop portion of the episode on one of the last days of filming. That’s almost a 2 week time difference and I’m certain that I’ll look much bigger when it comes to the baby bump while cooking in the kitchen and on the rooftop. The horizontal stripes probably didn’t help anything either…

So tell me, will you be watching season 4 of Kelsey’s Essentials? I sure hope so!

Permalink | Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Kelsey's Essentials | Comments (18)

Season 4 brought an incredible amount of adventure and diversity to Kelsey’s Essentials. I can’t wait for this season to air!  From urban rooftop bee keeping to cooking with NFL football players… I’d say you’re all in for some great episodes! Here are just a few highlights from the season:

We spent an entire day taste testing at Coney Island trying to perfect fair food favorites. The experience gave the phrase “sugar high” a whole new meaning. Funnel cakes, cotton candy, and hot dogs galore!

I spent a day with superstar center for the New York Jets Nick Mangold cooking up a storm with him in his home kitchen. It was a learning experience for both of us as we both shared some of our favorites. In true football player form, I learned that Nick can put down a whole lot of (healthy) food before a big game!

Who knew local honey was being produced in my own neighborhood in Brooklyn?! I got up close and personal with honeybees and learned the ins & outs of this ancient craft from an incredible beekeeper who is producing “liquid gold” for restaurants all over New York City. I’ll never feel the same way about honey again…

Another unique thing that I’ll never forget about season 4 was filming with my baby bun in the oven. I was between 5-6 months pregnant while filming and had a growing bump as proof.  You’ll be sure to spot my belly when the episodes air! Stay tuned for air dates and more info. in the coming weeks.

Permalink | Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Cooking Channel, Kelsey's Essentials | Comments (4)

…we’re heading back to my set today, lovingly referred to as my “TV Apartment.” If only I actually possessed that much square footage. We shoot my show at a loft in Brooklyn where people actually live when the space isn’t booked out. It’s extremely unsuspecting and you would never know from the outside that television is made inside.

I’ve had the incredible privilege to work with an amazing prop stylist/set designer, Jeanne Lurvey, the past few seasons on Kelsey’s Essentials who has really made the set come to life. We have had a blast working together to talk about style and aesthetic and she is amazing at sourcing things that I love.

One of my most prized Kelsey’s Essentials items are the set drawings that she drew for a big set makeover before season 2. These were her ideas on paper after I put together a look book/mood board of what I wanted the set to look like. It’s amazing how she literally translated what was on paper to real life items. I hope to have these sketches framed for my office one day!

Permalink | Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Kelsey's Essentials, Uncategorized | Comments (0)

When we filmed the Burger Essentials show for Kelsey’s Essentials this season. I never thought in a million years that I would be thrown on the line in a burger joint to work alongside the burger master himself, Mr. Bobby Flay. He shared all of his tips and techniques behind his famous burgers and I ate up every second of it! Bobby was so kind to participate in the episode and we had a blast filming together. I had several “pinch me” moments where I had to remind myself that I was both cooking with and shooting an episode with a food genius.

Tune in tomorrow at 2:30 ET to see if I can convince Bobby to add my Rocky Mountain Burger to his Burger of the Month list! One of my favorite episodes all season long!

p.s. Thanks for everyone’s support and well wishes on my Today Show appearance yesterday! I had a blast and the nice comments made my day!

Permalink | Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Kelsey's Essentials, Uncategorized | Comments (2)

Was one of my favorites to film all season because I was in the company of some of my greatest friends. I take the classic Sunday dinner meal that I grew up having with my family and updated it with a few twists here and there. Then I had the great pleasure to serve this meal to my “city family” here in the big apple. A few of the recipes pay tribute to both of my grandmothers and the food is knock-down-drag-out goooood.

Don’t miss this great episode Saturday at 2:30 ET!

Permalink | Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Kelsey's Essentials, Uncategorized | Comments (2)