Allison Wolfe graduated in 2009 with a degree in agricultural communications and journalism. She was recently a contestant on the current season of Food Network’s reality show “Worst Cooks in America.” Life and arts writer Kenedi Kruger spoke with Wolfe about her experience.
For those who may not know, can you explain what the show is and why it is called “Worst Cooks in America?”
The show is essentially a boot camp for people who don’t know how to cook. They have two of the best chefs in the world [Anne Burrell and Tyler Florence]. We compete in culinary challenges and create two dishes. There is the skill drill and the main dish challenge.
I know it’s called “Worst Cooks in America,” but really it should be the “Most Improved Cooks in America” because the person who has improved the least gets voted off each team by the mentors.
After you graduated college, how did you get to where you are now?
I graduated in December of 2009, and around that time it was really bad in the economy and there were not a lot of jobs. A lot of people moved back in with their parents, and that is what I did. I was working at PaperCity Magazine in Houston and absolutely loved it. Then I really did a lot of evaluating and realized that I wanted to stay home with my children and raise them.
Since I was a journalism major, I was writing a blog about topics like how to save money and I feel like that fulfilled my journalism career.
What are you most excited for regarding the show airing?
Honestly, watching the show with my friends is the funnest thing. They’re airing the fourth episode this coming Sunday, and it’s just watching and reliving the moments. It’s the opportunity of a lifetime; learning to cook from the best cooks in the world. We are watching it for the first time too, even though we lived it. It’s reliving good times with really good friends.
What motivated you to go out for the show?
I have three kids, and I am 32. I had twins and I brought them home and I’m in Houston. Hurricane Harvey was huge, and my husband is a nurse, so he was out working.
I had a two year old daughter at the time and my two preemie boys. I would usually just call in food, but the restaurants were shut down and I’m looking at a pantry, realizing that I couldn’t provide food. It was a huge moment. So I went out and bought a cookbook.
When it came to words like “saute” and “flambe,” I got really overwhelmed. I gave up until I was watching Food Network.
Going up to the process, it was the last day I could apply for the show. I was sitting in my bathtub taking a bubble bath and my daughter joins me — because you know I’m never alone — and then my husband walks in and asks, “Are you going to apply or not?” He’s the type of guy who pushes me to do things when he knows I really want to. He went and got my maternity bathing suit and goes, “Film the video.”
I did, and I was talking about how I don’t know how to cook, and I try to teach myself but just don’t know where to start. Hopefully this show could start a love for cooking for people who may not know they had it.
Were you an avid watcher of the show before you went on it?
I wasn’t, but I had seen two seasons before and they were some of the earlier ones, so I was familiar with the show. The show is awesome, and it’s evolving with the times.
What are some of the coolest things you have learned by being on the show?
This is going to sound silly, but we learned how to cook eggs. That’s the one thing I thought I could cook, but really learning how to make a full English breakfast was one of the coolest things I learned.
Are there any other comments you would want people to hear?
I think encouraging all the readers of The Battalion to hang in there. I thought I was completely alone, and you’re not.
That’s what I wish someone would have told me when I was 20 or 21. You can do it. If I can do it, you can do it.