Kelsey Barnard Clark shares how her upbringing in small town Alabama shaped her as a person and chef and how she uses her garden and seasonal foods to drive her culinary creativity. She shares her thoughts on leaving home to explore the world and her hopes for increased diversity and experiences for her own kids. Kelsey talks about how her formal French training reignited her interest in Southern cooking and why she is typically considered the underdog as a Southern chef. She tells the shocking story of catering a wedding solo at just fifteen years old and how she fosters curiosity for food with her children. Kelsey shares her thoughts on food sourcing and reducing food waste, especially in her own restaurant, and how she knew from a young age that she would be an entrepreneur. She talks about the process of curating recipes for her cookbook and the difficulty of translating traditional family recipes that often are without measurements. Kelsey shares her thoughts on competing in Tournament of Champions and the difficulty of cooking against the clock. She talks about Guy Fieri being their biggest cheerleader and the joy of reuniting with her former castmates for the show. 

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Find episode transcript here: https://food-network-obsessed.simplecast.com/episodes/kelsey-barnard-clark-on-why-we-leave-home-small-town-charm

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