rachael ray BTS

Go behind the scenes with me as I make my Rainbow Kale Salad with one of my idols, Rachael Ray!

 

When I was in college, I used to sit on my green velvet couch and watch 30-Minute Meals with Rachael Ray. My friends and I would watch in the middle of the night, then run to the Price Chopper to get the ingredients for whatever she was making. Whether it’s bucatini and turkey meatballs or candy sushi, I’ve made them all. In those 30-minute episodes, Rachael did more than teach me how to cook—she empowered me to try new things in the kitchen, even though I didn’t have any formal training. 

 

 

Being on the Rachael Ray Show was a dream come true. I love Rachael—I think she is so creative and inspirational; everything I’ve always aspired to be and never dreamed I actually would.


Since this was such a milestone moment for me, I wanted to bring you behind the scenes with me. Let’s go!

About a week before I went to the studio, I invited the Rachael Ray team to the Baked by Melissa office in Chelsea. We talked about how Baked by Melissa was started, why I love our bite-size cupcakes so much, and I even showed the team one of my favorite tricks—catching a cupcake in my mouth. After stuffing and icing a few sample cupcakes for them, they left to go get the segment ready. I, meanwhile, was high on excitement and all those cupcakes I had caught.


The next week, I put on my favorite blue sweater and headed to Rachael’s studio, where we made my Rainbow Kale Salad with miso vinaigrette. YUM. If you haven’t tried it, now’s your chance—it is SO good. 

 

I don’t say this often enough—meeting Rachael was a dream come true and really brought my journey full circle. If you had told me when I was 20, watching her show in the middle of the night, that I would one day be showing her how to make a salad, I would’ve thought you were crazy. Just goes to show you how far hard work (and a splash of color) can take you. To say that this experience is surreal and unFREAKINGbelieveable is an understatement. It is absolutely a pinch-me moment in my career that I will never, ever forget. 


Thank you, Rachael, for having me. I loved every minute of it.

Tune into The Rachael Ray Show on ABC on April 12 at 2 p.m. ET to see my segment!