Pathfinder Chef Challenge Spotlight: Shelley Young

Aside from being the current front runner in the race to be our Inca Trail guest chef, cooking up cooking up culinary delights along the path to Machu Picchu, Shelley Young is the founder of Chicago's The Chopping Block, a local institution which functions as both cookware shop and culinary school. Having grown up in Iowa with her "summers spent putting up beans, corn, & tomatoes...hunting wild morel mushrooms with giant hefty garbage bags, and catching fresh catfish on a weekend camping trip," it sound like she'd be pretty well prepared for the challenge of crafting creative dishes from fresh local food over a gas stove in the middle of the Andes. As if that weren't enough, Shelley trained in Mexico, so she's already got a solid headstart when it comes to Latin American cuisine. Looks like she's the chef to beat at the moment, but a lot can happen in a month and a half. Be sure to check out the other chef contestant videos on our YouTube site, and stay tuned for more chef spotlights. The ten chefs whose videos have the most views by Nov 15th will be flown out to the winery for the final showdown! Best of luck to all our contestants, and if you or any of your friends thinks you've got what it takes to win our Chef Challenge, just record a short (1 minute) video to show us what you're all about on your computer, camcorder, phone, or whatever else they're putting cameras in these days, and upload it here.