Lovely Jackson, Season 9 Food Network Star Finalist

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The baby of her family, Connie, 27, earned the nickname "Lovely" as a child. After growing up in the kitchen with her mom, she received a bachelor’s in culinary management, and is now a glamorous private chef for celebrities and athletes.

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Casting: Lovely Jackson 02:34

Road Show: Vito's Pizza 02:48

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The fourth finalist eliminated from the competition, Lovely impressed the judges with her poise and well-spoken nature on stage, but she ultimately couldn't deliver winning dishes.

Personal Journal

Each finalist was given a notebook to use during his or her time on the show, and Lovely filled hers with inspirational messages to herself, a list of recipes for easy access and reflections on challenges. On the first day of filming, she penned, "I'm doing this for myself and those who helped me get to this place."

"Culinary Chic"

During her four-week stay in the competition, Lovely's point of view evolved from a desire to "glam out the kitchen" to party-focused fare.

Better in Theory

During the second episode's Burger Bash, Lovely had no trouble wooing guests to her station on account of an engaging presentation focused on her turkey burger with blue cheese butter. After they tasted her burger, however, these guests "didn't leave happy," according to Alton, who called her dish "disconnected."

Authority Over Rambutan

Lovely was gifted rambutan in a challenge designed to test the mastery of uncommon ingredients, and she prepared a dessert of bread pudding with raspberry-champagne sauce. "I like to make comfort food, then I glam out the dish," she said. Alton isn't wowed by the dish, explaining that, "the raspberry was a little bit of a misstep."

Elevating the Elementary

To conform to her "glam" point of view, Lovely dressed up such kid-friendly mystery basket ingredients as chicken nuggets, apple juice, cheddar fish crackers and fruit leathers during the Chopped challenge. Guest judge Alex Guarnaschelli found the dish "a bit too sweet," but Bobby appreciated her "smooth" speaking during the presentation.

Say It in Song

A member of Team Musical, Lovely joined Rodney and Chris in creating a sing-along movie trailer that touted their eclectic menu.

Big-Screen Debut

Lovely and her teammates could hardly watch as their trailer played in a luxury cinema in front of a packed house and the Selection Committee. Bobby complemented the group at evaluation for committing to singing. "That's really hard to do, especially if you don't sing."

The Doughnut That Wasn't

Lovely was confident that this sugar-dusted doughnut would be "a party on a plate." But despite her best intentions, the two-bite dessert proved to be "dense" and ultimately "unserveable," according to Giada.

Glamorous Goodbye

After four weeks of Mentor and Star Challenges, Lovely made a graceful departure from the competition, unable to consistently turn out camera-worthy meals. She reflected before leaving, "I'm still going to be able to do all the things I want to do, just not with this opportunity."

Star Salvation

Lovely competed on Star Salvation, a four-part Web series hosted by Robert Irvine, for a chance to rejoin the on-air competition. Watch Star Salvation to see Lovely in action.

Early Success

The first episode of Star Salvation brought the four earliest-eliminated finalists together in the Food Star Kitchen, and Lovely and Danushka bested two of them after surviving a duo of challenges with familiar ingredients: chicken, garlic, carrots and shrimp.

Reinventing the Ruined

Tasked with transforming what Robert called "failed food" into a redemption-worthy meal, Lovely used burned pork chops and mushy carrots to make pork croquettes with carrot puree and candied almonds.

Double Victory

Although Robert initially noted a strong taste of Dijon, he later explained, "The mustard actually balances out in the crunchiness of the nuts and the sugar." Lovely's dish was ultimately stronger that Viet's and Danushka's, and she advanced to Round 3 against Chris.

The Contention Continues

Chris and Lovely endured a friendly rivalry during the on-air competition, which made their contest on Salvation all the more motivating. Robert challenged them to turn everyday potato chips into the star ingredient of a single dish in only 20 minutes.

Chips for Dessert

After sauteing apples and making a mascarpone cream with honey, Lovely served those two components atop a potato chip crumble, a dish she called "a party in the mouth."

Finale-Bound

Robert wondered whether Lovely had sufficiently used potato chips, but in the end, Lovely outcooked Chris and earned a spot in the Round 4 finale battle.

Dishes with "Heart"

"I want you both to cook your heart out," Robert told Lovely and her final Salvation rival, Chad, during their showdown challenge. They each chose two ingredient "hearts" from an altar of artichoke, romaine and celery hearts, plus hearts of palm and goat cheese hearts, to incorporate into their dish in 25 minutes.

Salvation-Worthy Salad

Lovely opted to use goat cheese and romaine hearts to make a dressed-up salad featuring a bacon fat-mustard vinaigrette. Looking back on the competition, she knew this was an all-or-nothing moment in her Star journey, explaining, "I have to put out the dish of my life."

Slight Misstep

Although she struggled with the appearance of her goat cheese fritters, Lovely explained, "I have to salvage what I can and make the best out of the situation." Robert told her after tasting her salad, "I think you're very lucky that there is some good flavor."

Sweet Salvation

While Lovely's salad did not meet its aggressive pitch, it ultimately bested Chad's stuffed pepper, and Robert named Lovely the winner of Star Salvation. "I do think you conveyed your passion to become the next Food Network Star," he told her.

Redeemed

"Lovely is back in this competition, and I'm here to win," she reflected after her Salvation victory. She surprised the remaining on-air finalists by returning in Episode 8.

Italian Specialty

For her first Mentor Challenge back in the competition, Lovely and the other finalists were "to create a mouthwatering description," according to Giada, of their ultimate pasta dishes. Lovely settled on a rich fettuccine Alfredo-style plate with shrimp and lemon. "I really have to do my best to describe this food to make them want to pick up that fork and just start woofing it down," she explained.

Change of Plans

Come tasting, the mentors announced that, rather than describe their own dishes, finalists must present a rival's plate. Lovely described Damaris' Bolognese, but because she missed Bobby's "culinary vocabulary" lesson last week, she didn't know to avoid words like "beautiful" and "delicious" in her performance.

Team Pizza

For what would be Lovely's final Star Challenge, she teamed up with Rodney and Russell to produce a field piece at Vito's Pizza. The group chatted with Vito and attempted to learn about his from-scratch pies in a tape that would be shown to the Selection Committee and a panel of critics from The Hollywood Reporter.

On-Camera Guests

Lovely's portion of the video included a brief conversation with two diners at Vito's, and she said of her plan for the presentation, "I want to have a good time while I'm doing this and make sure to incorporate these loyal customers." Despite her intentions, however, the guys are subdued and didn't help her advance the interview.

Presentation Woes

"I think that Lovely isn't necessarily engaging," one critic said of Lovely's performance in the piece. "She's almost too polished at the moment," another added; Giada agreed, telling Lovely at evaluation, "On this network, for this particular job, that kind of polish doesn't work."

Lovely's Final Exit

In the end, Lovely's return to the competition proved to be short-lived, as she was sent home after just one more week. "It's my time. There's nothing more I can do here," she explained afterward. "I sent six people home. I did that," she added of her success on Salvation. "So, you know what? I'm OK."

One-on-One with Lovely

Read Lovely's first exclusive exit interview to learn her thoughts on the competition and Salvation, and find out what she's up to next.

Go Behind the Scenes

Browse exclusive snapshots of the finalists and judge-mentors on set, plus get insider trivia about the show from Food Network's culinary team.

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Meet the Other Season 9 Finalists

Meet the finalists from Season 9 of Food Network Star.

On Tonight

Lovely Jackson

Lovely Jackson

Personal Journal

"Culinary Chic"

Better in Theory

Authority Over Rambutan

Elevating the Elementary

Say It in Song

Big-Screen Debut

The Doughnut That Wasn't

Glamorous Goodbye

Star Salvation

Early Success

Reinventing the Ruined

Double Victory

The Contention Continues

Chips for Dessert

Finale-Bound

Dishes with "Heart"

Salvation-Worthy Salad

Slight Misstep

Sweet Salvation

Redeemed

Italian Specialty

Change of Plans

Team Pizza

On-Camera Guests

Presentation Woes

Lovely's Final Exit

One-on-One with Lovely

Go Behind the Scenes

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