For the first time since Week 1, all 15 finalists are back together. They'll be joined by the Selection Committee as they look back on the biggest fights, failures, successes, plus unseen footage from the entire season. We'll also check in on the most memorable finalists from past seasons. This will all lead into the finale where one of the final three will be crowned a Food Network Star.
The 14 remaining finalists must create a pizza that reflects their culinary point of view. A surprise elimination shocks the finalists. The pressure is really on for the group during the Star Challenge when they have to cook in front of a panel of Food Network superstars!
The finalists have their work cut out for them during the Camera Challenge when they must use a sweet Hershey's product to turn dessert into dinner. Special guests Duff Goldman and Michael Symon challenge the finalists to create a Dueling Desserts party. When the finalists are split into two teams, tension mounts as they struggle to work together to beat their opponents and save themselves from elimination.
Food Network Star alum Melissa d'Arabian challenges the finalists to use a Kellogg's product to create sophisticated and impressive hors d'oeuvres for a surprise guest. Paula Deen makes a surprise visit to the Food Star Kitchen. At the Star Challenge, the finalists go Hollywood as they team up to feed the cast and crew of the hit show Cougar Town.
Guy Fieri rolls up in his classic red Camaro to guide the finalists through a segment of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. Then the finalists head out to a Fourth of July bash where they must re-create American classic dishes AND perform their first cooking demo on stage.
Tyler Florence (The Great Food Truck Race) divides the nine finalists into three groups of three, challenging them to create and brand a unique menu for a lunch truck and sell their product to consumers. They must film an advertising spot promoting their truck and then serve mobile meals to viewers they inspired. Viewers can only visit the truck whose advertisement they liked best, so contestants have to put their best foot forward to stand out to consumers. Which team will master the art of selling and outshine all the other competitors?
For their midterm cooking challenge, the finalists have to cook their signature dish for the judges. Adding to the pressure, they also must incorporate everything they've learned up to this point. Next, Wolfgang Puck shows up for dinner at the finalists' house and one finalist gets an impromptu cooking lesson from the master.
Who better to judge a cupcake challenge than the Barefoot Contessa? Ina Garten is the guest judge for a challenge which throws all of the finalists into a baking frenzy. Then Food Network Star returns to the Rachael Ray show for the ultimate pressure-cooker: a live-audience cooking demo.
For the first time on Food Network Star, the finalists will try their hand at Best Thing I Ever Ate, with Bobby Flay showing them the ropes. Then the joke is on the finalists as they are subjected to a roast by an all-star lineup of top comedians: Louie Anderson, Gilbert Gottfried, Aubrey Plaza, Anthony Anderson and Judy Gold.
In the ultimate Food Network Star challenge, the finalists face off in the Iron Chef Kitchen Stadium. Alton Brown hosts the showdown while guest judge and Iron Chef Michael Symon lends his palate to the panel.
The three remaining finalists think they are all making a pilot, but are shocked to find out there is one challenge left. It's time to "Cook For Your Life," and everyone must pull out all the stops to create their ultimate dish. After one finalist is sent packing, it's down to the final two. Guy Fieri returns to direct them in their pilots and, in a surprise twist, all of the eliminated finalists return as the focus group who will help decide who will win the ultimate prize: their own show on Food Network.