"At first, I thought her sunny, ever-chipper personality read as fake," Tuschman wrote in a blog posted Monday morning. "But she is just a rare person. I know she will be back to reclaim a spot in the food television world. Like Shane, I think she just needs to live a bit first."

As a BYU broadcasting major, Nixon created a cooking show, "Kelsey's Kitchen," and did more than 100 segments. She sent the Food Network tapes for several years before making the cut as a finalist.

Nixon could still win a set of kitchen appliances in the Fan Favorite poll. Viewers can vote for their favorite finalists at www.foodnetwork.com.

Since filming the reality series, Nixon has been teaching culinary classes at Sur La Table at The Gateway but may parlay her Food Network experience to other opportunities. Soon after being ousted on the second episode, finalist Kevin Roberts became a celebrity spokesman for Frank's RedHot sauces.

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E-mail: vphillips@desnews.com