Kelsey's Essentials - Season 5

With the "hottest" food trend right now being hot sauce Kelsey heads to the first annual Hot Sauce Expo where hot sauce is being added to all savory and sweet foods, including the unexpected. Next up Kelsey visits JoJo Collins who truly turns up the heat on her homemade Sriracha. Kelsey then gets started on her own hot sauce menu when she makes: a Fresno pepper hot sauce, a spicy kale Caesar salad and a spicy roasted chicken with a hot sauce compound butter.

From sweet to savory salt is used as an ingredient in almost everything ... but Kelsey reveals the latest trend in using salt as a cooking tool! Kelsey visits David Burke who is using Himalayan salt blocks to cook almost everything from appetizer to dessert. She then tries her hand at using a Himalayan salt block to make a scallop crudo and a delicious cashew nut brittle. Kelsey then stops by an N.Y. rooftop farm that harvests the unexpected, salt! Back in her kitchen Kelsey makes a mouthwatering salt crusted pork roast.

When it comes to dessert the most popular trend right now are "hot" cool desserts. Kelsey visits Max and Mina's whose ice cream is anything but vanilla when she helps them create a new ice cream flavor: salt and vinegar potato chip ice cream. Then she heads over to Just Sweet Cafe who is turning shaved ices upside down with their Asian inspired flavors. Back in her kitchen Kelsey creates her own innovative desserts by making a curried butternut squash ice cream and then a dessert sushi topped with fresh fruit.

When the city falls asleep, some restaurants are just waking up to serve decadent dishes to those looking for a little something indulgent after midnight. Kelsey's homage to late-night dining is reinventing a favorite comfort food, a mac and cheese like you've never seen before! First up is a Baked Tomato Stuffed with a Creamy Bacon Mac and Cheese. Then it's a Parmesan-Crusted Grilled Cheese stuffed with -- what else -- mac and cheese. And nothing says decadence like crispy Shoestring Fries With Truffle Aioli. Get ready for the most surprising after hours eats!

With mocktails being the latest craze Kelsey learns firsthand how bartenders are reinventing cocktail favorites and turning them into innovative mocktails. Kelsey visits Geoff Bartakovics at the Tasting Table to get secrets on making trendsetting mocktails. She meets the ladies at Ovenly who make innovative bar snacks: spicy bacon popcorn and peanuts roasted in bacon fat. Kelsey heads back to her kitchen to make her own happy hour favorites: a blackberry, cucumber and ginger spritzer, homemade pork rind cheese puffs, chorizo-stuffed fried olives and spiced bar nuts with orange bitters. Kelsey's girlfriends stop by for a happy hour filled with delicious bar bites and an unexpected mocktail!

Wish you could make your favorite snack at home? Kelsey shows us with a little inspiration and essential ingredients, anything is possible! After visiting S'mores Bakery and seeing how they turned an American favorite snack -- the s'mores -- upside down by adding unexpected flavors like orange-cardamom, espresso and lavender, she heads back to her kitchen to make her version of one of her all time favorite snacks -- a microwave chocolate cake with peanut butter cream. Kelsey then heads to Kings County Jerky to see how they reinvented the traditional jerky by making a grass fed jerky with flavors like Korean BBQ and Mole. Kelsey makes her version of dried leather by serving up homemade fruit leather. And last, Kelsey makes a "snack attack" of fried chickpeas with parmesan, lemon and almonds.

The newest trend in entertaining is all about mix and mingle foods and easy to make party bites. Kelsey is celebrating the big first ... her son Ollie's first birthday but these are perfect party foods for any big first occasion. First up, mouthwatering Sopes with shredded beef. Then, it's a Charred Corn Salad with a creamy tomatillo dressing. Then for a sure fire crowd pleaser it's a Dos Leches Strawberry cake ... for a sweet ending to any celebration!

No need to hop on a plane to visit Jamaica to discover the amazing flavors of the Caribbean! Kelsey visits Melvin at Melvin's Juice Box who is adding the mouth watering tropical flavors of Jamaica to his juices. Kelsey heads back to her kitchen inspired to make fried fish with carrot escovitch using some of the same Jamaican flavors as Melvin. Kelsey then meets the queen of jerk cooking, Suzanne at Miss Lily's to try her hand at the staple technique of Jamaican cuisine. Back in her kitchen Kelsey makes grilled lobster tails with jerk sauce and coconut rice.

With food mashups being the latest culinary trend Kelsey heads to Kimchi Taco Truck to visit the mashup master, Phil Lee. Kelsey then makes her own version of a culinary mashup by serving up a Japanese risotto, the perfect fusion of Japanese and Italian flavors. Next on the menu are apple pie and meatball sub egg rolls. Then it's a classic appetizer with a multicultural twist: Thai deviled eggs and beet pickled Hungarian deviled eggs.

The latest trend in movie theatres are their gourmet concession stands! Kelsey heads to Nitehawk Cinema where they are taking a gourmet approach to dinner and a movie by serving up shrimp sofrito and chocolate cigars. Kelsey then visits Jen and Jeff at Pipcorn who are reinventing popcorn by making their popular herb spiced popcorn. Inspired Kelsey heads back to her kitchen to make her version of gourmet bites. On the menu: duck and dogs on a blanket, s'mores granola bites and a cherry lime vanilla glacier.

Kelsey discovers the latest trend in Japanese cuisine with a visit to Yuji Haraguchi, and his unique approach to ramen. Yuji bucks all trends and uses "mazemaen" a dry ramen, and no broth. His blend of dry ramen combined with American favorites like egg, bacon or lox and cheese has Yuji Americanizing a Japanese favorite dish. Kelsey also visits Mimi and Coco who have reinvented a Japanese savory favorite by making Americanized teriyaki balls. She then heads back to her kitchen inspired and makes a roasted shrimp, corn and bacon ramen. And then it's a mouthwatering grilled hamachi collar with a ponzu dipping sauce.

With global street food taking over Kelsey visits Danny of Cemitas who is turning out cemitas packed with layers of flavor. Then Kelsey visits some epic sandwich makers who are bringing the amazing flavors of Bombay to the masses. Back in her kitchen Kelsey continues to go "global" when she makes an Italian porchetta sandwich and then a classic favorite from Trinidad, curried chickpea doubles.

Kelsey remembers her trip to San Francisco, its Spanish cuisine and the latest twist on a classic Spanish dish -- paella, made with noodles instead of rice. The new tread inspires Kelsey's version of Fideos with shrimp and chorizo with a smoky paprika aioli. And you can't talk about San Francisco without making a classic buttery and fluffy Pilaf. She finishes her San Fran feast with a Green Goddess Crab Tapas. It's Spanish flair west coast style!