Nicole Byer never thought she’d be the star of a Netflix food show. She doesn’t cook ... or bake. But she knows how to work a room, which is exactly how the 31-year-old comic and Upright Citizens Brigade alum became the host of Netflix’s hit series Nailed It (season 2 now streaming) in which everyday bakers compete to see who can recreate a Pinterest cake best. "The executives had this idea for a show to do cake fails. They wanted it to be a comedy, so they wanted a comic to host it," Byer says, "and then they came to me with the idea and I was like 'I love money.' Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would look people in the face and be like 'Your snake cake’s not good.'"
Byer's lack of food know-how is what makes the show work. She's bombastic, delivering hilarious one-liners ("YOU BETTER BE READDDYYYY — because I already started the clock, get to baking, go") and infectious sass, while judges like pastry kings Jacques Torres and Zach Young (the genius behind the PieCaken), talk technique. And for anyone wondering: No one is exaggerating for camera — these are authentically terrible Pinterest fails. "It's mystifying that people f*ck up things that are just so simple."
She stopped by the Delish kitchen to make her favorite chocolate chip cookie — Jacques’ famous recipe. I’ve heard about these cookies for years but had never baked them myself. They’re fussy: They call for bread and cake flour and for the dough to be chilled up to 72 hours — but OMG are they worth it. Thin, slightly crispy, very salty, with a chew.
Byer might not bake, but she does make one low-carb recipe we need to steal: Slop (LOL). Ground turkey, marinara, and Parm "slopped" over green beans. We're in.
PRE-ORDER Delish Cookbook, amazon.com
