Valerie Bertinelli has confirmed her exit as the cohost of Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship after 12 seasons.
“I’ve been avoiding facing what I got confirmation last night and I didn’t want to talk about it last night [because] I wanted to sleep on it because it really hurt my feelings,” Bertinelli, 62, said in a Saturday, January 20, Instagram video. “I know it’s not supposed to. Logically, I know it’s business [and] budget cuts, right? But it really hurt my feelings to know that I’m not going to be asked back to be on Kids Baking Championship.”
Bertinelli, who has hosted the show alongside celeb chef Duff Goldman since 2015, noted that “it really sucks.” She noted that Kids Baking Championship is “currently airing” episodes that she previously filmed in summer 2022.
“[That] was my apex year of hell, like I was going through it and pretending everything was just fine,” the actress recalled of her last time filming Kids Baking Championship. “Because that’s what you do! And without sounding like a drama queen, the show saved my life.”
2022 was a trying year for Bertinelli, who filed for divorce from ex-husband Tom Vitale that May. Us Weekly confirmed in November 2022 that they had finalized their divorce.
“Working with all those really wonderful people and feeling productive and knowing I could spread some kindness and not just wallow in my hell and just try to keep my head above water,” she added on Saturday. “[The show] helped me; it was like a flotation device.”
She continued, “So, it really hurts that I won’t be able to go back and see everybody and say, ‘Hey, I made it through!’ I think I’m [the] most sad that I won’t be able to tell everybody what they mean to me.”
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Bertinelli went on to give shout-outs to Goldman, 49, and the entire production crew for making her time on Kids Baking Championship memorable.
“Oh my God, these people work so hard to give you an amazing show,” she gushed. “And all of those kids bakers that I got to watch grow up: I feel so lucky. And to all the bakers [who] are coming in for the new season, even though I won’t be there, I’ll be with you in spirit. I just want you to remember this: You are there for a reason [and] you’re some of the best bakers in America right now and if you don’t make it to the next round, please always remember [that] it’s not because you’re not a good baker, you just had a bad day.”
Food Network has not publicly confirmed how Kids Baking Championship will move forward in Bertinelli’s absence.