6
QUEENS WEEKLY, MARCH 17, 2019
S. Ozone Park girl competing on ‘MasterChef Junior’
ASTORIA TIMES ■ BAYSIDE TIMES
FLUSHING TIMES ■ FOREST HILLS LEDGER
FRESH MEADOWS TIMES
JACKSON HEIGHTS TIMES ■ JAMAICA TIMES
LAURELTON TIMES ■ LITTLE NECK LEDGER
QUEENS VILLAGE TIMES ■ RIDGEWOOD LEDGER
WHITESTONE TIMES
38-15 Bell Boulevard
Bayside, New York 11361
Advertising: (718) 260-4537
Classifieds: (718) 260-4590
Editorial: (718) 260-4539
www.TimesLedger.com
PROUD MEMBER OF NEW YORK PRESS ASSOCIATION
BRIAN RICE
Publisher
ZACH GEWELB
Editor
RALPH D’ONOFRIO
V.P. of Advertising
ADVERTISING
Senior Account Executive:
Kathy Wenk
Account Executives:
David Strauss
Sherri Rossi
CIRCULATION
Roberto Palacios
CLASSIFIED
Classified Director:
Amanda Tarley
Classified Sales
Manager:
Eugena Pechenaya
EDITORIAL STAFF
Reporters: Bill Parry, Mark Hallum,
Carlotta Mohamed, Jenna Bagcal,
Emily Davenport
Photographers: Nat Valentine,
Ellis Kaplan, Robert Cole
Copy Editors: Stephen Lepore,
Katrina Medoff
Contributing Writers/Columnists:
Tammy Scileppi, Robert Cole,
Robert Pozarycki
ART & PRODUCTION
Art Director: Leah Mitch
Designer: Connie Sulsenti
Layout: Zach Gewelb
Cartoonist: Tip Sempliner
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Ten-year-old Ashley
Johnson of South Ozone
Park is representing
Queens on the seventh
season of TV show “MasterChef
Junior,” which premiered
March 12.
Johnson is competing
for a trophy and a $100,000
grand prize during the
show which debuted March
12 at 8 p.m. with award-winning
chef Gordon Ramsay
and renowned pastry chef
Christina Tosi, joined by
celebrated chef and restaurateur
Aaron Sanchez on
the judges’ panel.
MasterChef Junior
gives talented kids between
the ages of 8 and 13 the
chance to showcase their
culinary abilities and passion
for food through a series
of fun, mouth-watering
challenges.
Johnson, a fifth-grader
at Our Lady’s Catholic
Academy in South Ozone
Park, decided to audition
for the show in December
2017. After the audition, she
was notified via phone that
she would be a contestant
on the show.
“There were so many
thoughts going through my
head,” said Johnson. “I was
super excited. My heart was
racing when I found out … I
was like, ‘Oh my gosh!’”
Johnson began cooking
at the age of 3 by making
eggs, and her favorite
dish to cook, is spaghetti
and meatballs. Johnson
said she also likes to prepare
dishes that include
Caribbean flavors.
“I like to make salmon.
I come from a Caribbean
background so I like to
make curry goat,” said
Johnson. “I also like to bake
when I get the opportunity
… usually cakes, cupcakes
and cookies.”
In the premiere episode,
the top 24 contestants had
to prove they’ve mastered
the first meal of the day,
breakfast, in a mystery
box challenge. Then, school
lunches get a total makeover
as contestants are
tasked with elevating three
classic school lunch dishes
into restaurant-quality
cuisine.
For her signature dish,
Johnson said she would
prepare steamed salmon
with vegetables and her secret
ingredient of peppers
from her uncle’s garden.
“When I cook, I like to
keep it colorful,” Johnson
said. “I don’t like it to be
boring, so okra, tomato,
onions, hot pepper, garlic,
carrots, thyme, pumpkin
and a combination of seasonings.
It’s really simple
but it tastes delicious.”
If Johnson wins MasterChef
Junior, she said
that she would love to one
day open her own restaurant
called “Sweet Baby
Cheesecake” and attend
space camp, since she loves
astronomy.
“I’m really proud of her
because it’s a challenge of
course. She’s a competitor,
so I knew from the get-go
she would be great,” said
Johnson’s mother, Jene
Robinson. “I’m really
proud.”
Ashley Johnson, 10, of South Ozone Park is competing on MasterChef Junior Season 7, which premiered March 12 on FOX.
Courtesy of FOX
/www.TimesLedger.com
/www.TimesLedger.com
