Recipes for Success Two MTSU foodies put their degrees to work chasing down dreams
by Candace Moonshower
Seasoning to Taste April McKinney finds multiple ways to combine her passion for cooking with her Mass Communication degree
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pril McKinney began making homemade videos in sixth grade, so when it was time to choose a college and a major, the Mass Communication program at MTSU was a natural choice for the Murfreesboro native. McKinney was soon involved with the MTSU television station (MTTV). “I saw what it would be like to work in broadcasting in real-life, real-time experience,” McKinney says. “I enjoyed it, but it taught me that I did not want to report news. I wanted to be more creative,” McKinney says. McKinney worked as an intern with WTVF’s daily Talk of the Town program. She noted that every day there was a recipe and a recipe demo, and this piqued her interest. While she had no culinary education, McKinney always had enjoyed cooking. She had lived at home during her last two years of college and cooked for her entire family. In return, her parents encouraged her culinary efforts. “They bought all the food,” she says. “The good stuff.” After graduating in December 2009 with her B.S. in Mass Communication—and a backup license in real estate—McKinney threw herself full force into real estate. But something was missing. “I thought, ‘I love cooking, and I love broadcast journalism,’” she says. “I talked to my fiancé, and he said, ‘Let’s keep our eyes open.’” A few days later, McKinney received an email from one of the Kraft mailing lists to which she subscribes. “Do you want to be the next great cooking star?” the email asked. McKinney went to the website and discovered a contest to use cream cheese in a recipe. She submitted a video. Two weeks later, she got a call that she was a finalist: one of the top 16 out of approximately 8,000 entries. Two days after her honeymoon, McKinney traveled to Savannah, Ga., to the home of cooking star Paula Deen for continued on page 36
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