by Gina Scarpa and Todd Betzold

Last week on MasterChef, the competitors were squealing with excitement as they were faced with cooking up amazing pork dishes for the Elimination Test. It proved to be a huge test for all the contestants and Suzy, Alejandra, and Jennifer all landed in the bottom three. In the end, the judges sent Alejandra home for breaking the first rule of the kitchen and serving raw meat. Today, we caught up with her in an exclusive interview to learn more about her MasterChef experience.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: When did you first start cooking?
A. Alejandra: I started cooking at an early age. As a child, my mother always let me help in the kitchen and taught me family recipes. I also cooked with my grandmother every day and helped make lunches for my younger cousin after school. That's the Venezuelan way!

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What made you want to do MasterChef?
A. Alejandra: After watching the first season, I really liked the show and its format. My husband and many of my friends and relatives encouraged me to apply. I wanted to have the opportunity to cook for Chef Gordon Ramsay, Chef Graham Elliot, and Joe Bastianich and to show everyone my passion for cooking and nourishing people through my food. I wanted to feel validation to back up my desire to leave my profession in architecture and urban planning to pursue a career change.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Was there anyone who stood out to you in the competition?
A. Alejandra: From the very beginning, I had a lot of respect for Christian and Adrien. Just by talking with them, I could sense they knew a lot about food and that they were as passionate as I was about cooking. As the competition went on, I was able to see the kind of dishes they could create and gained even more respect for them as cooks.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Any regrets from the pork dish and using more than the thermometer to check the meat?
A. Alejandra: I regret relying on kitchen tools alone to determine the level of doneness of the pork I was about to serve. A digital thermometer gave me an internal temperature reading of 165°F so I took it out of the oven and let it rest briefly before slicing the loin. A technical mistake cost me an elimination from the show; however, if I could do it again I would make the same dish, as it is delicious- but I would trust my hands and eyes before reaching out for a thermometer.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What was it like working with all the time constraints of the challenges and food ingredients given to you, especially the last elimination test?
A. Alejandra: I really appreciated Adrien assigning pork loin to me in the last elimination challenge. Being a healthy cook, I prefer leaner cuts like the loin; and I felt fortunate to have the right ingredient to produce a dish that reflected me and my cooking philosophy. Time constraints and an overall stressful environment make the MasterChef kitchen a very challenging place. At times, that diminished my ability to focus and successfully prepare, cook, and plate the amazing dish the judges expected from me. Most of the time, I handled myself very well. I really enjoyed all of the ingredients in Mystery Box Challenges -- I won three of them, more than anyone else in the competition up to this point!

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What is the biggest thing you are taking away from this experience?
A. Alejandra: Validation and credibility - I received very positive comments from the judges throughout the competition. From my very first audition, they complimented my cooking skills despite my lack of formal training and often praised my creations. I gained valuable experience in the kitchen, learned and evolved as a cook and as a person, and built a foundation of knowledge that would continue to grow in my culinary path.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Did doing this show help inspire you to continue your dreams of cooking?
A. Alejandra: Absolutely! Being a MasterChef finalist has already opened many doors for me. Since wrapping the show, I have been busy starting up a private chef business with fellow contestant Tracy Kontos, writing a cook book, keeping a blog, traveling for cooking demonstrations, and getting involved with non-profit organizations. I was always inspired but it's no longer just a dream, cooking is my life!

MasterChef airs on Mondays and Tuesdays at 9/8c on Fox.

(Image courtesy of Fox)

Follow Gina @ginascarpa and "Like" her on Facebook!  Follow Todd at @tbetzold