Alexis deBoschnek is the American chef, cookbook author, and recipe developer who rose to viral fame on BuzzFeed Tastys Chef Out of Water and went on to write the New York Times-recognized cookbook To the Last Bite. Trained at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan and based in the Catskills, deBoschnek built a freelance career writing for Food52, The Kitchn, Today.com, and Bon Appetit before publishing her second cookbook Nights and Weekends in 2024.
TL;DR
- American chef and recipe developer, born in New York City, raised in the Catskills
- Classically trained at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan
- Became Senior Test Kitchen Manager at BuzzFeed Tasty in 2018, hosted viral Chef Out of Water series
- First cookbook To the Last Bite (Simon and Schuster, 2022) named NYT Best Cookbook of the Year
- Second cookbook Nights and Weekends published 2024, focused on time-conscious home cooking
Key facts about Alexis deBoschnek
| Born | New York City, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Based in | Western Catskills, upstate New York |
| Training | International Culinary Center, Manhattan |
| Best known for | Chef Out of Water (BuzzFeed Tasty), To the Last Bite (cookbook, 2022) |
| Cookbooks | To the Last Bite (2022, Simon and Schuster), Nights and Weekends (2024, Union Square and Co.) |
| Publishers regular | Food52, The Kitchn, Today.com, Bon Appetit |
Early life and culinary training
Alexis deBoschnek was born in New York City to artist parents and moved with them to the village of Delhi in the western Catskills at age two. Growing up surrounded by her mothers garden taught her to think about ingredients in their full lifecycle, an instinct that would later anchor her cookbook work. She has described picking apples, zucchinis, peas, and herbs as a daily routine through her childhood years.
After leaving the Catskills for college and culinary school, deBoschnek trained at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan, the same classical program where Bobby Flay and Christina Tosi studied. She spent several years working as a recipe tester in New York before BuzzFeed Tasty reached out in 2018.
Alexis deBoschnek career timeline
- Early 2010s Trains at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan
- 2014 to 2018 Works as a recipe tester in New York City
- 2018 Joins BuzzFeed Tasty as Senior Test Kitchen Manager in Los Angeles
- 2018 to 2019 Hosts Chef Out of Water, with viral episodes including a three-course meal made in a coffee maker (1 million views in 24 hours) and a three-course meal made with power tools
- 2019 Leaves BuzzFeed to go freelance, begins contributing recipes to Food52, The Kitchn, Chowhound, and Tasting Table
- 2020 Moves with her fiance to her mothers Catskills farmhouse during the pandemic
- April 19, 2022 Publishes debut cookbook To the Last Bite with Simon and Schuster, endorsed by Drew Barrymore
- 2022 To the Last Bite named one of the New York Times Best Cookbooks of the Year
- 2024 Publishes second cookbook Nights and Weekends with Union Square and Co.
- 2025 Continues recipe development for Today.com, Food52, and Bon Appetit alongside cookbook author talks across the Northeast
Alexis deBoschnek signature style and philosophy
DeBoschneks core idea is resourcefulness: cook with everything you bought, waste nothing, and let the season set the menu. To the Last Bite organizes 100 recipes around the principle of using the whole ingredient, with postscripts on each recipe pointing readers to other dishes in the book that absorb the leftovers. The Spatchcock Paprika Chicken with Carrots, for instance, leads into a stock recipe that lands in braised leeks two chapters later.
Stylistically her recipes sit in the comfortable middle: approachable enough for home cooks, technical enough to teach restraint with salt and acid. Nights and Weekends pushes the format further by sorting recipes by available time, a structure aimed at the home cook who has 40 minutes after work but a different headspace on Saturday afternoons.
Notable work: Chef Out of Water and the cookbooks
Chef Out of Water made deBoschneks face recognizable to millions of viewers. The premise was the kind of BuzzFeed format that played to short attention spans: could a trained chef cook a three-course meal using a coffee maker, an iron, or a set of power tools? The first episode hit one million views in 24 hours and the show ran in viral cycles across 2018 and 2019. The format also revealed deBoschneks character on camera: technically competent, dry-humored, unafraid to break expectations.
To the Last Bite reframed her as a serious cookbook author. The book was named one of the seasons most anticipated cookbooks by TIME, Thrillist, and Book Riot before release, and Drew Barrymore called it “one of the sexiest, most beautiful guides I have ever seen.” Nights and Weekends, published in 2024, doubled down on the practical home-cook audience that responded most strongly to the first book.
Awards and recognition
- 2018 Chef Out of Water debut episode hits one million views in 24 hours
- 2022 To the Last Bite named one of TIMEs most anticipated cookbooks of the season
- 2022 To the Last Bite named one of the New York Times Best Cookbooks of the Year
- 2022 Featured endorsement from Drew Barrymore
Impact and cultural relevance
DeBoschnek represents a transition that defined late-2010s food media: classically trained chefs pivoting from restaurant kitchens to digital content, and then back to long-form work like cookbooks. Her path through BuzzFeed Tasty parallels what colleagues like Steven Lim and Andrew Ilnyckyj did with Worth It on the BuzzFeed side, and what creators like Nick DiGiovanni built independently.
The Catskills setting of To the Last Bite has become part of her professional identity, positioning her within a broader American food-media movement that values farm-to-table seasonality and waste-reduction. Her continued work for Bon Appetit and Today.com keeps her name in front of national home-cook audiences, and the 2024 release of Nights and Weekends signaled a sustained cookbook career rather than a one-book run.
Alexis deBoschnek FAQ
Is Alexis deBoschnek a trained chef?
Yes. DeBoschnek trained at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan and worked as a recipe tester in New York for several years before joining BuzzFeed Tasty. Her formal training is classical, even though her on-screen breakout came through the unconventional Chef Out of Water format.
What is To the Last Bite about?
To the Last Bite is deBoschneks debut cookbook, published by Simon and Schuster in April 2022. It contains 100 recipes built around the principle of using the whole ingredient, with each recipe pointing to other dishes in the book that can absorb leftover parts. It was named one of the New York Times Best Cookbooks of the Year.
Where does Alexis deBoschnek live?
DeBoschnek lives in the western Catskills in upstate New York, in the village of Delhi where she was raised. She moved back from Los Angeles in October 2020 during the pandemic and decided to stay.
What was Chef Out of Water?
Chef Out of Water was a viral BuzzFeed Tasty video series hosted by deBoschnek between 2018 and 2019. Each episode challenged her to cook full meals using non-traditional equipment such as coffee makers, irons, and power tools. The debut episode reached one million views in its first 24 hours.
Does Alexis deBoschnek have a new cookbook?
Yes. Her second cookbook Nights and Weekends was published in 2024 by Union Square and Co. It contains more than 100 recipes split between quick weeknight meals under 40 minutes and longer weekend cooking projects.
What is next for Alexis deBoschnek
DeBoschnek continues to develop recipes for Today.com, Food52, and Bon Appetit while touring cookbook author talks across the Northeast. A third cookbook has not yet been announced but her bibliography is on a two-year cadence. Follow her on Instagram (@alexisdeboschnek).
