Valerie Bertinelli will no longer serve as the co-host for Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship.
Bertinelli, 63, who served alongside Duff Goldman, was let go Friday. The longtime host shared the sad news with her fans via a lengthy video on Instagram Saturday.
“It really hurt my feelings, and I know it’s not supposed to,” she said. “Logically I know it’s business. Budget cuts, right?”
According to People, once her contract ended her returning to the show was “absolutely discussed,” but once Bertinelli’s team decided she deserved more “talks stalled.”
Even though it’s just business, the Hot in Cleveland actress revealed Kids Baking Championship meant so much to her, especially the current season.
Currently, Food Network is airing season 12 of Kids Baking Championship which was filmed in the summer of 2022, or the “apex year of h***,” as Bertinelli referred to it.
It was also the year the actress and Food Network host went through her divorce with Tom Vitale.
“I was going through it, and pretending everything was just fine, because that’s what you do,” she said. “Without sounding like a drama queen, the show saved my life.”
“So it really hurts that I won’t be able to go back and see everybody and say, ‘Hey, I made it through,’” she continued.
Bertinelli then went on to praise her fellow co-host as well as the “really wonderful people” she worked with over the prior 12 seasons.
“To all the bakers that are coming in for the new season, even though I won’t be there, I’ll be with you in spirit,” she said.
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