DENVER (KDVR) — During MasterChef’s 13th season, home chefs prepare signature dishes for a panel of judges, including the notorious Gordon Ramsay. The season finale is premiering Wednesday on FOX, and one of the finalists is from Denver.

For 26-year-old Kennedy U’s debut during the West auditions in episode three, she paid homage to Colorado by making an elk tenderloin over rainbow carrots with a blueberry compote. Ramsay was particularly impressed by the elk for her premier as it is one of the hardest proteins to cook.

“I just wanted to show you guys a little bit of who I am as a person. I’m a mountain girl, and elk obviously is from Colorado, and I just wanted to show my heart,” Kennedy said to the judges in her MasterChef audition.

This was a big risk, especially for her audition, with elk being the most difficult to cook. Ramsay hasn’t been known to sugarcoat anything and has gone viral for berating chefs for poorly cooked meals. But with the elk, Ramsay said Kennedy “absolutely nailed it.”

After earning an apron to represent the West, Kennedy made it through 18 episodes. She cooked with some Colorado staple ingredients like green chiles from Pueblo.

Kennedy had only cooked as a home chef before receiving a message on Instagram asking her to come on the show, she told FOX31.

On Wednesday, Kennedy will compete against two other finalists for the title of MasterChef, $250,000 and the right to publish their own cookbook.