About Shane

Shane Kelly, host of “Don’t Tell Mama” on AOL Living’s new KitchenDaily.com has two loves - real food and people.  And, her plan is to bring the two together, as she says, “so folks can see how simple it is to cook with real, whole foods and just how much better they’ll feel after they commit to giving their body what it needs - delicious and nutritious foods.”

Shane Kelly has been a lover of real food since the age of 10. Raised in the Bahamian Islands, Shane understood what it meant to “eat real food” and "buy local" as she and her family (and their beloved pet "Sorry Sam the Sea Dog") spent her fourth and fifth grader years living on the family’s 65-foot boat docked at Lucayan Marina in Freeport. Shane fondly recalls evenings when she and her brother would catch dinner off the back of the boat, clean it, grill it and enjoy it within minutes. “Looking back now I know some things were just truly meant to be."

A teaching chef, and what some would call a “food preacher” is what Shane Kelly is truly meant to be, and the road to that mission started with her own personal health issues. "My wakeup call came in 2002.  My annual check up revealed an irregular pap smear.  That bad report got my full attention, and instinctively I knew what I had to do in order to help heal myself. I went on a manageable food cleanse for about two months, went back to see the doctor and was given a clean bill of health and have maintained that ever since, thankfully. 

When I received the “wakeup call” I was about 30 pounds overweight, taking a host of meds for a variety of ailments – acid reflux pills, sleep medication, lots of ibuprofen for terrible PMS and cramps.  I was feeling very moody and depressed and that’s just not my nature.  Imagine what my sweet husband had to endure. As a result of all these 'minor complications' I decided to formally educate myself about good whole food.  And that is how this career was born, out of necessity.

"I immediately felt called to change my career mission and began working toward becoming a self-proclaimed whole food snob. I enrolled and graduated from a specialized culinary school, The Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts in New York."

It was in culinary school that Shane first became known as “the food preacher”, as coined by the school’s president Jenny Matthau (daughter of the late actor Walter Matthau). The tag stuck, and since that day Shane has been “preaching” to people about the importance and benefits of eating real, whole foods.

Though she has come to be known as the “food preacher”, Shane makes it a point to keep her message, the recipes she develops and the encouragement that she offers people, simple and straightforward. And, those who have spent much time with her or have heard her speak more than once will recognize that her message is consistent.  

Shane believes that buying local is important for many reasons.  “Food that is grown and raised by the farmers just miles from our back door, not the processed junk that we’re offered in most grocery stores, is truly the freshest. It just tastes better and is better for me, my family and the farmer. How the food is grown and how the farm animals are treated and what they’re fed are all very important, but just as important are the relationships and community that is built when we get to know the local farmer. And, by supporting my local farmer we can be assured that we are helping to build up a strong local food supply.”

Another one of Shane’s primary messages concerns the consumption of good fats. “One of the biggest travesties in this country is that America has been taught for over 50 years to eat a low fat diet, thereby processed diet.  Good fats are great, and in fact you can’t get good, health-supportive fat-soluble vitamins A, K, D and E without eating fat. The right fats will not make you fat, in fact good fat is what tells your brain that you are full. Good fat helps fight anxiety, mood swings, produce hormones and fats like unrefined coconut oil boost your immune system.”

Shane is the host of “Don’t Tell Mama” with Chef Shane Kelly on AOL’s KitchenDaily.com.  She lives in Franklin, Tennessee with Alex, her husband of 12 years and their “little puppy” Lucy.