Stephanie James, a clerk at Kenilworth’s post office, is back on the Food Network

Stephanie James is trying to be the best. Well, “Best of the Worst.” 

James, a Kenilworth Post Office clerk, returned to the small screen last Sunday, April 25, on the Food Network’s “Worst Cooks in America: Best of the Worst.” 

The Chicago resident was one of 14 contestants who competed in the 21st season of “Worst Cooks in America,” which premiered in early January of this year. The best of the worst spin-off features eight returning contestants for “an all-star showdown,” according to the network. 

James’ first appearance on the show earlier this year was short-lived as she was eliminated on the second episode. 

But James is back to prove that she has more to offer. No aspiring chef was eliminated on the first episode of the new show. James was one of the first candidates deemed “safe.”

The best of the worst is hosted by notable chefs and Food Network stars Anne Burrell and Michael Symon. The two help guide the contestants through an attempt for redemption and the chance at a grand prize of $25,000. 

“I saw glimmers of hope in each one of you and that is why you are back here,” Burrell told the eight recruits during the opening of the April 25 episode.

James told The Record in January that she filled out an application to be on the “Worst Cooks in America” because “first and foremost I am a fan,” she said.

“I want to learn some skills and I felt like this was the show that could teach me,” she added, “but never in a million years did I think I would be selected.”

James lives with her mother and 13-year-old son in Edgewater, she previously told The Record.

Episodes of “Worst Cooks in America: Best of the Worst” will premier at 8 p.m. CST on Sunday nights. For more information about the show, visit foodnetwork.com.