Watch Kristen Kish’s New Culinary Journal Come to Life With Upwork CoLab

Celebrity chef Kristen Kish and Upwork have come together to create a unique children’s culinary journal for Upwork’s newest CoLab partnership.

Upwork CoLab is an innovative brand partnership program that connects independent professionals with iconic brands and industry leaders to work on high-value, relevant, and interesting projects.

The CoLab video series documents this latest partnership, going behind the scenes with Kish as she assembles a dream team of independent talent for a project that is very close to her heart.

A unique mission-driven project for children

As an acclaimed chef, author, entrepreneur, and TV personality, Kristen Kish attributes her remarkable success to embracing the qualities that make her unique, experimenting, and, most importantly, trusting her own instincts and taste. Her guided culinary journal—”It’s All in the Sauce”—will help kids learn these same skills.

The illustrated journal takes children on a creative journey as the book’s main character, eight year old Arlo, sets out to open their own restaurant. Along the way, they will learn how to tell their own stories through food.

The work will include fun, open-ended cooking experiments and guided journaling prompts that will motivate kids to trust their instincts, explore new terrain, and find their creative voices in the kitchen and beyond.

Children will learn how to make simple but fun recipes in the kitchen—such as a fruit smoothie—while the journal prompts them to choose their own adventure, reinvent the recipe and make it their own.

Ultimately the journal aims to help children get to know themselves better. Parents will also likely find the journal useful as a tool that will help children navigate their emotions and channel their innate creativity.

“Kids often have to process a lot of emotions on their own as they figure out who they are. This journal is really important to me because I think the guided prompts will be very beneficial to help them process their feelings and ultimately find their creative voices in the kitchen and beyond,” Kish mentions in the video series.

All proceeds from the journal will be donated to WhatsintheMirror?, a Texas-based organization with a cause Kish is passionate about. WhatsintheMirror? provides mental health support and suicide prevention awareness to communities of color through art, advocacy, and affirming care with a focus on women, youth, and LGBTQIA+ persons.

Preorder your copy of the journal here.

Watch Kish’s culinary journal come to life

Kish turned to Upwork to find talented independent professionals to help bring her vision to life. The video series follows her along this journey as she assembles her dream team consisting of an illustrator, a co-author and a marketing expert.

Over the course of six episodes, you’ll get a front-row view of what it takes to pull off this unique collaboration—from finding the right talent to brainstorming concepts to insights into each person’s creative process. Most of all, you’ll see what’s possible when leading brands and entrepreneurs partner with leading talent on exciting and ambitious projects.

"Behind every successful project, there is a trusted relationship that forms where people feel deeply invested in one another. This CoLab series is a behind-the-scenes look of the high-impact, on-demand, meaningful work that can be achieved with independent professionals from our work marketplace,” said Lisa Edwards, Senior Director of Brand Marketing at Upwork.

Successful independent professionals share learnings and advice from their own freelancing journey. Viewers will also learn what business leaders like Kish are looking for in their search for creative collaborators.

Watch episode 1 of the video series here.

Stay tuned for more updates

As Kish and her Dream Team gear up for the upcoming launch of the journal, there will be plenty more news to share.

We are excited to introduce you to the winning team of independent professionals who worked with Kish, and also share more on the mission behind this project, very soon. Keep an eye on the Upwork blog for more updates.

Get a behind-the-scenes glimpse into this project. Watch the CoLab video series here.