Meet the Massachusetts Couple Who Just Won MasterChef’s First-Ever Team Season

South Shore natives Jesse Rosenwald and Jessica Bosworth, a.k.a. “J-Squared,” made the Bay State proud this week, becoming MasterChef’s first duo of champions—and with a New England-inspired meal, to boot. After 15 seasons, the Fox reality cooking show shook up the formula: pitting a dozen pairs against each other instead of individual competitors and adding new judge Tiffany Derry alongside returning judges Gordon Ramsay and Joe Bastianich.

Rosenwald and Bosworth met as bartenders eight years ago. They started dating after bonding over their passion for cooking, stirring up a love story that eventually took them to the MasterChef kitchen. The TV journey started off rocky: They lost in the first-round “audition battle,” but episode three brought back the initial losing duos for a second chance. From there, Rosenwald and Bosworth’s speed in the kitchen and harmonious chemistry ultimately turned into a championship win—and a $250,000 prize.

The couple’s three-course finale meal paid homage to comforting New England cuisine with an appetizer of pan-seared scallops and pork belly with corn purée; braised beef short rib with cacio e pepe gnocchi as the main course; and a fancy take on s’mores. They hope to use their winnings to expand their South Shore-style pizza passion project, 10 Inches Pizza, into a frozen pizza business fit for grocery stores.

Earlier this week, J-Squared chatted with Boston about their experiences on the show and what comes next.

 

Boston: What was going through your head when your names were called [as the winners]?

Jessica Bosworth: Honestly, I blacked out. I remember a lot of sparklers going on, and looking into Jesse’s eyes. I’d never seen him so excited in my entirety of knowing him. 

Jesse Rosenwald: I don’t even remember if [Gordon] said my name first or her name first, but all I know is I heard a “J” name and the sparklers went off. And then, “Oh yeah, here’s the trophy.”

You were eliminated in the first episode but saved with a second chance. How does the journey from the first episode to last feel? 

JB:  It made it even more incredible. When we lost the aprons to begin with, it was absolutely devastating. So, when we had that second chance, we took it and ran with it. We just went in full-fledged. There was no stopping us. 

JR: We legit thought that we were going home. We were like, “Wow, we’re losers. We didn’t even make it past the audition round.” We stayed up that night, upset, and cooked all the food in our apartment and made pasta at 5 a.m. When they told us we were coming in for a second chance, we thought, “This is it. We’re not looking back. We’re just gonna power through.”

You share an Instagram account called @10_inchespizza. How did it start?

JB: That started out as a passion project for us back in COVID. We both grew up on the South Shore of Massachusetts, and there’s a pizza that’s very specific to the region, the bar pizza. It’s cooked in a 10-inch pan and has more of a crackery crust versus a traditional Neapolitan crust, so it’s a very niche-type pizza. It’s something we both grew up on and adore. We wanted to recreate that during COVID, and we started practicing. Ever since, we’ve been perfecting our dough recipe. 

Now that you’ve won the $250,000 prize, how are you using the money?

JB: We just started par-cooking, Cryovac-ing, and freezing [our pizza]. We want to start selling it [directly] so everyone can enjoy it at home and eventually to grocery stores, too.

JR: If you’ve ever been in a Market Basket, you can see Cape Cod Cafe pizza in the frozen section—that’s sort of the vision we’re going for.

JB: Ours is more of an artisanal variation, though. We definitely want to do a brick-and-mortar location eventually, too—maybe even a couple.

What was your favorite dish that you made on the show?

JR: The finale meal.

JB: That meal was tough. It was amazing to be able to cook our food for the finale.

JR: That was how we see New England on a plate. That said, I would also say our audition plate [was a favorite], probably one of the sexiest-looking plates we’ve ever made. It’s clean and delicious and flavorful.

How long have you been cooking together?

JB: Eight years—food was our bond from the get-go. We cooked together every chance we got. When we weren’t cooking, we were going out to eat and then talking about how we would recreate the flavor profiles [at home].

How was your MasterChef experience overall?

JB: It was by far the most incredible life experience that we’ve both had. It was extraordinary to compete in that kitchen, to meet all the judges and amazing contestants who share the same passion we have. It was the most wonderful, out-of-this-world environment that I never could have anticipated, and I’m just so grateful for it.

JR: It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and the cast was amazing, and so were the judges. Tiffany was an amazing addition. The people behind the scenes [were also amazing], the showrunners, the culinary team, the people that don’t get seen or get credit. 

This was the first “Dynamic Duos” season. How did it feel going through the journey together as opposed to doing something like this on your own?

JB: Jesse was my rock. He made me a stronger cook and strengthened me as a whole throughout the entire competition. If I didn’t have him to lean on, I don’t know how far I would have gotten. We were stronger together, for sure.

JR: I’m a person who acts very raw and emotional, so I’m always high-energy, especially in competition. Jess would always be the one to say, “Take a deep breath; bring it down.” That was huge for me in a competition where you need to focus. We complement each other greatly. Jess was creative: the design behind the plates, the flavor profiles. I was more like the work horse: “Alright, we’re going to get this done.”

This interview has been edited and condensed.