When you mix together an Illinois State alumnus, edible slime-filled Halloween creations, and a half hour of chaotic baking for a panel of top-tier judges, you end up with an episode of Netflix’s Nailed It! Halloween Edition, featuring Phil Januszewski ’05.
Released October 5, 2022, Nailed It! Halloween Edition’s “Slime Time” episode pits Januszewski against fellow amateur bakers Justin Bethel, an NFL player, and Helen Williams, a retired nurse. The three contestants compete to make spooky and delicious Halloween creations using “slime” as a main ingredient, with the winner taking home $10,000. They’re tasked with baking a “slimy pumpkin popcorn ball” and an “alien autopsy cake.”
“I’ve always been a big cook and baker,” said Januszewski. “During the pandemic, I just started getting into baking yeast breads and cake decorating because it was something fun and creative to do. And that was about the same time we started watching Nailed It! It all happened at the same time.”
While watching Nailed It! with his kids during the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown, “They said I should try out for Nailed It! and talked me into trying out for it. So, I did,” Januszewski said.
When Januszewski found out that he was accepted to compete on the hit show, he said, “It was surreal. I couldn’t believe it. I was super excited to tell my kids and wife. It was super exciting and a super big mystery.”
Januszewski met his wife, Lyndy Januszewski ’06, during his time at Illinois State, where he studied chemistry and earned a secondary education certificate.
“ISU has done so much for me,” said Januszewski. “Not only did I meet my wife at ISU, but I started a career that I love—teaching chemistry. I owe a lot to it.”
In addition to his cooking and baking hobby, Januszewski works as a physics and chemistry teacher at Carl Sandburg High School and co-owns a public speaking company, M&P Presentations.
When the Netflix episode aired, Januszewski said it was “exciting and weird” to see himself on his own TV, and the amount of support and attention he received was overwhelming.
“It was really cool to feel supported not only by my family and my friends but also by my school,” Januszewski said. “The high school kids were really into it.”
Netflix flew Januszewski out to a Los Angeles studio where they filmed the Nailed It! episode in one day. Januszewski said he had no idea that his episode would be Halloween themed, so when he walked into the studio decked out in Halloween decorations, it was exciting.
“It was like one fun surprise after another,” said Januszewski. He got to meet host Nicole Byer, an actor and comedian, judge Jacques Torres, a renowned pastry chef, and guest judge Chelsea Peretti, also an actor and comedian, while facing unique baking challenges, and laughing a lot.
“As the day went on, it was like more and more chaos in a really fun way,” Januszewski said. “I just felt like a little kid.”
Januszewski said behind the scenes was similar to how the episode appeared—lots of laugher, chatting with each other, and everyone was friendly. He said that he has never talked so much while baking, as he was encouraged to narrate what he was doing on the show. The best part of the show, Januszewski said, was having his creations judged because of the judges’ fun senses of humor.
In terms of his personal performance, Januszewski described his work as “average” and said he didn’t “nail it.” But even though he made some “rookie mistakes,” Januszewski said he is “overall happy” with how he did on the show.
Spoiler alert—Januszewski didn’t win the competition, and he said his biggest takeaway was learning how to properly use a candy thermometer. He added that the experience was a reminder for him to have fun and not take himself too seriously.
Januszewski said this Halloween, he is not planning to recreate any of the slime-filled bakes that he made on the show.
“I can guarantee that I will never make an oozing alien cake ever again in my life unless I’m called back to try and claim the throne,” he said. “Otherwise, I think I’m going to stick with my simple buttercream layer cakes.”
