Recently, I began an epistolary exchange with author, entrepreneur, ad-man, memoirist, and farmer, Josh Kilmer-Purcell.  In the interview, below, read about how Josh and his partner, Dr. Brent Ridge, have gone from big city boys to small town farmers (the impetus for their television series, The Fabulous Beekman Boys), their current projects, and their most recent adventures, competing on the 21st season of the Emmy-winning series, The Amazing Race.

SHULMANSAYS:      Sunday was the premiere of The Amazing Race 21 – in which you and Brent competed.  [Click HERE to view the couple’s intro clip].  Without giving away anything you shouldn’t, what about the experience stands-out the most for you?

JOSH KILMER-PURCELL:  What stands out most was just how difficult the entire experience was. Make no mistake...we're fans of the show, so we had a pretty good idea of all the challenges that could potentially come our way. But right from the moment Phil said "go," everything was five times more stressful, exhausting and harder than we ever imagined. The adrenaline is non-stop.

SS:  You and Brent recently came to Las Vegas, to promote your book, The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Cookbook (Sterling Publishing, 2011) that y’all wrote with Sandy Gluck.  Which recipes are best for the novice chef?  The busy mom?

JKP:  The book is divided by seasons because we believe in eating what's available, when it's available. Granted there aren't as distinct seasons in Las Vegas as there are in upstate New York, but because many fresh cooking ingredients are imported into Las Vegas there's should still be seasonality to one's kitchen. Our favorite autumn recipes are our Butternut Squash Lasagna Rolls and our Harvest Chili with Pumpkin.

SS:  When Planet Green closed its doors, your show, The Fabulous Beekman Boys, was picked-up by the Cooking Channel.  How has the transition gone?  Will viewers notice any discernible changes?

JKP:  We're ecstatic to be part of the Cooking Channel family! Right now the network is rerunning Season 2 of the series, and we're still discussing what to do for a new season. There is a lot coming up to film. My job situation in the city (which has kept us living apart for the last five years) may be changing soon, AND there's a wedding we need to start planning for spring!

SS:  What are the greatest misconceptions about you and Brent?

JKP:  That we're rich TV stars and everything you see about our challenges on show is made up for TV. We work from sun-up to way-past-sundown every day, at three (sometimes four) different jobs and we still struggle to pay the mortgage on the farm some months. We're committed to helping the farmers and other neighbors in our village succeed, so most of the money we make our business, Beekman 1802, goes right back into the business and community.

SS:  Your second cookbook, Beekman 1802 Heirloom Desserts, is being released next year.  What can we look forward to seeing?

JKP:  Author photos that are about 15 pounds heavier than our last ones. Plus oooey-gooey seasonal desserts that are delicious enough to be passed down from generation to generation.

SS:  The Beekman 1802 brand has ballooned into a diversified purveyor of skin-care products, gardening tools, linens, scarves, and – of course – cheese.  Of course, it didn’t start-out that way.  Which of you was more fearless about jumping into the life of a “gentleman farmer” without a net?

JKP:  We were both incredibly fearful. We didn't start this business as a hobby. We started because we both lost our city jobs in the Great Recession of 2008 and had to come up with something to save our farm. All we had to our name was a big farm mortgage and 88 goats that another down-on-his-luck farmer had brought to live in our barn. Together, with Farmer John, we knew we could either declare bankruptcy and walk away from the farm, or double down. We doubled-down.

SS:  What is your favorite characteristic/personality trait of Brent’s that you most admire?

JKP:  Persistence and an unwavering belief that he will succeed.

SS:  Viewers of The Fabulous Beekman Boys are allowed to see some very raw emotions and highly charged exchanges between you and Brent.  How invasive is it to have the cameras around?  Do you find that you react differently that you might have without the cameras on you?  Do you just ignore them, after a while?

JKP:  Other folks on reality series have said this before, but the cameras really do become invisible very quickly. Reality shows typically center around folks who lead interesting - or at least busy - lives, so there's not much time to constantly be checking yourself and your actions just because there is a camera crew there. Plus, we quickly learned that we're really bad actors. We couldn't fake a scene if our life depended on it.

SS:  You and Brent are very into the “green” movement.  Is there anything that you just cannot give-up or live without, regardless of political incorrectness?

JKP:  We've come very close to losing everything, so we've learned that there really isn't much we need. We do like our electric blanket in February though.

SS:  What’s next?

JKP:  If you told us five years ago that today we'd be goat farmers with a reality TV show and competing on The Amazing Race, we'd have laughed in your face. We've learned to only predict unpredictability.

The Amazing Race 21 – CBS/Sundays at 8/7c
The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Cookbook
Click HERE for info

Get into it!