Call for Entries for the 3rd Annual Student Chef Competition to be Held March 31!

By Madie Murray

Deadline for entries March 5
Download Guidelines at www.orcasislandf2c.org – click on Student Chef Competition

Last year’s grand prize winner, Keenan O’Brien preparing his winning recipe, White Bean Chicken Chili.

The Farm to Cafeteria Program has made some fun changes in this year’s competition – the biggest being that the afternoon competition for Middle School and High School students will consist of TEAMS: one student and one OISD teacher, administrator or employee (excluding cafeteria kitchen staff.)  The overall winner of this grade group will receive a generous amazon.com gift card and dinner for four at an Island restaurant.  Students who would like to team up with a teacher, talk to Chef Zach in the Cafeteria.  We have teachers lined up and waiting!

The K-6 competition will be the same as the previous two years with individual students or teams of two students competing.  K-6 judging will be in the morning, as in the past, however competitors won’t have to wait until the afternoon competition is over before they learn who won in their grade group.  The overall winner in this group will receive an amazon.com gift card and another “special prize.”  All competitors will receive gifts for competing.  No one goes home empty-handed!

Another change is that the recipes should be for entrees only and with a Caribbean flare.  To explore the possibilities, Google® “Caribbean recipes” and we think you’ll be surprised to see how many variations there are and how fun this type of cuisine can be. The possibilities are more endless than you might think.

Entries should be given to Chef Zach at the school no later than March 5.  From those we receive by March 5, the Student Chef Committee will select six entries in the K-6 group and six entries in the 7-12 to compete on March 31.

Chef Zach will be again be overseeing the competitors as they prepare their recipes and Elementary/Middle School Principal, Kyle Freeman will again be our eminent MC.  A judging panel made up of community and school representatives will be charged with deciding the winners.  Competition guidelines and slide shows of the 2011 and 2010 competition can be found on the Farm to Cafeteria web site – www.orcasislandf2c.org.

Would you like to be a sponsor?  Any individual or business may be a sponsor for the Third Annual Student Chef Competition at a Copper Kettle ($50), Silver Spoon ($100), Golden Spatula ($250), or Platinum Platter ($500) level.  Sponsorships enable us to give generous prizes, provide equipment and items needed for the competition, as well as ensure the ongoing endeavors of the F2C Program.  Sponsorship checks should be made payable to the Orcas Island Education Foundation (OIEF) and sent to Terri Gilleland at the Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 252, Eastsound, WA 98245.  Be sure to put “Student Chef” on the check.