Simcoe Muskoka high school students get cooking in first-ever culinary competition
Grade 9 and 10 students from the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board tested their culinary skills Monday in the first-ever kitchen warriors cooking competition.
Eight teams from five schools participated in the baking and culinary competition.
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local news updates sent to your inbox, here’s how
"It's a fantastic opportunity for them to learn team building, to learn cooking and to get ready to go in the industry," said David Wolfman, George Brown College Chef Professor and competition organizer. "This is sort of the launch point if I might say, for them to go to a college and then to go into the field of cooking."
Students were required to make a dessert that represents their geographic region.
"For our dessert, we thought that we would bring a little bit of Midland because Midland hosts the annual Butter tart festival," said Harlyn Grenier, a Grade 9 student. "So we made a maple butter tart cheesecake."
Participants prepare their plates on Mon., May 15 (Catalina Gillies/CTV News).
Students also had to use a surprise mystery ingredient in their recipe.
"They didn't know about it before today. So we used something that was locally grown, which was the corn, which was locally from here," Wolfman said.
The competition was judged by six local professional chefs, who looked at taste and visual presentation as some of the key aspects.
Justin Denman, a local chef at Groovy Tuesdays in Barrie and one of the judges, took the same culinary program when he attended high school.
"It really opened up my eyes to what's out there for culinary arts," Denman told CTV News. "It led to me starting my apprenticeship, completing the SHSM program and then later on completing my red seal."
Not only did the students make yummy dishes, but they also learned more about culinary career opportunities.
"It's great to see that there's a bigger interest in culinary arts, especially moving forward after Covid and whatnot. It's really opening up more doors for people," Denman added.
The winners of the competitions will receive culinary prizes and cookbooks to use in their kitchens. The school board also plans to make this an annual event to expose more students to culinary careers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
'Unacceptable': Trudeau reacts after AFN chief says headdress taken from plane cabin
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief said her headdress was taken from an airplane cabin this week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident 'unacceptable' and a 'mistake' on the part of Air Canada.
Regina police officer injured after being accidentally shot by fellow officer's gun
An investigation is underway after a Regina police officer was accidentally shot by a fellow officer’s gun during the search of a house early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.
From faulty kids' cribs to flammable kids' bathrobes, here are the recalls of the week
Health Canada issued recalls for various items this week, including kids’ bathrobes, cribs and henna cones.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.