Cook-Off for American’s Second Harvest Names Three Winners
Congratulations to the winners of the 5th Annual CHEM 1100 Cook-Off for America’s Second Harvest. Culinary student Robert Rome placed first with his LOCO COCO pot de crème; Samuel McPherson came in second with his chicken and veggie curry; and Nykeith Wilson placed third with his red beans and rice recipe.
Robert Rome (middle) came in first place, with Samuel McPherson (left) placing second, and NyKeith Wilson (right) coming in third.
The winners received gift cards to the College bookstore. The event raised $150 and collected several pounds of canned food items for America’s Second Harvest food bank.
Each culinary student participating in the contest created a recipe using ingredients available at the America’s Second Harvest warehouse. The contest was the culminating event for students’ Introductory Chemistry summer class and served as a service-learning project, where students apply skills learned in the classroom in real-world situations and collaborate with local agencies. Culinary students partnered with America’s Second Harvest to help deepen their understanding of the connection between food and chemistry.
Students had to use ingredients found at the food bank to create a recipe that detailed the nutritional components (i.e., calories, amount of protein, amount of carbohydrates, etc.) of the dish. Department of Arts and Sciences Interim Dean Andrea Wallace said she was very proud of the students’ work and thanked those who attended the event.
Here are the prize winning recipes:
First Place: Robert Rome
Recipe: LOCO COCO pot de crème
Ingredients:
13.5 ounces coconut milk
10 ounces dark chocolate
1 pod Ancho chile
pinch smoked salt
Instructions:
Bring coconut to boil with one Ancho chile pod.
Once boiling, remove from heat, remove chile pod and add chocolate.
Stir with ladle until coconut milk and chocolate are fully evaporated.
Season to taste with pinch of smoked salt
Pour into 2 oz. cups and chill to serve
Second Place: Samuel McPherson
Recipe: Chicken and Veggie Curry
Ingredients:
2-3 tablespoon coconut oil
4 pounds chicken breasts
3 tablespoons curry paste
10 ounces canned corn
10 ounces coconut milk
10 ounces canned carrots
5 ounces canned beans
16 ounces rice
16 ounces chicken stock
10 ounces crushed tomatoes
TT salt and pepper
3-4 bay leaves
Instructions:
Dice chicken breasts, add coconut oil to pot and cover over medium heat.
Remove chicken breasts and reserve liquid in pot.
Add curry past to pot and heat until simmering.
Add chicken stock bay leaves tomatoes and coconut milk to pot with curry paste.
Simmer coconut milk and chicken stock for 5-10 minutes until reduced and thickened.
Once thickened to preference add corn, carrots, squash, and beans and simmer for 5-10 minutes to bring flavor.
Remove bay leaves. Taste and add salt and pepper to season.
Serve over rice.
Third Place: Nykeith Wilson
Recipe: Red Beans and Rice
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
28 ounces smoked sausage
6 cups red kidney beans
2 cups white rice
Instructions:
Sauté sausage in butter.
Boil rice until ¾ done.
Steam beans
Add all ingredients together and cook for 30 minutes
Here are more photos from the contest:
