Crossett Brook student chefs land Jr. Iron Chef award
March 19, 2023 | By Lisa Scagliotti 
Preparing a Fancy Farm Flatbread recipe landed one of Crossett Brook Middle School’s two student culinary teams an award for cooking with local ingredients at the 15th Junior Iron Chef Vermont competition at the Champlain Valley Expo last weekend.
Held on Saturday, March 11, the statewide student cooking competition featured high school and middle school teams that take on the challenge to create and prepare unique nutritious dishes with local ingredients that could inspire school meal programs.
Students from Crossett Brook have participated in Jr. Iron Chef Vermont since 2011. The school was able to form two teams for the first time this year with the addition of a parent coach.
A team of sixth graders Evelyn Andrus and Willa Hudson with seventh graders Cora Binkerd and Thatcher Palmer (with alternates Franki Beto, seventh grade, and Willow Thomas, sixth grade) was coached by parent volunteer Dana Hudson. They competed in the afternoon round with their recipe for Fancy Farm Flatbread and won the Lively Local Award.
The flatbread involved making dough from scratch and a sauce with olive oil, garlic, basil, oregano and half and half. The toppings include chopped onion, cherry tomatoes, goat cheese, mozzarella and basil.
A second team with eighth graders Charlotte Burks, Julia Cisz, and Sophia DeSanto coached by Harwood School Food & Nutrition Co-Director Erika Dolan. They competed in the morning round with a dish called Tiger Tail Burrito Bowl that uses brown rice, seasoned black beans, fresh salsa and grilled red peppers, butternut squash, sweet potatoes and red onions.
Dolan shared comments from the judges on the dishes. Judges for the award-winning flatbread team noted the students’ good communication, creativity and inclusion of local flavors.
“Very good attention to knife work while dicing and slicing vegetables,” one said.
“Lots of flavor, very consistent presentation, thoughtful in color choice,” another noted.
The eighth graders preparing the burrito bowl recipe were also commended. “This team was a well-oiled machine at work. Everyone had a clear objective and was working well to support the whole,” one judge wrote.
Crossett Brook teams have won awards at the competition in the past. Dolan said a team received the Local Lively award in 2013 and the Crowd Pleaser award in 2017.
The teams did not compete against each other, Dolan said. The morning round had about 16-17 teams and another 10-11 teams participated in the afternoon.
At the competition, teams have 90 minutes to prepare their dishes without help from coaches. The rules stress that it’s not a race against the clock, so teams are encouraged to use the time to be able to present their dishes hot to the judges.
Criteria for judging includes execution, teamwork, taste, creativity and inclusion of local foods. The Local Lively Award goes to a winner using five or more locally produced ingredients.
The program gets organized in January when teams are formed and participants start creating recipes, Dolan said. This year 17 students applied. Schools may enter only two teams of up to five students each.