Culinary Students win Silver Medal at FCCLA Culinary Competition

From left: Gracie Williams, Amanda Marrot, and Bethany Osborn

Claire Garner
Staff Writer

On Feb. 10 Mrs. Hoskins and three of her Culinary Arts II Honors students traveled to Johnson and Wales University in Charlotte to compete in the annual Family Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) Culinary Competition. They went up against eight other teams to win scholarship money towards Johnson and Wales as well as the opportunity to compete at a national level in Nashville, Tennessee over the summer. Last year’s team won first place at the state level and went to San Diego, California but did not place during the national competition.

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When sophomore Amanda Marrott, and seniors Bethany Osborn and Gracie Williams first walked into the Charlotte kitchen, they did not know what they would be assigned to cook out of the three menus they had been given. The judges picked the first menu consisting of Spinach and Arugula Salad with Almond Coated Goat Cheese and Vinaigrette, Herbed Apple Glazed Chicken, and Mashed Potatoes and Butternut Squash with Brown Butter. Although the girls took second place, they did a phenomenal job executing the recipes and even received a total of $18,000 in scholarships to Johnson and Wales. Culinary teacher Mrs. Hoskins said, “I am so proud of the hard work and dedication that the team put into the competition. We spent countless hours preparing for it, and I am happy with how they performed and the scholarships they were rewarded.” I also talked with team member Bethany Osborn to learn more about her experience.

​How did you and your team prepare for the competition?
“We practiced the menus almost every day during class. Some days we would stay after school and work on the recipes.”

What did you enjoy most about the whole experience?
“Actually I would probably say the day of the competition, like actually the hour and a half that we had to do everything.”

Were you nervous during your time at Johnson and Wales?
“Yes! Oh my gosh, I thought I was going to throw up the entire time! After we took a tour of the campus, I was much calmer, but the morning of was definitely very nerve-racking.”
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Are you happy with how everything turned out?
“Yes. I think that we did our best out of all of the other times we had practiced. Considering all of the factors that went into the competition to make it hard, we performed well under all of the pressure.”
Congratulations to the culinary team on their second place win!