The clock is ticking and over 200 students bustle about to finish in time. For both group and individual events, it’s a race to win the judges favor over the other eight schools, as well as students from The Career Academy. Students are competing in various events, such as cookie decorating (royal icing and buttercream frosting), salads, sauces, posters, knife skills, quiz bowl, dessert plating and a team entry.
Inside Southeast Community College (SCC), the 19th annual LPS Culinary Competition took place on Dec. 3, with some of Southeast’s own culinary students competing. Culinary teacher Ciera Bremer said she looks for students who are interested, responsible, and respectful to be her competitors.
Both Jolene Schlemmer and Bremer (culinary teachers) prepare their students right away by briefing on the competition on the first couple days of school. They then go over it again about a month before the competition itself in order to find participants. This year, two of Culinary Two’s seniors, Jaxon Dougherty and Lauren Maw, decided to compete.
Maw and Dougherty both mentioned wanting to take culinary courses to expand their skills in the kitchen, and Dougherty even said, “Everyone should know how to cook.”
Maw participated in the competition during her first year of culinary as a sophomore, when she entered into the knife skills event. This means that she had a little bit of previous knowledge. For the 2024 competition, she decided to enter in multiple events but was chosen for royal icing and quiz bowl.
For royal icing, Maw’s cookies placed 1st with a Southwest student in 2nd and classmate, Shahad Al Bane Hasan (12), in 3rd. Maw encourages people to take culinary and compete, and said that students who are already in culinary should compete as well.
“I honestly think that everyone should take a culinary class and go to the competition if they get the chance,” Maw said. “Taking chances and getting to experience new things such as the competition is so much fun, and I think it makes you a better person.”
However, Dougherty’s experience was a bit different. Since he chose the kitchen safety and sanitation poster, he didn’t have to go to the competition if he didn’t want to.
He decided to not go, but submitted a poster on hand sanitation. However, he did say that he wasn’t sure how to feel about it, but in the end he scored 2nd to a Lincoln High student.
Even though he still placed, and was able to participate in an event, Dougherty still regretted not actually attending the competition.
“The actual competition itself would be really nice to be part of, I was the poster [and] I don’t really do a whole lot other than that. I didn’t have to show up because of it but being a part of something is really enjoyable and that competition, as someone that is competitive, like unhealthily competitive, it’s really fun,” he said.
While it’s hard work, it’s very rewarding each year for the competitors. Because even if you don’t place, you still learn something new and useful. Everything is worth trying once, even a big LPS cooking competition.
