Fourth-graders enhance love of cooking in culinary competition

Caeden Erdmann lays corn tortilla chips on top of flour tortilla rounds for his Guaco Taco Bites—winner of the Fun Foods category.

Eighteen fourth-graders took over Clover Park School District's kitchen on Jan. 14 for the third annual Kids Can Cook Competition. Students from Beachwood, Carter Lake, Custer, Dower, Evergreen, Greenwood, Hillside, Idlewild, Lakeview, Oakbrook, Oakwood, Southgate and Tillicum Elementary Schools prepared unique recipes with the guidance of an adult volunteer. The student chefs were responsible for their finished food products, including plate and table presentation.

"This competition is a great way for our students to become familiarized with food preparation and safety as well as healthy eating," said Kevin Scott, director of student nutrition. "It really gets kids involved so that they better appreciate proper nutrition and cooking."

To participate in the event, fourth-graders throughout the district were asked to submit healthy, kid-friendly recipes. Eighteen students were selected to prepare their recipes out of more than 150 students.

A panel of judges tasted each recipe and had the difficult task of selecting just five winners in the following categories:

• Best Table Presentation: C'Omunique Franklin, Lakeview Elementary School, Crunchy Chicken Nugget Appetizers;
• Kid Friendly Food Preparation: Serenity Hayward, Oakwood Elementary School, S’mores Snack Mix;
• Fun Foods: Caeden Erdmann, Guaco Taco Bites, Idlewild Elementary School;
• Health Conscious Foods: Alyssa Burke, Healthy Salad, Hillside Elementary School; and
• Judges Choice: Jaylen Starr, Cheesy Apple Quesadillas, Oakbrook Elementary School.

Jaylen Starr, left, helps Dejanee Cox, right, measure flour for her Banana Nut Bread before starting on his Cheesy Apple Quesadillas, which won the Judges Choice category.

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