Albany Tech culinary students invent new creations

ALBANY — Some of the area’s most talented future chefs got a chance to test their creative culinary mettle, as well as gain some sought-after exposure, when they took part in an a special recipe contest organized by local culinary personality Lara Lyn Carter at Albany Technical College.

The contest, which took place Tuesday at ATC’s Kirkland Conference Center, featured teams of students from the school’s culinary arts department competing to see which pair could come up with the most impressive unique recipe using one of three sauces Carter sells under the brand name Wicker & Whisk.

ATC Culinary Arts Head Chef Todd White said students enrolled in a nutrition and menu development class were put into nine groups of two, with each group being asked to come up with a standardized recipe using one of the three sauces. Three teams used the Wicker & Whisk Merlot Sauce, three teams used the Wicker & Whisk Port Wine Mustard Sauce, and three teams used the Wicker & Whisk Italian Herb Dressing.

Additionally each team was asked to incorporate some type of local or Georgia-grown product into their dish, which White said helps the students learn the importance of utilizing fresh ingredients and supporting the local economy, while flexing their creative muscle.

“I wanted the students involved in this because we have a nutrition and menu development class, and in that class we teach them to utilize local, fresh whole foods, then we also teach them how to develop new recipes,” said White. “One of their main goals in this was to develop a standardized recipe and to utilize something local as well.”

The main goals, however, were something White said might be the most important things about cooking — experimenting and having fun.

“We were able to work with Wicker & Whisk and Lara Lyn to put this thing together, and the kids have had fun,” said White. “They’re incorporating their souls into each recipe. It’s cool. They just get to play.”

That spirit of playfulness and having fun was also part of what connected White and his students to Carter, who is known for showing the fun side of cooking and entertaining through her Emmy-nominated Georgia Public Broadcasting food and travel show “Thyme for Sharing with Lara Lynn Carter.”

“Lara Lyn’s been awesome to work with,” White said. “She’s so down to earth, and she comes from the end of it that I love, and that’s just having fun with food.”

Although each of the students clearly had plenty of fun nurturing their creativity as they came up with one-of-a-kind dishes, they also got to experience the pressure of having to present their creations to a group of judges who were charged with determining which team’s recipe earned top honors.

During Tuesday’s competition a panel of judges including Albany Herald digital editor Brad McEwen, WALB anchor Melissa Hodges, Southwest Georgia Living Magazine’s K.K. Snyder and Georgia Grown’s Beth Meeks sampled all nine dishes and rated them in three categories: taste, visual appeal and creativity.

The first group of dishes presented were those built around the port wine mustard sauce, and despite some stiff competition, the team of Alphonso Gonzalez and Heather Rhymes won with their dessert dish that combined the mustard sauce with a tofu pudding cheesecake, topped with a Georgia-grown strawberry.

The next group of dishes presented incorporated the Merlot steak sauce, and the team of Annett Stephens and Tyrone Walker emerged victorious with their pan-seared salmon that also incorporated Vidalia Onions and Georgia-grown green bell peppers.

The final group of dishes were created using the Italian herb dressing, and despite strong competition among all the students, it was the team of Jesse Brown and Ivan Boucher that wowed the judges with their pretzel and herb crusted catfish, served with a roasted Georgia-grown vegetable medley.

In fact, Brown’s and Boucher’s dish was so impressive that during a final round, in which Carter and White tasted the three winning dishes, it was named the top recipe.

“The team that won, for me, it was the catfish,” said White. “We thought really we could go home and cook this meal. It’s something that reminded you of South Georgia, and you incorporated new flavors and new twists. You incorporated produce from this area. It was really good.”

White also had high praise for the entire group of competitors, as did Carter, who will be featuring all of the recipes on her website laralyncarter.com.

“This turned out great; I thought the food was great, and I thought the students absolutely did a great job,” said Carter. “They used their skills and they thought outside the box. I thought their creativity was fantastic.”

Carter said she hopes the rest of the public will soon get to experience firsthand the many talents on display in the Albany tech culinary program, as the students prepare to graduate and enter the work force.

“A lot of great chefs are about to leave this school, and they will be the ones serving in the restaurants and in the resorts, and in their own private restaurants; and whatever they end up doing, I promise you, it will be good,” Carter said. “They’ve gotten a great foundation and they are creative.”