They may not be able to reach the top shelf of a pantry without help, but the eight elementary school students taking part in the finals of the Future Chefs Challenge for San Jose Unified School District this week sure can cook.
The young chefs — all in third or fourth grade — put together their favorite dishes Tuesday at Gunderson High School for a panel of judges with hopes of moving onto the next stage of the national competition, which is sponsored by Sodexo, the food service company that manages San Jose Unified’s school cafeterias.
Cruz Skinner, a 10-year-old fourth-grader from Schallenberger Elementary, took first place in the contest with “Cruz’s ZuccCorn Fritters with Lemon Dill Dipping Sauce.” Second and third place went to a pair of fourth-graders at Graystone Elementary: Rohan Kedlaya, who made “CAULiforIndian Potatoez,” and Jacob Walsh, who made a “Persimmon Pop Salad.” Back when I was in fourth grade, I think my best dish was frozen waffles — and I wouldn’t have come up with as good a name for them, either.
Ben Skinner, Cruz’s dad, said her dish was a version of a recipe that her great-grandmother used to make. “Our big Italian family still makes them, and Cruz put her own spin on the dish,” he said, adding that the family started her cooking when she was around 3 and she makes tons of homemade pasta and breads.
The finalists were selected from a pool of nearly 90 applicants, and their dishes were judged on originality, healthy attributes, ease of preparation, kid-friendliness, taste and presentation. Cruz’s recipe will now be entered to represent San Jose Unified in a regional contest next month against 68 others that’ll be judged by four professional chefs.
TELLING HERSTORY AT HISTORY PARK: Mosaic America and History San Jose are teaming up this weekend to host “Belonging: Celebrating Community, Heritage, and HERstories,” an event at History Park that honors the achievements and contributions of women in the Santa Clara Valley. The free festival, which runs from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, will spotlight female performers and storytellers, including Anne Marie Todd, Cassie Kifer, Wendy Rouse, Beth Kile and Tricia Creason-Valencia.
There also will be performances by Opera San Jose, Kawayan Folk Arts, Raíces de México, Tabia African American Theatre and many others, as well as kid-friendly craft activities and a Congolese dance and music workshop. Go to www.historysanjose.org for more details.
BACK TO THE SIXTIES: The Los Altos History Museum is taking a look back at the decade following the city’s 1952 incorporation with a new exhibit “One Brief Shining Moment: JFK’s Camelot in Early Los Altos,” which opened Thursday and runs through June 11.
Drawing parallels to the image of President Kennedy’s administration as an ideal government, Exhibition Curator Jordan Grealish said, “Hopes for a government where people of many different talents came together to serve the public with honor and high ideals were also reflected in the early days of Los Altos.”
The exhibition includes JFK memorabilia, along with documents and photos from Los Altos in the early 1960s, and is right in line with the museum’s April 1 fundraiser, “Dancing through the Decades: The Iconic Camelot Decade.” Expect a healthy portion of music and decor from the era, along with wine, cocktails and a four-course meal (which can go with any decade). The deadline to purchase tickets is March 26, so head to losaltoshistory.org/Decades60s if you’re interested.
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