Thank you to all of our young chefs and the grown-ups who helped them explore cooking with fresh ingredients.
It was not easy choosing just four contestants to win the
7th GROW Kids Cooking Challenge.
The four prize winners are:
Advanced Teen:
Chef Rebekah
Shrimp Tacos with Honey-Line Pico de Gallo and Coconut Soup with a Poached Egg
Advanced 12 and under:
Vida Bien
Southwest Risotto and Jalapeno Cornbread
Beginner 12 and under:
Dragon's Kitchen
Toasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with a Roasted Pepper, Black Bean and Corn Dipping Sauce
Beginner 12 and under:
Mariel's Morsels
Mariel's Magnificent Pizza
Congratulations to our winners and all of the young chefs who took on this challenge with amazing results!
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A note from the judges:
Each year our judges have the biggest challenge of all - choosing just four winners! All of the cooking challenge participants put so much thought, creativity and talent behind their dishes. Every young chef has so much to be proud of. We appreciate our judges taking time to comb through the results and share their impressions of your creations. Here are a few quotes from this year's judges:
"So cool to see the talent, diversity of dishes and thought the kids put into making their recipes. Wish I could've tasted everything!"
"I loved the creativity of plating each child came up with. It was awesome to see the differences between them!"
"It was very interesting to see how they utilized the different mystery items & I was shocked just how many of them used all of them!"
"It was impressive to see the depth of cooking skills used in the recipes."
"Kids were great at using mystery ingredients. The food looked great!"
"I loved getting to see the kids' creativity shine through their recipes! They all looked so delicious!!"
"They all looked so yummy! I wish we could have tried them all!"
"They were plated together very nicely."
- Viterbo Dietetics Students
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This was so fun! I really love spicy taki chips and had a great time figuring out how to mix in this spicy ingredient into the meal. - Chef Max
Was so fun to see what my kid came up with all on her own and what aspects of the challenge needed some adult guidance. - Koala Fox
I liked that it was challenging to think of what to make. I have never used cornmeal before, and I loved the tomatoes and peppers. - Chef Ari
It was fun and we learned how to make different meals we typically do not make. - Kiera's Kitchen
This is Oscar's first year creating a dish and hasn't done much cooking. Oscars advice: For those who are new to cooking, it's kinda boring at first, but once you get going following the recipe, chopping and mixing everything together it is fun! The best part is seeing your finished dish and sharing it with your family and friends. - BGC Bistro
Trent came up with many great recipe ideas! He ended up creating something new and tasty following recipes he knows our family already loves. Some small tweaks and it felt like a brand new dish that was fun to try. He felt proud of what he made! - Tasty Trent's Creations
My Cooking Challenge experience was a lot of fun. Brainstorming potential dish ideas and coming up with creative ways to incorporate new ingredients together in a thoughtful way was a fun challenge! I enjoy cooking and had a great experience! - Chef Rebekah
I had a lot of fun cooking with my cousin this year. - Nolan's Nummy Nosh
It was fun. Was worried about the dish being too sweet with all the sweet ingredients, but turned out great. Good time to bond with my son. - Dragons Kitchen
This was a really great way to practice life skills. The first day was brainstorming recipe ideas, figuring out what 5 ingredients were needed and if a trip to the grocery store was required (it wasn't, our pantry had all five things.)
The next day was pumpkin and bean preparation, plus finding ways to simplify recipes we had or searching for limited ingredient versions (ex. cornbread needs baking soda, but water can be used instead of milk.) In the five-ingredient discussion, there was a debate on butter or olive oil, but the chef thought he'd heard olive oil was healthier because it was part of the herb-flavored popcorn he loved from GROW lessons last year.
He really enjoyed gutting the pumpkin and cleaning the seeds. Shredding the pumpkin and cutting the peppers were the scariest parts and some assistance was asked for, but the chef learned how "satisfying" it is to chop tomatoes and that some corn slices better than other cobs.
It was a big part of our weekend, and he was very proud to reveal his tasty skillet for dinner. We thought the salsa would be too spicy, but the pumpkin hash browns and cornbread made the whole dish more savory than spicy. We'll be adding this recipe to our family cookbook and hope the chef will take more interest in cooking and meal planning in the future. - The Minnesota Chef
My chef was a little hesitant at first, but once he got started, he was excited to get creative. He thought through quite a few ideas before settling on this one, and it was neat to see his thought process. We had a great time making--and eating--this dish! - Chef Liam
This is Oscar's first year creating a dish and hasn't done much cooking. Oscars advice: For those who are new to cooking, it's kinda boring at first, but once you get going following the recipe, chopping and mixing everything together it is fun! The best part is seeing your finished dish and sharing it with your family and friends. - Oscar's Cookery
We had lots of fun. - Team "I Love Lucy"
This is the 5th year, I believe, that my family has been involved in the GROW challenge. We enjoy finding ways each year to try out our skills. It has also been neat to see the kids evolve in their cooking and kitchen skills. - Ginger Snaps
This is my first time doing the cooking challenge. It was a fun surprise to see what my mystery ingredients were and to make something new! - Chef Abbie
Best Grandpa/Grandson experience we've had in quite a while. - Thorin and Grandpa's Kitchen
Maddie loved being able to take the lead in the kitchen! - Chef Maddie
This was my first year entering this challenge. My grandma was excited for me when she saw this challenge on Facebook as she knows I like to cook and try new things. I was excited to get the mystery ingredients so I could start thinking about my unique meal. I thought of several different ways to incorporate the mystery ingredients and decided on a menu I would love to eat. I had a blast planning this meal and can’t wait to do it again next year. I may even make this meal for my parents for Valentine’s Day. - Chef Lexie
I really enjoyed the challenge of limited ingredients and baking by myself. - Chef Maddie's Cuisine
I invited a friend to help me in the kitchen and it was more enjoyable. We used my little sister as a sous chef. Neither of us had ever made risotto before and we really liked it! - Team Vida Bien
These Mexican Black Bean and Butternut Squash Quesadillas are both nutritious and tasty. - Chef Maddy
This was a fun meal for Delaney to experiment with! - Chef Dalaney
Vindemia was really excited for this opportunity. We brainstormed the possible recipes. She initially wanted to make a vegetable cake, and then we ultimately landed on a Korean vegetable pancake. She is Chinese American, and she wanted to make something catering to both traditional American eaters and Asian audience. We did some tryout on Thursday night, getting to know the ingredients in more depth. On Saturday, we worked together for the task. Vindemia said it was not easy, but she was glad that she did it, and she felt that "something good slapped into me." She doesn't like mushroom or cilantro, but she tried the pancake she made for Saturday lunch, which was quite an achievement. She cannot wait to try another cooking challenge soon! - Chef Vindemia Flip
I enjoyed eating the food and I liked preparing it. I ate butternut squash for the first time and learned how to cook cornbread. I also learned how to roast vegetables. I would like to do this next year. - Chef John
It was really, really hard to work with the squash. It was pretty rewarding to see the finished product. My favorite part of the challenge was the getting all of the ingredients together to cook. - Gus
Jules had a blast! She is very motivated in the kitchen and this challenge was the first time Jules had ever done something like this. Thank you GROW! - Chef Jules
Fun! - Rose and mommy Cooking, Inc.
Charlie loves to cook and experiment with different spices and flavor combinations. He hadn't ever worked with corn meal before and really enjoyed the challenge of making his own corn tortillas using the ingredients on hand. His final dishes were delicious! - Chef Charlie
This was such a fun experience for us! While we do cook together as a family often, there are usually time constraints which leads to Mom doing more work than the kids. With this experience, we took our time and Bennett was able to do so much more (including using the can opener!) I had a hard time not doing much of the cooking, and Bennett was up for the challenge! Although he isn't a big fan of some of the ingredients (mostly the veggies) he had a few Spoonfuls of the salsa and even added more salt to taste as he deemed necessary. His favorite ingredients were the corn and, of course, the honey as it is so sweet. 🙂 - Chef Bennett
We had lots of fun creating this recipe. - Chef Violet
This was my first cooking challenge and I had fun! I made dinner for my family & friend. I liked thinking of ways to use the different ingredients. - Team Harris
I liked cooking this year with my cousins. It was fun to think of crazy ideas and how to use all the ingredients. I got to learn how to fry an egg sunny side up. I also never made pizza dough with cornmeal in it. That was an interesting flavor and texture that I will make again. I love fresh cilantro, so I put that on everything. I was surprised how good the pizza sauce turned out. It had really good flavor and texture. When I went to the day at the farm, I learned about three sisters salad, so I made my version of that. - Mariel's Morsels
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Everyone wins when young chefs explore fresh, healthy ingredients.
Thank you to all of our participants for sharing your smiles and talents!
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Special Thanks to the Viterbo University Dietetic students for sharing their expertise and time as the judges for this event.
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Thank You to our Event Sponsors:
