BALDWIN PARK – Three culinary arts students from Baldwin Park High School will demonstrate their cooking skills by creating two classic French dishes in the final round of the Careers through Culinary Arts Programs (C-CAP) competition at 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Friday, April 28 at Mission College in Sylmar.

Senior culinary arts students Kingsley La Mig, Luis Cervantes and Steven Silva, who are among 40 competitors in the event, are challenged with making chicken chasseur with tourné potatoes and a hunter’s sauce, as well as crepes with pastry cream and chocolate sauce. Two plates of each will be required, one for presentation and one for tasting.

C-CAP is a national nonprofit organization that focuses on preparing students for a future in the restaurant and hospitality industry. The cooking competition is a timed contest that involves composing French dishes to demonstrate the students’ culinary, safety, sanitation and presentation skills.

This is Baldwin Park Unified’s first time competing in the contest.

“This is a great demonstration of the strength of Baldwin Park Unified’s career-oriented educational pathways,” Superintendent Froilan N. Mendoza said. “We are so proud of our students for their phenomenal success.”

For qualifying for the final round, the students will receive scholarships during an awards breakfast from 8 a.m. to noon Monday, May 1 at the Jonathon Club in downtown Los Angeles. Scholarships typically range from $2,500 to a full ride at a culinary institute, such as Johnson & Whales, Monroe College and The Arts Institutes. Last year, 33 finalists won $770,000, with the largest scholarship awarded at $121,000 for Johnson & Whales.

Prior to each competition stage, students participate in a practice session to become familiar with the recipe. They work closely with culinary teachers and practice individually to prepare. The preliminary round occurred March 4, with students executing specific knife cuts, creating a French omelet and a tomato, cucumber and bell pepper salad. They were judged on timing, precision of cuts, technique, taste and presentation.

The three students are concurrently enrolled in the Baldwin Park Adult and Community Education culinary program, overseen by Chef Jeff Palmer.

PHOTOS

BPUSD_COOK_1: Chef Jeff Palmer, lead instructor at the Culinary Arts Academy for the Baldwin Park Adult and Community Education Center, oversees students as they focus on executing precise knife cuts for the upcoming final round of a competition organized by Careers through Culinary Arts Programs.

BPUSD_COOK_2: Baldwin Park Unified students work diligently to prepare a classic French Omelet and a tomato, cucumber and bell pepper salad. They were judged by Careers through Culinary Arts Programs criteria based on timing, execution, technique, taste and overall presentation.

BPUSD_COOK_3: One of the challenges from the preliminary round of the Careers through Culinary Arts Programs Culinary Contest included a tomato, cucumber and bell pepper salad.