NE ACF Regional Competition 2012

NE Regional ACF Student Competition

Team Members: Maria Provencher, Team Captain and Dessert, Brandon Show-Entree, Ryan Contraski-Fish Course, Peerce VanMeter-Salad and Jason Wells-Alternate.

We won the WV cook-off to represent WV in the NE Regional ACF Competition held in Niagara Falls, NY April 27-May1st.

Competition began with the display of Cold Restaurant Platter. We did a “Spring Rabbit Medley”. “We were very pleased and the platter got a lot of praise from the judges and participants. It takes an extreme amount of work but only counts for 10% of the total point scale.

The next phase was the skills phase. As usual our students performed like professionals. I couldn’t have been more proud, especially standing there with coaches and students form some of the biggest and best culinary schools in the country. We behaved and performed even better than I expected. It made me very proud to stand there as their coach.

The final phase was the Four Course Meal. The performance in the arena was immaculate; Chef McCue (Assistant Coach) and I could only observe from outside the kitchen but as far as we could see the team looked fantastic. They even finished a little early and composed themselves to begin taking the plates to the judges at the exact time. It was impressive, their composure was something to behold! Three plates of each course were taken to the tasting judges and one plate of each course was taken to a display table. When they arrived at the display table there wasn’t a student or coach in the event that wasn’t standing around our table with awe and amazement! I can honestly say there wasn’t another table there that got the attention ours did. I was sure of that since I had watched the reactions very closely on each team. It was another proud moment.

Afterwards our critique was given to us by all but one of the judges that had to leave, and it was incredible. The only negative thing said was the fact that the desert was so good they wanted more of the pistachio ice cream on it! We walked away feeling very, very positive!

The awards banquet came the following day and needless to say we were very excited. Unfortunately our name was called out a little earlier than we expected. Third place again? Bronze medals? We expected first or at the very least second. The critique was absolutely outstanding! How could we end up in third place? Goes to show, you just never know about these things.  We were disappointed but in retrospect we should be very proud, and we are. We actually beat Johnson Wales! One of the oldest and largest culinary schools in the country! The only schools that did beat us were from Cincinnati, an incredible school and their coach was the previous National president of the American Culinary Federation! And Delhi, NY the school that has won the past several years, and I won’t go on about who their coach was but many of the teams and coaches felt that his position with the national ACF office should have made it a conflict of interest. For some reason this has been overlooked for several years.

Regardless of the frustration with the final results, our team realizes what a fantastic journey it’s been. We came together as a team, worked hard endless hours month after month and had an incredible time doing so. There are very few things in this profession that offer the opportunity to work as a cohesive unit and strive for the common goal of excellence and perfection. After a few days of disappointment I believe I can speak for all involved when I say that we were victorious in every aspect of the word. For a school of our size to compete with the likes of nationally recognized schools and come home “placing at all” is commendable, and I can say that I personally feel as though we took on the giants and won!  I’m pretty sure our team members now feel the same way after a few days of rest and realization. I won’t be licking any wounds, I’ll just begin thinking of how we might be able to improve just a little more each time we compete and get a little closer to perfection!

Jay R. Mahoney CEC
Coach/Instructor
Pierpont Culinary Academy
1201 Locust Avenue
Fairmont, WV 26554

Guest Chef Hall Hitzig Talks about Pastry Entrepreneurship

Hall Hitzig "The Crazy Baker" worked with students on hands-on and demonstration of baked goods including gluten free. Hall shared is experience as an entrepreneur and pastry chef.

For more information about Hall click here:

http://www.thecrazybaker.com/

Guest Chef Jeff Kessler Talks about Baking Entrepreneurship

Students in the FOSM 2230 Advanced Baking class were recently treated to a hands-on class and demonstration from Jeff Kessler. Chef Kessler is the sole proprietor of Jeff's Breads in Lewisburg.

Jeff led a discussion about entrepreneurship. He has been in the baking business for nearly 30 years.

Read more about Jeff's Breads:

http://www.mountainsavvy.com/jeffsbreads/contact.html

http://www.wchstv.com/traveling/2010/twv100318.shtml

Pierpont Wins Fourth Straight State Competition

Members of the Pierpont Community & Technical College Culinary Competition team are bringing home their fourth straight ACF West Virginia State Culinary Competition title. The team has qualified to compete in the ACF Northeast Regional in Niagara Falls, NY April 27-30, 2012. Pierpont Culinary Academy’s team includes: Maria B. Provencher, Team Captain and a member of the 2010 & 2011 ACFWV Regional Teams; Brandon Show, member of the 2011 ACFWV Regional Team; Ryan Contraski, member of the 2011 ACFWV Regional Team; Peerce Van Meter V, and Jason Wells, Team Alternate.

The team is featuring a menu inspired by classic recipes. As the team researched this year’s classic entrée: Supreme de Volaille a l’Ecalarte, they continued to find classic ingredients and recipes that paired well with the entrée. While the recipes are not completely from Escoffier, his work served as a great opportunity for discovery and learning.

One of the interesting items on the menu is the appetizer featuring rainbow trout grown in West Virginia. The fish was grown as part of the West Virginia University Aquaculture program. The trout is presented with the classic Meunière style in mind. It is accompanied by classic flavors such as white beans, chard, and fennel. Similarly, the salad course is inspired by Escoffier’s Salade a la Andalouse. The team’s version is highlighted with a savory grain salad. Lastly, the meal culminates with a dessert featuring three meringue variations.

In addition to the state title, the group qualified for ACF Silver Medals with a score of 34.24.

Pierpont’s team is coached by, Jay R. Mahoney, CEC, 2010 ACFWV Chef of the Year, and Allison McCue, CC, CPC.

Chef Hawkins & Pierpont Non-Traditional Students Help with Farmer's Market Fundraising Dinner

Chef Dale Hawkins, adjunct chef instructor, and students in the evening Quantity Foods class helped raise money for the Bridgeport Farmers Market recently. The team paired up with farmers and organizers of the event to highlight the Bridgeport Winter Market.

The evening of jazz helped feature awareness of local foods available in the winter.

Chef Mahoney Comments on Local Jobs

WDTV recently interviewed Chef Mahoney about the job prospects for Culinary and Pastry graduates.

Pierpont Takes Third at ACF Northeast Regional

Pierpont Culinary Academy finished third behind two of the biggest culinary schools in the country at the American Culinary Federation Northeast Regional in Columbus, OH. The team was led by veteran competitors Maria Provencher, Team Captain, Joseph White, and Ted Hastings. Brandon Show and Ryan Contraski, first year students and competitors rounded out the team. The Culinary Institute of America (Hyde Park, NY) won the event, and Johnson & Wales University (Providence, RI) came in second. The team displayed their show platter on the first day of the event. The platter featured WV Wild Game items such as: trout, quail, and duck breast. On day two, the team completed their second and third phases of the competition. During the Skills Phase Joseph White began the 80 minute relay team by completing the pastry competency, Ryan Contraski drew second position and completed the fish fabrication section, Brandon Show completed the vegetable skills, and Ted Hastings anchored the team with the chicken fabrication. The judges made special mention of the teams professional demeanor throughout the entire competition, but made a special note about the Skills Phase. The final portion of the competition featured 90 minutes for the team to prepare and serve a four course meal to the judges. Ted Hastings prepared the appetizer course Crisp-Skinned Striped Bass with Cantelini Beans, Wilted Spinach, and Beurre Blanc. Brandon Show served the salad course of Mixed Greens, Saffron Ribbon Cracker, Fried Blue Cheese Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes, Pickled Vegetables, and Mustard Vinaigrette. Joseph White prepared the classic dish Poulet Saute a la Catalane, and it was accompanied with Haricot Verte and Pommes de Terre. Maria Provencher completed the meal with a Hazelnut Chocolate Terrine, Hazelnut Florentine, Croquentine Cake, Brandied Cherries, Orange Cardamon Sauce, and Pistachios. Ryan Contraski was the Alternate and Floor Mgr. The judges awarded Pierpont 32+ points (out of an internationally recognized 40pt scale), which qualified them for ACF Silver Medals. Watch the WBOY TV story here: http://wboy.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=96591 Read about it on WV Metro News: http://www.wvmetronews.com/news.cfm?func=displayfullstory&storyid=44137