The 5th annual North Country Jr. Iron Chef competition was held March 11^th with great success!

The competition spans Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence Counties. 23 middle and high school teams competed to develop healthy recipes, using a combination of local and USDA Commodity foods that could be realistically prepared in a school cafeteria.

Events winners included:

Middle School

• 1st Place: Golden Horseshoes, Colton-Pierrepont Central School
• 2nd Place: St. Regis Chefs, St. Regis Falls Central School
• 3rd Place: River Rats, Thousand Islands Central School
• Honorable Mention: Guatemalan Girls, Canton Central School

High School

• 1st Place: Shamrocks, Salmon River Central School
• 2nd Place: Raw Talent, CV-TEC BOCES
• 3rd Place: Sizzling Sisters, Clifton-Fine Central School
• Honorable Mention: BMC Healthy Panthers, Brushton-Moira Central School

Participating middle school teams were Cast Iron Jacks, Tupper Lake Central School; Cheesy Chompers, Norwood-Norfolk Central School; Fantastic Four, Canton Central School; Farmin’ Chefs, Saranac Lake Central School; Four Amigos, Sackets Harbor Central School; Golden Horseshoes, Colton-Pierrepont Central School; Guatemalan Girls, Canton Central School; HCS Chef Extraordinaires, Heuvelton Central School; Healthy Trio, North Country Homeschoolers; Jr. Paws, Malone Central School; Keene Central Battling Beavers, Keene Central School; Leary Chefs, Massena Central School; River Rats, Thousand Islands Central School; Shamrocks Middies, Salmon River Central School; St. Regis Chefs, St. Regis Falls Central School, and; Wild Chefs, Gouverneur Central School.

Participating high school teams were ADK Chefs, Saranac Lake Central School; BMC Healthy Panthers, Brushton-Moira Central School; Bob’s Burners, Tupper Lake Central School; Rainbow Trouts, Sackets Harbor Central School; Raw Talent, CV-TEC BOCES, Plattsburgh; Shamrocks, Salmon River Central School, and; Sizzling Sisters, Clifton-Fine Central School.

Our distinguished judges included Nolan Anderson, Student at Potsdam Central School; Noah Bohl, Student at Potsdam Central School; Raymond Bowdish, Coordinator of SUNY Potsdam’s WISER Center and Owner of Never Tire Farm; Daniel Caamaño, Student at Potsdam Central School; Emma Congalton, Volunteer Coordinator at The Wild Center; Chelsea Cota, Teacher and Wellness Committee Member at Ogdensburg City Schools; Patrick Farrand, Superintendent of Lisbon Central School; Diane Fox, Superintendent of Saranac Lake Central School; Nicole Grandjean, Cafeteria Manager at Copenhagen Central School; Joel Howie, Owner of Canton Apples; Jeannine Kerr, Food Service Director at Peru Central School; Jarrad Lang, Executive Chef at The View Restaurant at Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa; Shelly Long from Public Relations Department at Massena Memorial Hospital; Steve Maiocco, Executive Chef and Assistant Director at the College Association; Andy Maslin, Founder of 2445 Organics; Patricia Penny-Tessier, Assistant Cafeteria Manager at Norwood-Norfolk Central School; Andre Stoian, MD, Chair of Internal Medicine for St. Lawrence Health System, and; Jennifer Whittaker, Manager of the Canton Farmers’ Market and GardenShare Committee Member.

North Country Jr. Iron Chef was generously supported by St. Lawrence Health System as the 2017 “Platinum Presenter” sponsor. Other generous sponsors included: Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center; Potsdam Food Co-op; Community Bank, N.A.; The View Restaurant at Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa; United Helpers Management Company; Bicknell Corporation; and Hurlbut Tent Rental.The event was also supported by Potsdam Central School; Todd Moe of North Country Public Radio; Chef Kyle Mayette of Clarkson University; Potsdam Public Library; Jefferson County Public Health Service; and event volunteers.

Recipes and photos are available on the competition website: http://ncjrironchef.org/

Let us know if you try Golden Veggie Spaghetti, Barley South of the Border Stuffed Poblano Peppers, or any of the other tasty, nutritious recipes created and prepared by the amazing youth chefs!