March 5, 2003
Culinary creations
NMC students cook up feast for Ninth Annual Taster's Guild
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Relishing the chance to strut their stuff, students from the Great Lakes Culinary Institute created a feast Friday evening that wowed the 375 attendees at the Ninth Annual Taster's Guild Auction.
The culinary arts students masterfully combined both elements of their major: the food was not only innovative and great-tasting but cleverly presented.
Enthusiasm ran high at the Park Place Dome as students doled out at a brisk clip the dishes they designed and cooked. Food tables this year featured Asian, French Cajun Creole, Caribbean, Greek, Southwest and Italian cooking plus a spread of elegant desserts. French Cajun Creole was new this year and drew rave reviews.
"This is the ultimate food event of the year in Grand Traverse County," said Pam Reno of Williamsburg. "I'm proud to be a former student of the culinary academy."
The Taster's Guild Auction also featured music and wine tasting from five area vineyards plus an international wine table. Live, Chinese and silent auctions hawked everything from wine to trips to fine dining.
The fundraising event garnered $14,400, which will provide scholarships for students attending Northwestern Michigan College's Great Lakes Culinary Institute. Fred Laughlin, program director for the institute, presented seven scholarships to first-year students during the evening: Lisa Glynn, Mindy Hawley, Chris Hoffman, Tedra Karnisz, David Kropscott, Grady Larson and Mike Zeeryp.
"They range in age from 18 to the mid-50s," said Laughlin of the recipients. "We select students based on grade point average and just how well they've been doing in their lab classes - their passion for culinary arts and food and serviceability."
Lisa Glynn was surprised when her name was called for a scholarship.
"This is really exciting, I wasn't expecting it," she said. "It's a great program, I like all the personal attention we get and I like all the people."
Darric Newman, president of the Taster's Guild, said the evening is a highlight for area connoisseurs of fine wine and dining and tickets quickly sold out. He noted the event gives residents a way to support the future of the area's restaurant industry - the future chefs and managers and owners.
"We've watched over the years the progression of the quality of what the students make," Newman said. "That reflects the quality of the school."
Students began menu planning earlier this semester, with teams first choosing a type of food and then experimenting with ingredients, spices and combinations. They also chose or created decorations to illustrate their table's theme.
Throughout the weeks-long preparation process, teamwork was crucial. A smaller than usual class with just 18 members, these first year students pulled together to get the job done.
"It is really important to work as a team," said Karnisz, whose team chose the southwest theme. "It's fun, it took a lot of preparation but it's fun."
The actual cooking began the day before as students prepared gallons of sauce, arranged trays of confections and steamed quarts of rice. Throughout the evening, students fielded questions from attendees about their creations, explaining unusual ingredients or discussing cooking methods.
"It is a good learning experience for all the students because it is a majoring catering event where they prepare food for 400," Laughlin said. "And they have to go through all the logistics of doing that."
Second year students from the Great Lakes Culinary Institute helped out during the evening, carrying trays, supervising and mentoring as needed.
"This class was really original and did a good job," said Kathy Johnson-Cook, a second year student. "This is really all them and is their chance to shine because these are their future employers."