Granby Memorial, Farmington High Square Off in Teen Battle Chef

NFL championship football not your cup of tea - er chili? There’s always competitive cooking.

Indeed, 12 students from , Farmington High and Lewis S. Mills High took part in the Teen Battle Chef chili cook-off at the Granby Senior Center and Youth Services building on Sunday.

The kids were split into four teams - two from Farmington/Lewis S. Mills and two from Granby Memorial - that had an hour to prepare their variations of chili using ingredients, including several different peppers, spices, corn, tomatoes, beef and seasoning that were set out on a table. No recipes were given.

One Farmington High team prepared a vegetarian chili, while the other three teams prepared beef-based chili. Midway through the competition, the students were thrown a curveball by having to also prepare cornbread as a side dish.

The teams’ creations were then rated by judges based on teamwork, safety, taste and plating (presentation). Those who were in attendance, including a number of Granby seniors, also voted for their favorite chili; the audience’s participation partially factored into the final results as well.

“This gets the kids to use their culinary skills in a public forum,” said Deb Jacques, a culinary instructor and team advisor at Granby Memorial. “It also teaches them public speaking and food presentation.”

Teen Battle Chef, sponsored by the Farmington Valley Health District, is now in its second year and counts three schools - Avon, Farmington and Granby Memorial - as participants.

The chili cook-off was a mini-battle, said Lori Wyrebek, the coordinator of continuing education in Farmington.

“It’s been great and the program is done really well,” Wyrebek said.

In addition to teaching food preparation, the program teaches students to eat healthier, according to Jacques.

In the end, the Granby Memorial High team of Kaitlyn Riveiro, Patrice Pinnock and Matt Duncan won the competition.

Win or lose, however, the kids who participated enjoyed their experience.

“It was a little bit nerve racking,” Granby Memorial junior Matt Duncan said. “But it was good. Everything went well. … It was fun. It was my first time doing something like this.”

Farmington High’s Emily Garfinkel also got a lot out of the competition.

“It was a really good experience and not only were we able to collaborate in making our chili, but we were able to collaborate with the other teams and kind of got ideas from each other,” Garfinkel said.

Farmington High/Lewis S. Mills participants: Emily Garfinkel, Justin Parmelee, Vashe Beechinor, Nick Bibeau, Iris Glasser, Hanna Rosenfield

Granby Memorial participants: Chris Stephens, Tim Gervascio, Kyle Hebert, Kaitlyn Riveiro, Patrice Pinnock, Matt Duncan