Seven Springfield Public School students take part in ‘Future Chefs student recipe competition’

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Seven Springfield Public School students showcased their culinary skills Wednesday night in a live cooking competition.

It’s part of the annual “Future Chefs student recipe competition” at the Culinary and Nutrition Center. They worked alongside Home Grown Springfield chefs to recreate their cherished family recipes.

The competition received nearly 100 recipe submissions from students in grades 1 to 5. One of the chefs told 22News that it’s a step in getting students to make healthy food choices while also getting them to be active in the kitchen.

“I mean it feeds the minds and that’s what’s driving them to do all of their testing and schooling,” said Executive Chef at Culinary Nutrition Center, Drew Hall. “We’re not looking for processed, we’re looking for what home cooking is used to be back in the day and we’re trying to get back to that.”

Logan St first grader Cyr won the competition this Wednesday evening for his ranch chicken tacos.

His recipe will be entered into the Sodexo’s Future Chefs regional competition. He also took home his very own electric Instapot, cooking set, and cooking accessories.

Kayleigh Thomas is a digital reporter who has been a part of the 22News team since 2022. Follow Kayleigh on @kayleighcthomas and view her bio to see more of her work.