The tardy arrival of spring this year has meant the perfect weather for a Canadian winter classic – mac n’ cheese. On April 9, eight teams of local Grade 11 and 12 students gathered at the Durham College (DC) Centre for Food (CFF) to put their culinary and creative skills to the test at the college’s second annual Epic Mac n’ Cheese Competition.

Watched by an appreciative crowd of parents, family, friends and DC Culinary Management students, the competitors cooked up an amazing variety of macaroni and cheese delicacies, using ingredients as varied as crab, smoked duck, bacon and Montreal smoked meat. Samples of each team’s recipe were provided to festival visitors, who were then asked to vote on their favourites.

“Events like this help us build our profile in the community by encouraging high school students who are considering a career in the culinary sector  to showcase their talents in DC’s state-of-the-art kitchen facilities,” said Chef Peter Lee, program co-ordinator of the college’s Culinary Management program  and the driving force  behind this year’s festival. “At the same time, our Culinary Management students worked with the competitors, offering advice, support and constructive feedback on their work. It’s a fun event that’s a win-win situation for everyone involved.”

Based on the votes from festival-goers, first-place honours went to Savannah Lowe and Natalie Young of J. Clarke Richardson Collegiate in Ajax. Two teams from St. Peter Catholic Secondary School in Peterborough rounded out the top three, with Courtney Ross and Jeremy Breese taking second place and John Fawn and Gordon McGlaughlin finishing third.

“It’s an incredible feeling to win,” said Lowe, who is currently in Grade 12 and keeping her options open about a possible culinary career. “I was so nervous that we weren’t going to hear our names called, and then when Chef Peter called Natalie’s name, I knew we were going to get first place.”

The winning teams received cooking equipment, cookbooks and other prizes, while each student was also awarded a certificate of appreciation for their participation. While not every team could be a winner, all of the 16 participants are now eligible to apply for a bursary towards tuition for a culinary, hospitality or special events program at DC.

Chef Lee says he was pleased with the calibre of all of the entries that made it from the kitchen to the table at this year’s event. “The vote gap between many of the teams was very close, reflecting the quality of the ingredients and the hard work and preparation that was done by the students and their Durham College mentors,” he said. “I hope we’ll have the opportunity to see many of those who took part in the festival in our classrooms in the near future.”