Chefs in the Making Try for Scholarships

Until Friday, Monroe High School student Tenisha Hall had never tasted guinea hen.

But that didn’t stop her from whipping up some poached hen in chives sauce over zucchini and carrots to go with a dessert of crepes with chocolate and strawberry in Los Angeles Trade Technical College’s downtown kitchen.

Hall and five other San Fernando Valley students took part in the finals of the Careers Through Culinary Arts Program’s cooking competition.

The event’s founder, Richard Grausman, “told me it was just like chicken, so I just said I’ll just cook it like chicken,” said Hall, adding that her part-time job at the Boston Market restaurant in Granada Hills didn’t hurt.

In all, 15 Los Angeles Unified School District students are vying for $100,000 in scholarship money that will help them attend some of the finest culinary schools in the country.

Friday morning, competitors spent nearly three hours cooking for the eyes, noses and taste buds of judges, most of whom are elite L.A. chefs. After visiting every cooking station to deliver comments like “that crepe’s nice and thin, but, hmmm, needs more vanilla,” Grausman and other C-CAP officials interviewed finalists one-on-one about their abilities and plans.

“It’s a process of finding out who these students are, what they want to do and which school would be best for them,” said Sarah Shannon, program director for the New York-based, nonprofit C-CAP. “There isn’t really one winner.”

The competition, which originated in New York in 1990, has expanded to seven U.S. cities--Los Angeles is holding its third event this year.

Two other students from Monroe High in North Hills--Omar Rivera and Araceli Miranda--as well as three from Sylmar High--Elizabeth Gamez, Crystal Phillips and Jose Figueroa--competed.

Scholarship winners will be announced at a breakfast at the Four Seasons Hotel in West Hollywood on Monday.