The name of the game was quick, quality, comforting food that can “reach anywhere from all over the world.”
To Kara Martinez, a family and consumer sciences teacher at Merrimack Valley Middle School, the meaning behind the theme of this year’s Great Middle School Cook-Off was all about street food.
Martinez’s team of six students, four competitors and two alternates faced off against teams from the Conant Middle High School in Jaffrey and Timberlane Regional Middle School in Plaistow.
They sliced jalapenos and wedged stuffed mushrooms into the craters of muffin tins, getting their hands dirty in hopes of impressing the culinary competition’s three judges. Students were required to incorporate mushrooms into their dishes, presented with flair to The Tuckaway Tavern and Butchery’s Bobby Marcotte, chef Bradley Wallace and William Dunkerley of Dunk’s Mushrooms in Brentwood.
The cook-off, now in its second year, started through the New Hampshire Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. “We are all members and just looking to continue to grow this,” Martinez said.
Ultimately, Merrimack Valley’s stuffed mushrooms fell to Timberlane’s strong showing of pork and shiitake gyoza.
Job growth in the culinary arts, particularly among chefs and head cooks, is expected to grow by 7% per year, which is much higher than average. While pay is often low at entry levels, it rises with experience, with executive chefs routinely making $100,000 or more per year.
Merrimack Valley Middle School student Jack King prepares a jalapeño for his school’s entry in the 2nd Annual Great Middle School Cook-Off, which took place last Thursday at MVMS. The event showcased the culinary talents of local middle school students from Merrimack Valley Middle School, Conant Middle High School, and Timberlane Regional Middle School. This year’s theme was “Street Food,” and all participants were required to include mushrooms as one of their ingredients. Credit: GEOFF FORESTER / For the Monitor 
Merrimack Valley Middle School students Sage Smith and Ella Hall put in their stuffed mushroom dish for the 2nd Annual Great Middle School Cook-Off, which showcased the culinary talents of local middle school students from Merrimack Valley Middle School, Conant Middle High School, and Timberlane Regional Middle School last Thursday at MVMS. The theme of the event was “Street Food,” and all participants were required to include mushrooms as one of their ingredients. Credit: GEOFF FORESTER / For the Monitor 
The culinary team from Merrimack Valley Middle School congratulate the Timberline team who won the 2nd Annual Great Middle School Cook Off at MVMS last Thursday. 
Executive chef and judge Brad Wallace gets ready to taste the Merrimack Valley Middle School’s entry for the 2nd Annual Great Middle School Cook Off as team members as Reese Poirier Leah Thibeault describe the stuffed mushroom dish. Credit: GEOFF FORESTER / For the Monitor
