Payson Roundup

Congrats to one of Payson High School’s culinary arts students, Shoshanah Wright.

She took the challenge and competed with the big boys, you could say.

On Oct. 23, Shoshanah entered the professional chef organization’s American Culinary Federation competition at the Robert Bland Culinary Salon held in Mesa.

Shoshanah Wright

She created a dessert made of white chocolate mousse infused with mint in a chocolate basket, on a gluten free pecan shortbread cookie, accompanied by pecan praline, raspberry sauce and orange supreme in the 90-minute time allotment.

The competition required Shoshanah to prepare two portions of a composed cold dessert, which earned her a bronze medal in the SP/2 category.

Points are given on: sanitation/work habits; utilization of ingredients; creativity; skill; portion size; flavor; texture; presentation; and ingredient compatibility. The judging level is tough and no student received a gold medal this year. Special thanks go to the three mentor chefs that were helpful in providing assistance: Chef Neils Knudson, Chef Glen Humphrey of the Arizona Culinary Institute (ACI), and Chef Justin Richardson (yes, one of Payson’s own whom now has completed his training at ACI).

“The hardest part was perfecting the dish in 90 minutes. I was able to get everything done in the time slot, but coming up with what went well together, that I could accomplish in 90 minutes was the difficult part,” said Shoshanah.

Her goal was to present an entire dish made with gluten free ingredients since she lives a gluten free lifestyle.