Twenty-eight Monroe culinary students set off October 19 in a downpour headed upstate to Delhi, N.Y., to compete at the Annual ACF Catskills Regional Competition. When they returned to the Monroe campus they had 27 shiny medals to add to their collection, which is now toppling 300!

The top awards in the hot-food competition went to Kencito Vernon, who took home a gold medal and the honors of “Best in Show.” Laura Sanchez, a freshman, also took home a high-scoring gold medal that earned her the title “Most Improved.” Brenda Lara, Sade Aguila, Rossella Cangialosi, Stephanie Cardenas and Yocary Luna also earned gold medals.

The word “potato” conjures up different images for different chefs—and with good reason! There are more than 4,000 potato varieties worldwide with more than 100 varieties sold in the United States. So, it’s no wonder that one of the most frequently asked questions we hear from chefs is: Which potato should I use for best results?

To help you answer that question and get the most out of today’s most popular potatoes, the United States Potato Board is pleased to present our newest tool: The Perfect Potato: A Foodservice Guide to Fresh Potato Types.

Gaylord Industries, commercial kitchen-air-management experts, and Niagara County Community College (NCCC) recently celebrated the opening of the new Niagara Falls Culinary Institute. The state-of-the-art facility, with 25 teaching kitchens and labs, opened in September 2012 with 350 undergraduate students who seek a future in the hospitality and tourism industries.

When designing the new 90,000-square-foot institute, NCCC’s goal was to create culinary environments that were productive and efficient and leveraged cutting-edge equipment. At the top of the “wish list” was finding an opportunity to better facilitate interaction between the chef instructors and students.

“The cornerstone of success for education is communication. With students working and talking and equipment running, we found the noise level of our previous ventilation hoods was a big problem,” said Dr. James P. Klyczek, president of NCCC. “By using Gaylord throughout the new institute, we changed the dynamic of the room with a much quieter system, plus we get the added benefit of energy conservation due to the automatic air modulation.”

Cameron Whitlock had only taken three courses in the Salt Lake Community College culinary-arts program when he volunteered to take part in a public cooking competition. The competition was part of an event at the college’s main campus announcing a $30,000 grant from the The Dannon Company, Inc. Three students from the program were paired with local celebrity chefs to see who could prepare and present the best dish for a college audience.

Of course, the chefs had to use yogurt in each of their dishes.

Sarah Lowe had no experience in cooking competitions of any kind prior to the Dannon event. “I have never competed before; it sounded fun,” she said. “This event was a great way to get some experience competing.”

The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) is launching a new major in Culinary Science beginning in February 2013—one of a series of new academic programs in bachelor’s-degree studies at the college. The programs will advance the culinary profession and position CIA graduates for career success in the dynamically evolving foodservice industry.

“This innovative program will further prepare CIA students to shape the future of cooking and the foodservice industry,” said Dr. Tim Ryan, CMC, president of the CIA. “And more specialized studies are in development. We are expanding the scope, depth, and diversity of our students’ knowledge base, so that their leadership as graduates will extend in all sectors of food and hospitality.”

The Culinary Science degree will be taught at the CIA’s Hyde Park, N.Y., campus. The curriculum will include such advanced techniques as precision temperature cooking and other advanced culinary techniques made possible through emerging technologies and scientific discovery. Students will learn directly from leaders in the culinary-science field about the scientific method and the use of modern techniques and equipment. They will discover new ingredients; experience product development, including sensory and flavor evaluations; and gain critical-thinking skills and science-based knowledge that will help them become industry innovators.

The mouthwatering handiwork of Florence-based University of North Alabama culinary students Vanessa Gerig and Eero Wilson will be seen on the big screen in the upcoming film, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.”

Gerig, a senior from Towanda, Ill., and Wilson, a senior from Longview, Texas, assisted food stylist and 1978 UNA alumnus Jack White, who has created on-camera food for more than 75 major motion pictures and television shows since 1992.

The students arrived in Atlanta Sept. 23 and got right to work on set early the next day. They worked throughout the week preparing extravagant gourmet dishes like Cornish hens, roasted ducks, suckling pigs, vegetables and cakes to cover nearly 100 feet of a banquet table, they said.