Resourceful Young Cooks: Cast Iron Chef at the Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida
More than 100 resourceful Girl Scouts gathered over the weekend for the Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida’s Cast Iron Chef event at Camp Mahachee. The competition? Using outdoor camping skills to make an original dish using a secret ingredient. The scouts could cook their dishes atop coals, in a Dutch oven or in a foil-lined box oven. Their dishes would be judged by a group of professional chefs and food pros. And the secret ingredient? Carrots.
The judges watched the scouts at work, then went to each group to listen to their presentation and taste their creations. Judges were Jauntre’ Gray, Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida Board of Directors Girl Representative; Veronica Mauri, personal chef and founder, Chef Veronica; Amanda Pizarro, co-founder, The Salty Donut; Patty Rodriguez, personal chef, founder of Food Fight 305; and Gretchen Schmidt, editor, Edible South Florida. Also at the event were members of the board of directors for the Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida, which covers Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, including CEO Chelsea Wilkerson, board chair Peggy Wingard, chief mission delivery officer Lori Ross, director of development Haley Karl and director of marketing and communications Ana Mantica.
After tasting 14 dishes, the judges conferred and awarded the coveted Golden Spoon to the team Happy Campers of Troop 118, who came up with veggie and chicken rolls, made with carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, garlic, ginger, chicken, egg, sesame seeds, lemon, olive oil, soy sauce, salt and pepper, all cooked in a box oven.
The event is held annually at Camp Mahachee, located across from Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden and next to the west side of Matheson Hammock Park.
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