Lavaca County 4-H members display nutrition knowledge at county competitions

  • Lavaca County Food Challenge participants pictured left to right by team: front row, Baye Shimek, Chloe Jansky; middle row, Bethany Kram, Lily Janak, Katie Richter, and Taylor Self; back row, Keely Knesek, Callie Chrismon, Kara Remschel, Brodie Barta, Addison Greive, Abigail Siegel, and Brooke Rothbauer.
    Lavaca County Food Challenge participants pictured left to right by team: front row, Baye Shimek, Chloe Jansky; middle row, Bethany Kram, Lily Janak, Katie Richter, and Taylor Self; back row, Keely Knesek, Callie Chrismon, Kara Remschel, Brodie Barta, Addison Greive, Abigail Siegel, and Brooke Rothbauer.
  • Lavaca County 4-H Food Show Participants: left to righ, Julie Henke, Addison Cain, Keely Knesek, Karlie Hotz, Sophia Etzler, Kaylie Hotz, and Aubrey Freytag.
    Lavaca County 4-H Food Show Participants: left to righ, Julie Henke, Addison Cain, Keely Knesek, Karlie Hotz, Sophia Etzler, Kaylie Hotz, and Aubrey Freytag.

    Twenty Lavaca County 4-H members competed in the Lavaca County 4-H Foods and Nutrition Project competitions held in the cafeteria of Moulton Elementary on Saturday, Oct. 22.  
    The 4-H Foods and Nutrition Project strives to help members develop healthy eating habits to reduce the risk of chronic diseases, learn food safety, preparation techniques, and nutrition.  Through the project activities 4-H members gain valuable public speaking, leadership, and teamwork skills.  
    Food Show was the first of the two events.
    In Food Show, individual members prepare a healthy dish and present it to a panel of judges. Members are expected to spend up to five minutes explaining to the judges the nutrition and food safety facts, details of how they prepared the dish, and what the dish cost to prepare.
    In addition, each participant was faced with a surprise skill challenge that they had to demonstrate before the judges.  This year’s challenge was setting a formal place setting.
    All participants in the Food Show will have the opportunity to advance to the District 11 Contest on Dec. 9 in Cuero.
    Food show results: Juniors: Appetizers – Julie Henke, 1st place; Addison Cain – 2nd Place. Intermediates: Appetizers – Kaylie Hotz, 1st place; Side Dish – Sophia Etzler, 1st place; Healthy Dessert – Karlie Hotz, 1st place. Seniors: Appetizers: Keely Knesek – 1st Place; and Side Dish – Aubrey Freytag – 1st place.
    A cookbook containing all of the recipes prepared by these members is available for sale at the Extension office for $2.
    In Food Challenge, teams of three to four members have forty minutes to prepare a nutritious dish.  Each team is given a mystery key ingredient and an allocation of tokens to spend at the “grocery store”.  
    Along with planning and preparing the dish, members must also use that forty minutes to prepare a five-minute presentation for the judges that includes nutrition facts, food safety, and preparation instructions.  
    All teams were given a whole pineapple as the key ingredient.  Seniors were given five tokens and challenged to prepare a main dish.  Jr/Intermediates were given four tokens and challenged to create an appetizer.  
    Participating in Food Challenge were Senior Team: IncrEdibles – Kara Remschel, Callie Chrismon, and Keely Knesek - 1st place; Intermediates/Juniors: Country Cooking Cowgirls: Addisyn Greive, Katie Richter, Abigail Siegel, and Brooke Rothbauer – 1st place; Slicers ‘n Dicers: Taylor Self, Brodie Barta, and Bethany Kram – 2nd place and The Chopettes – Lily Janak, Baye Shimek, and Chloe Jansky – 3rd place.  
    Teams advancing to District in Cuero on Dec. 10 will be the Country Cooking Cowgirls, the Slicers ‘n Dicers and the IncrEdibles.
    To learn more about 4-H and the Foods and Nutrition project, call the Lavaca County Extension Office at 361-798-2221.  4-H is open to all youth in the third through twelfth grade.