| 17-year-old Jenna Sieben is too busy
counting stuffed pasta shells to worry about grad. While most girls her age
would be running around fussing about dresses and accessories, she's right
in the thick of things helping to prepare a meal for 100 at Salisbury
Composite High School in Sherwood Park. She's
set to graduate from the Commercial foods program there, and the meal that's
being prepared is a special Mediterranean feast for both students and
parents. It's an annual event that gives the participating students a full
credit for researching, planning the menu, cooking the meal, serving and
cleaning-up. It's a very ambitious menu that could easily challenge the most
serious foodie.
The appetizers include Dalmathes, two types of
Bruschetta and antipasto. There are 5 salads including Couscous and Texas
Tabbouleh. The entr`ee is nothing short of mouth watering Stuffed Lamb,
Moroccan Chicken, stuffed Pasta Shells with Seafood, four types of breads
and four desserts. A student team of six will prepare all of this with
expert timing and the creativity of a Red Seal Chef.
But Jenna is a fast rising star in the
kitchen. According to her teacher, Herb Hess, she's the only one he's ever
seen go right from the high school kitchen to one in a five star hotel. This
talented lass has been hired by Chef Rory McPhearson at the Fairmont Hotel
MacDonald in Edmonton. She'll spend the summer working in Grande
Mange-setting up and preparing the ingredients for the line and helping out
as needed. She's hoping at the end of the summer to enter the apprenticeship
program. After she gets her Chef's papers, she hopes to travel the world
working in hotels. "Somewhere nice like Maui," she smiles.
She credits Chef Instructor Hess with igniting her
passion for cooking. `I liked to cook at home, but wasn't sure what I wanted
to do. Mr. Hess showed me how much fun it could be, so l decided to go for
it` That's an understatement She entered the Skills Canada competition this
year and prepared some amazing dishes: Pork Scaloppini, stuffed tomatoes
salmon fillet with a pepper crust on t! risotto cake. Was she a tad nervous
You bet. `I don't like competition They're too stressful. Not fun. But I
made some good contacts though.` Despite her frayed nerves, she walked off
with a silver medal. No small feat to be sure.
Ironically it was at Skills Canada that Chef
McPhearson first saw her work. `She's a good kid. Her plates were excellent.
She was competing against one of my guys in the competition. I believe
everyone deserves a break in life, so we asked her to come onboard.` And
this could be the one BIG break that rockets her to culinary fame. How is
she handling her meteoric rise? Just fine although she is a little
surprised. `I never in my wildest dreams expected to work at the Mac.
"With her talent, good looks and personality FoodTV
can't be far off".
Moroccan Grilled Chicken: SERVES:
6
Six chicken breasts-boneless if you prefer
One small Onion chopped
One-third Cup of olive oil
One quarter cup fresh mint leaves
One quarter cup lemon juice
Two tsp grated lemon zest
Two tsp ground cumin
Two tsp paprika
One tsp Granulated sugar
One clover garlic-minced
One-half tsp pepper
One-quarter tsp ground ginger
Salt and pepper-to season
I. Process all of the ingredients-except salt and
pepper to season, in a food processor until smooth, and spread over chicken.
Pierce the skin in several places and marinate for 2 hours turning once.
2. Bake on a wire rack for 45 minutes to one hour at
375* Baste with remaining marinade: Season with salt and pepper Enjoy |
16.7% 
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