LCI students compete Friday for Cannes trip

March 25, 2015

Photo above by Denny Culbert, courtesy of Louisiana Culinary Institute.

For the past two months, students from Louisiana Culinary Institute have been cooking and competing in the seventh annual Race to Cannes. The final round is set for Friday, March 27, and features two students going head-to-head in the kitchen. Those students are Amanda Schall and Rory Wingett.

The Chopped-style competition will see the two students using certain ingredients for an appetizer, entrée and dessert. The ingredients are as follows:

For the appetizer: peanut butter, shrimp and granny smith apples
For the entrée: turnips, Thai chilies, dried figs, fried Tofu and baby bok choy
For the dessert: Phyllo dough, blue cheese, dried pineapple rings and blueberries

The winner of the event will receive paid airfare and a paid internship to the Cannes Film Festival. The internship will include providing hospitality and cooking upwards of 1,000 meals a day for guests, press, film executives and media from around the world.

Both students are currently working for chef Ryan André at City Pork Brasserie and Bar in addition to finishing up their curriculum at LCI.

Wingett, a 24-year-old student studying savory dishes and ingredients, also has experience working with chef Ben Jarreau at Sno’s Seafood and Steak House Restaurant.

“It was at Sno’s where I discovered my passion for this industry,” Wingett says. “That was my first real kitchen job, and I give a lot of credit to working there for where I am today.”

Schall says she signed up for the competition to challenge herself. The 23-year-old baking and pastry student wanted to find out how well she could apply her creativity in the kitchen.

“I have been watching shows like Chopped since I was very young, and as I got older, I wondered how I would fare in a similar situation,” she says. “This competition has been an absolutely amazing experience. The experience I have gained has really changed my life and given me more confidence in myself and my abilities. I know it can only get better from here.”

For more information on LCI, click here.