Raise your hand if you’re a fan of competitive cooking shows. Is your hand up? Mine certainly is. I love listening to the chefs deliberate--either on their own or as part of a team--on what to prepare and why. Well, I had the unforgettable opportunity to experience just that, but in a much cooler format… with high school students and an iconic Baltimore chef. What a delight!
In preparation for our 4th Annual Fall Food and Jazz Festival, we paired students from the five Baltimore City Public Schools Culinary Programs with chefs from some of the city’s top restaurants. The team from the National Academy Foundation (NAF) was partnered with visionary chef Spike Gjerde, founder of Woodberry Kitchen, among other top restaurants. A couple of weeks before the event, the chef instructor, Davon Pulliam shepherded his seven students to visit with Spike on-site at Woodberry Kitchen. When I entered the restaurant, I was greeted by the sound of youthful chatter and the tantalizing aroma of freshly-baked bread. I just missed seeing the students bake a loaf in the wood-fired oven!
The conversation I walked in on centered on what fruits and vegetables are produced in the region, which offered fertile ground for a conversation on the “eat local” movement and its benefits to the environment and local economies. When talk turned to figs, I remembered that as I left the farm on my way to the restaurant, I had plucked three figs for a snack later. How perfect, the students would get to not just talk about figs, but sample some straight off the tree. As I tried to listen in on multiple conversations, my ears picked up tidbits such as “seedy,” “too sweet,” “tastes like grass” (which elicited the question I was hoping it would… “how do you know what grass tastes like?”), “I only like the inside part,” and other gems. Then Spike, in a stroke of genius, requested a large bowl of Fig Newtons from the pantry. The students were then asked to sample and compare the fresh fig and a processed pastry. In case you were curious, the fresh figs won, hands down. 
“So,” said Davon, “what do we think about the figs? Do we want to incorporate them somehow in our dish?” The response was a unanimous yes, followed by myriad suggestions. “We could make fig juice.” “How about if we braise some beef and make a fig sauce to go on top?” “What about a fig pie?” “How about figs three ways?”
Things got tougher when the topic shifted to indigenous Maryland plants, which, as you may know, are limited. The trusty paw paw was mentioned, at which point Spike rushed to the pantry only to return with a container of fresh paw paw puree. From across the table I heard one student say, “I had a mango lassi at an Indian restaurant once. Can we do that with paw paw?” Following a “hmm” from Chef Spike, the energized group headed straight for the kitchen. Soon all that could be heard above the din of the immersion blender was “16 oz. butter milk,” “3 oz. paw paw,” “a drizzle of honey,” “is anyone noting these measurements in case we need to tweak it?” and “yes chef, I’m on it.” The sense of anticipation as they waited to try out their concoction was almost palpable. In the end, the consensus was that butter milk is gross and the lassi idea got scrapped. I would not have missed that experiment for all the paw paws in Maryland.
Back to those figs. If you were: 1) one of the fine folks who attended the event, and 2) fortunate enough to make a stop (or two or three) at the NAF table, then I need not elaborate further. I mean, wow! What those students thought up, practiced, finessed, prepared, and then served was nothing short of AMAZING. Figs three ways indeed.
Now, keep in mind that I was only fortunate enough to spend a spectacular hour with only one of our participating high school teams. Based on the food they served and their knowledge of the ingredients and preparation techniques, I can only imagine that the level of engagement and partnership between the schools and the chef mentors was equally impressive. 
The Food and Jazz Festival offers Friends of Great Kids Farm the opportunity to shine a much-needed spotlight on high school students whose skill around a kitchen and whose interest in the culinary arts is cause for celebration. It also brings out from behind the curtain a few Baltimore chefs whose passion for inspiring young chefs is evident in their commitment of time and talent.
I for one can hardly wait to see what the 5th Annual Food and Jazz Fest has in store for us. See you there!