Update

Well on July 20 I promised you an update on what happened the previous day, needless to say I've been a bit slack on getting this written.

However, on that day Miss 9 was one of the contenstants in a coooking competition sponsored by Brownes.

The way it worked was that each contestant had to submit an original recipe along with a photo of the dish and themselves. From these entries 10 kids were chosen to cook-off.

Miss 9 submitted her Pesto Pasta with Cheese Twists recipe and was invited to cook-off against 9 other kids between 8 & 14.

We arrived at the high school that the cook-off was being held at about 15 mins before the starting time. We met up with another mother and child and wandered around a bit until we found someone who knew what was going on. We were directed to the Home Economics area and met the organisers and the other contestants.

There were people everywhere. The show was going to be recorded for showing on tv at a future date. I think there were three tv cameras and a guy with a digital camera. The cooking area was very small especially as Miss 9 had her pasta maker set up.

The advertised format was 1hr preparation time and 1hr cooking time. Miss 9 had practised her recipe using this format a couple of times before the competition and had managed to get everything done in this time, even though it was pretty tight. The reality of the competition was a bit different as a number of contestants had items that needed an hour or so of time in the fridge etc. So they basically blended the prep time and cooking time together.

However, with a bit of assistance by one of the judges (Chef Emmanuel) she managed to get everything done and plated in the timeframe.

During the cooking we (the parents) were barred from the kitchen however we did get to sneak looks around the corner now and then. All the kids were working hard and surprisingly there weren't too many disasters. The team organising / judging were great with the kids and helped out where necessary.

She didn't win - they awarded first and second place and then gave the other kids a runner up certificate and prize money ($200).

Last night the tv show aired. It was interesting to see. The peeks around the corner hadn't really shown me the variety of things that were going on in the kitchen and the range of food cooked.

Today her picture and recipe appeared in the paper (along with all of the other contestants):


We're very proud of her!