The “Tart” to my Future
By: Raven McNulty
It
was June, the sun was blazing, my cap and gown for graduation stared back at
me. I was still undecided on college, just weeks before I had made it to the
finals for the Top Teen Talent Scholarship competition. I would be competing
for a full tuition ride to The Chef’s Academy in Indianapolis, Indiana in just
a few days. Before we get into that lets
jump back a few months, I was the caption of my high school culinary team and
we had just gotten 5th in the state for the FCCLA culinary
competition. My heart had been set on baking since I was 8 and cooking really
wasn’t my thing. After intense training and competing at Johnson and Wales I
knew baking was my passion. We had been looking into The Chef’s Academy for a while
but I still didn’t know if I fit there or in Charlotte. My dad came across the
competition and I immediately said no in fear of another let down, not to
mention the 10 hour drive. As weeks passed the deadline was approaching and my
dad successfully convinced me to enter my Banana Pudding Cupcake just a day
before.
Friends
and family started voting and before I knew it I was in the lead for votes.
Just under me was William Hamilton who constantly out voted me for weeks but my
friends weren’t going to let that happen. I came out on top for votes and
started preparing for competition. I baked the competition recipe twice a day
for a week trying to perfect my skills and let’s just say if anyone wanted a
chocolate mousse tart, I was their girl. My dad and I made the 10 hour trip
from Cary, NC the day before competition. I spent the trip studying for exams
since I still had a week left before graduation and thought about what college
decisions I had ahead of me.
I
had never been so nervous and excited at the same time. I had never been to
Indianapolis and I knew that the competition was going to be a great experience
regardless of the outcome. On little to no sleep we arrived at the Indianapolis
campus and began to wait for competition to begin. William Hamilton, whom I
thought to be my biggest competition, sat at the table next to ours making note
cards while I jammed out to “Call Me Maybe.” I knew if I wasn’t having fun then
there would be no way for me to win and I hoped listening to my iPod would help
others relax too. Sure enough, William went to get his iPod and we were ready
to represent NC the best we could. This one day, this one tart, was going to
decide how the rest of my life was going to play out. As we got into the
kitchen I was feeling so many emotions and with everyone running around it was
hard to keep my hands from shaking. I had an hour and a half to perfect and
plate my tart with garnish. As the clock ran down I had 30min to get my tart in
the oven, remake my mousse and plate. To this day I still don’t know how I
managed to stay composed when things went wrong in the kitchen but I’ll never
forget the encouraging words of pastry chef Ben Hardy. After time was up I was
beyond proud of myself and what I had accomplished, I even made some new friends
too.
We
sat in the conference room as scholarships and scores were handed out when my
heart began to race. Three of us were left and I knew I wanted William or
myself to take home first place. First William was called for third place, I
was disappointed, he had worked so hard and deserved to be in second. As my
name was read for first place I began to tear up. I wasn’t entirely sure what
had just happened. Did I really just win a full ride to culinary school? I had
made a path to success obtainable without the weight of debt on my
shoulders. The money wasn’t the most
important part, after the competition I was congratulated by chefs and I was
told my skills/talent outweighed my experience; I knew I was going places. I
had made the best decision for me. Through competition I gained more than just
a scholarship, I gained confidence, a friend in William, and I guess my friends
and family gained a little weight too. Without a doubt
William and I are taking on culinary school by storm and let’s just say this
won’t be the last time we compete. After
my first week of school at The Chef’s Academy I know this is where I belong. I
finally feel like I fit in and more importantly this school is the start to a
very successful career. A few months ago
I never would have thought a chocolate mousse tart could change my life.
Raven, what an excellent blog. I really enjoyed reading it and I could feel your emotion and sincerity. After Will and I arrived at The Chef's Academy in Indianapolis and I observed everyone around, I just knew you were going to be the one to beat. You had a sense of confidence, composure and calmness about you. From speaking briefly with your dad, I knew that you had worked hard to get there and had some great experiences behind you. You deserved to win! Congratulations!
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