The 4-H’ers have baked, kneaded, rolled, preheated, chilled,boiled, sautéed, and added a dash of this and that over and over again preparing for the 4-H District Food Show. Now the time has come to prepare that dish one last time. Shaking out the last of their butterflies, the 4-H’ers get ready to present their dishes to the judgesand answer some questions.

This year Melanie Hedley, Elizabeth Bryant, Marissa Coffman, Maggie Alexander, and Emilee Rogers represented San Saba County at the 4-H District Food Show in Abilene on November 22nd.

Maggie Alexander prepared a Fruits and Vegetables dish; Dorito Salad, in the Juniors Division and placed third. Emilee Rogers prepared a Main Entry dish; My Mom’s Chicken Salad, in the Junior division and placed third.

Elizabeth Bryant prepared a Main Entry Dish; Mexican Quiche, in the Intermediate division. Melanie Hedley prepared a Breads and Cereals dish; Filled Coffee Ring, in the Intermediate Division. Marissa Coffman prepared a Fruits and Vegetables dish; Fruit Kabobs, in the Intermediate division.

Each year 4-H’ers who share the interest in cooking and food nutrition come together to compete in a county competition. The categories a 4-H’er can prepare a dish in are Fruits and Vegetables, Breads and Cereals, Main Dish, or Nutritious Snacks and Desserts.

The 4-H’ers are split up by age category; Clover Kid, Junior, Intermediate, and Senior and then by food category. The High Point Winner from the county competition then goes on to compete in the district competition. San Saba County 4-H is in District 7, with other counties such as Fisher, Jones, Schackelford, Nolan, Taylor, Callahan, Sterling, Coke, Runnels, Coleman, Brown, Mills, Irion, Tom Green, Concho, McCulloch, Lampasas, Scheicher, Menard, Mason, Llano, and Burnet County. There are twelve 4-H Districts in the state of Texas.

Winners in the Senior Division in the district competition then advance to State Competition. We look forward to seeing these young chefs participating in Food Shows until they are senior competitors.

The District Food Show concludes the year’s Foods and Nutrition Project. The 4-H’ers have obtained a great knowledge of the nutritional value of certain foods, how to prepare dishes, and how to plan out weekly meals and grocery lists. 4-H looks forward to seeing everyone next year in the Foods and Nutrition project!