Sauce contest offers chance at ACDC glory

Allison Cohen Guest Writer

Are you Vassar’s next Iron Chef? Then put on your apron and head over to the “Big Sauce Challenge” at All Campus Dining Center (ACDC) on Sept. 26 at 4:30 p.m.

Six contestants, selected through an application process, will compete for the ultimate prize: The winning sauce will be regularly featured on the menu at ACDC. The contestants will be provided with identical baskets filled with local produce, cooking utensils, and pantry items such as salt and pepper. All of the participants will receive a signed copy of Homegrown: Pure and Simple by celebrity judge Chef Michel Nischan, a pioneer in organic haute cuisine who owns and operates several restaurants.
But only the winner will have his or her name immortalized as a pasta sauce. After the contest, Nischan will be available to discuss cooking techniques in ACDC.

“In addition to being a lot of fun, the contest will create awareness about the importance of local foods,” said Director of Campus Dining Maureen King.

The contest kicks off Local Foods Week, which will continue until Oct. 2. The idea for this event originated late last spring, when Nischan contacted King and Ken Oldehoff, Director of Marketing and Sustainability for Campus Dining, about making Vassar the pilot college for a program that would bring local foods to campus.

Until now, providing local food on campus was only possible when certain produce was in-season. However, Nischan’s goal is to freeze produce so that students can savor locally grown tomato sauce, corn, sliced apples, applesauce, onions and carrots throughout the colder months.

To end the week’s festivities, Campus Dining will host the annual Local Harvest Dinner on Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m. on the second floor of the Students’ Building, where the documentary The Real Dirt on Farmer John, about a farmer facing nuermous odds in the Midwest will be shown.

Campus Dining is also planning an upcoming book signing with Nischan, along with other projects to heighten awareness about the benefits of cooking with local foods.

Nischan first made a name for himself in several top restaurants in Chicago. His food philosophy took a turn, however, when his son was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. Since then he has set out to create a “cuisine of well-being” using local, organic and sustainable products.

In 2006 Nichan paired with Paul Newman in opening Dressing Room: A Homegrown Restaurant in Westport, Conn.