PITTSFIELD — A lot more than 20 countries and their cuisine have been represented Sunday at Maine Central Institute’s once-a-year Intercontinental Meals Festival in Pittsfield.
Since 2007, pupils and school have prepared, shopped and prepared dishes for one particular of the educational facilities most beloved traditions, according to one particular of its organizers, Artur Fass, who works for the school’s English as a 2nd Language Division.
“This is a single of the oldest and maybe 1 of the most beloved traditions at this campus,” Fass said. “MCI is truly a world-wide and numerous neighborhood, and this pageant is here to celebrate our cultures. There’s no better way to share a culture than as a result of foodstuff.”
Fass, who is from Estonia, was representing Ukraine at the pageant and geared up borscht, a deep-purple soup produced with beets, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, onion, garlic and beef.
“I do have family members in Ukraine. My uncle is combating in the war and my cousins are refugees,” Fass mentioned. “Borscht is a staple Ukraine foodstuff. Every home in Ukraine has it at their tables, and that is some thing I’d like to share right now.”
Maine Central Institute college student Madison Knight, 17, of Liberia, ideal, retains heat rice bread although Sandra Janiec of Poland grabs bowls whilst serving samples Sunday through the once-a-year Global Food Competition at Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield. Janiec suggests she assisted Knight, immediately after serving all her samples of Polish food items at a nearby table. Wealthy Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
This year’s food stuff pageant provided 22 groups of pupils representing nations from all over the globe, which include Brazil, France, Myanmar, Italy, Portugal and Slovakia.
Kristyna Markova and Charlotte Losticka , seniors at MCI, represented the Czech Republic at the competition and well prepared potato pancakes.
“Our cuisine has been overlooked,” Losticka stated. “Now people today are trying to revive it.”
Maine Central Institute pupils Kristyna Markova, 18, left, and Charlotte Lostitcka , 19, perform collectively Sunday when cooking potato pancakes, a classic dish from the Czech Republic, for the duration of the yearly Global Food Festival at Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield. The pair from the Czech Republic say they were earning the pancakes in a sample measurement, when commonly they are considerably greater and served with meat as a food. Prosperous Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
Fass said pupils are liable for arranging foods every year, which include searching for supplies and planning the cuisine all through the pageant, even though college members aid in the attempts.
“There’s autonomy and pupils get this really seriously. They are happy of their cultures,” Fass said. “Every yr when I arrive out and request them whether or not they want to do this, they’re fired up, there is no query, even from people kids who have never ever been below. They take it just as critically as the returning kids.”
Emily Andrews of Lewiston attended the pageant for the first time Sunday with her spouse and their 3-month-aged daughter, Piper. By midday, the family had made its rounds by way of Parks Gymnasium at the MCI campus.
Maine Central Institute college students from Vietnam prepare and serve spring rolls Sunday in the course of the yearly Intercontinental Foodstuff Festival at MCI in Pittsfield. From still left: Claire Nguyen, 18, Mi Nguyen, 18, and Peter Truong, 18. The three, along with Alex Nguyen, 17, labored collectively and created 100 spring rolls in pork, shrimp and vegetable versions during the function. Rich Abrahamson/Early morning Sentinel
“We’ve tried using almost everything. The empanadas were being scrumptious,”Andrews stated. “It’s difficult to obtain global foodstuff in Maine. We will be back again next 12 months.”
An empanada is a baked or fried turnover or pastry with filling, prevalent in Spanish, Southern European, Latin American and Filipino cultures.
Maine Central Institute is an unbiased boarding and day university for college students in grades 9 as a result of 12. The college serves as the city academy for Pittsfield, Burnham and Detroit, and for quite a few pupils from all over the planet.
“We have students from Presque Isle to Cumberland Foreside, around the condition of Maine, all over the United States and the environment,” reported Wayne Lobley, director of development at MCI.
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