To state the obvious, food is a part of daily life. But how often do you stop and think about everything that goes into preparing a meal? How often do you place yourself in the shoes of a chef?

On Monday, November 27, 2023, Girl Scouts Troop #68188 joined Chef Adonijah Stewart to experience one hour as a professional chef. Salto Coffee hosted the Girl Scouts troop to help them earn their Brownie Snack, Junior Simple Meals and Daisy Friendly & Helpful Badges.

Chef Adonijah opened the Salto kitchen to the troop after hours to share her passion for cooking and food safety. From 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., roughly a dozen troop members learned about ingredients, cross-contamination, kitchen etiquette, and best practices.

After a brief meeting with Chef Adonijah, the girls traded their vests for aprons. The excitement continued as the troop toured Salto’s commercial kitchen, where they put their newly learned kitchen etiquette to practice. One by one, the girls washed their hands and put on gloves.

The sweet scent of herbs, spices, and chicken filled the kitchen as the troop prepared a chicken salad, slowly mixing ingredients and tasting their creation until it reached perfection. After cleaning up, the group enjoyed their delicious chicken salad.

Many of the girls left with the desire to learn more about cooking and the pride of learning new skills. They experienced meal prepping in a professional kitchen but also learned the importance of kitchen safety.

If you’ve picked up a copy of Taste of the Peaks Fall 2023 brought to you by The Mountain-Ear, you might have already learned what food means to some of our local chefs. Only time will tell whether or not the experience has inspired future chefs.

For now, the girls have earned a well-deserved badge. Congratulations, Troop #68188, on a job well done! Anyone interested in joining the local Girls Scout Troop can contact Aspen Vincent at 303-717-4890 or visit mygs.girlscouts.org and search for Troop 68188 to register.