Vianca Ramirez: Taste of Kennesaw Winner

Now in its third year, Taste of Kennesaw is a great yearly event. Hosted by Carrabba’s Italian Grill with their Managing Partner Michael Schroeder and The Kennesaw Business Association, it offers family fun activities and an opportunity to try more than 30 local restaurants. In addition to the entertainment, Carrabba’s hosts a Culinary Cook Off with a $2,000 scholarship for the winner.

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Choosing the winner wasn’t easy. The finalists were: Justin Teague of Allatoona High; Vianca Ramirez of Kennesaw Mountain; Marissa Mauie of Allatoona High; and Sierra Stubs of Allatoona High.

This year’s winner was Vianca Ramirez, a senior at OTP’s Kennesaw Mountain High School. She prepared an award-winning Mofongo dish.

Mofongo is smashed green plantains, and her dish also featured bacon and garlic atop a tomato base smothered with sofrito sauce and then topped with sauteed shrimp and a side dish of fried sweet plantains. Yum!

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We got the Scoop on Vianca and are very excited about her future! She is 18 years old and has been cooking since she was 14 with her mother and grandmother. Latin food is her favorite to cook. Her heritage, Puerto Rican & Chamorro, influences her cooking. Her family hosts big parties, which include a lot of cultural food.vianca blue dress

She is a busy girl and is competing again with three others from her school as a team at Taste of Acworth on October 11. They’ll make an entrée, side dish, and dessert.

Aside from the Kennesaw cook-off, she also won her school’s Cupcake Wars with a pina colada cupcake topped with toasted coconut and a kiwi slice.

She plans to attend Chattahoochee College next fall for Culinary Arts. She is looking forward to having her own Mini Puerto Rican Café one day, and so are we — we hope it’s OTP!

This Scoop Star is brought to you by Carrabba’s Italian Grill in Kennesaw. Come visit Mike and enjoy handmade Italian dishes and wood-fired grill entrees.

1160 Ernest Barrett Pkwy. Kennesaw, GA 30144. Phone: (770) 499-0338

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