It’s heating up at North Fulton Regional Hospital as clinical managers, directors, and other hospital leaders participate in a team cook-off challenge—North Fulton Regional Hospital’s version of the Iron Chef Challenge.  On Friday, May 29, the aprons were tied and the game was on.

            Designed as a team-builder for hospital leaders, each group consisted of one member of the senior administration team and three directors.  In just 90 minutes, each group was tasked with creating a dish (assigned in advance) and decorating a cake.  At the end of the 90 minutes, judges made their decisions based on taste, presentation, creativity, and teamwork. 

This challenge sounds simple enough, but it was anything but.  Judges provided strict rules and regulations that kept each team under close supervision.  The rules were as follows:

1.      Each group was given a portion of the four ingredients: steak, shrimp, gorgonzola, and pasta. The team used as much or as little of each ingredient as they liked. Trading of ingredients was allowed.

2.      Each group had 90 minutes to complete the challenge. At the end of 90 minutes the dishes (which were each named) and cakes were presented for judging.

3.      Enough food was prepared to accommodate one presentation plate for the judges and sampling for all teams.

4.      Outside food and tools (including cookbooks) were not permitted.

5.      The senior team member was available as a culinary assistant (chopping, dish washing, etc.) and had no decision-making authority.

6.      Director of Nutrition Services Sean Austin was available for culinary consultation only.

7.      The judges had the final determination on any questions or issues.

The ingredients and resources for the challenge included:

Four ingredients:

§         Steak

§         Shrimp

§         Gorgonzola

§         Pasta (cooked & chilled)

§         Surprise Ingredient – Soft Shell Crab

Available supplies:

§         Fruit & vegetable table

§         Spice & seasoning cart

§         Basic dairy, oil, vinegar

Cake:

§         9-inch round cake

§         Icing

§         Sprinkles

Prep tools:

§         Burner

§         Pans

§         Utensils – spoons, knives, spatulas, whisk, etc.

§         Microwave

After much scrambling, planning, and mess creation, the teams finalized their dishes and cakes and the judges crowned the victors.  And the winners for the first NFRH Cooking Team Challenge are…

Best Cake – Fruits of the Sea - Ron and the Spice Girls

Team Members included Chief Development Officer Ron Henry; Director of Emergency Services Joan Birzes; Director of Information Services Carolyn Harbin; and Director of Radiology Judy Over

Best Appetizer – Hawaii Guacamo and a Taste of the Sea – First Responders

Team members included Chief Nursing Officer Kathy Young; Director of the Business Office Patty Barton; Manager of Marketing, Public Relations and Physician Services Lindsey Harber; and Director of Medical/Telemetry Kim James

Best Entrée & Best Overall Dish – Stacked Steak – Galley Critters

Team members included Chief Financial Officer Wes James; Director of Plant Operations Larry Collett; Director of Clinical Education Carol Jones; Director of Respiratory Services Jack Rogers

Best Salad – Shrimp Gone Wicked – The Wicked Witches Plus Randy

Team members included Chief Operating Officer Ilona Wozniak; Director of Neurosciences Katja Bryant; Director of Operative Services Rhonda Perkey; and Director of Physician Practices

Worst Cake – Saturday Night in the ED – The Wicked Witches Plus Randy

            Team members listed above

Unfortunately there were no prizes for The Kitchen Wizards (led by CEO Phil Shaw) and Chef-Girls-r-dee (led by Human Resources Officer Susan Brown)…their dishes did not pass the test to win an award!  There were no hard feelings, however, as all had fun, cooking and laughing with one another.

North Fulton Regional Hospital (NFRH), part of Tenet Georgia, is a 202-bed, acute-care hospital located on Highway 9, Alpharetta Highway, in Roswell.  Opened in 1983, NFRH serves North Fulton and surrounding counties through its team of over 1000 employees, 400 staff physicians and 200 volunteers.  NFRH is a state-designated Level II trauma center and provides a continuum of services through its centers and programs, including neurosciences, orthopedics, rehabilitation, surgical services, bariatric surgical weight loss, gastroenterology and oncology.  The hospital is fully accredited and also is certified as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the nation’s oldest and largest hospital accreditation agency.

For more information about North Fulton Regional Hospital and its various medical and community programs, visit www.northfultonregional.com, or call 770-751-2500.