Exploration Commons at Westminster Library hosts Kitchen Cookoff

Last Tuesday, Exploration Commons at 50 East hosted an exciting Exploration Commons Kitchen Cookoff, featuring guest celebrity chefs Ted Zaleski and Lory Hierstetter from the “Two Sides of a Story” podcast. The sous chefs working with Zaleski and Hierstetter were Candace Birger and Nancy Farace, both familiar faces around Exploration Commons. Zaleski prepared pierogies and Hierstetter prepared ceviche.

It was as if the culinary rock star, Guy Fieri, had come to town with one of his Food Network shows such as “Guy’s Grocery Games.” Only instead of Fieri, we had one of our own Carroll County culinary rock stars, Bernie Vogel, of JeannieBird Baking Company, who served as the host with a celebrity cast of judges — all amazing folks in our community: Leticia Nortey, Andrea Berstler, Garrett Hoover, Tony Gerald, Ashley Gerald, Jennifer Yang, and Brooke Hagerty.