CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The California Community College Culinary Arts Symposium and Competition was held on April 27 in at the Energy Resource Center in Downey.

The theme this year was “Thai Time: Celebrating Thai Cuisine.”

Layla Wall, a freshman at Middletown High School, competed in the cake competition. She made a cocopandan chiffon cake with cardamom simple syrup, ginger mango Bavarian cream filling and an Italian meringue saffron buttercream. She placed first among nine cake decorating competitors.

Christian Rivera is a culinary student enrolled in the certificate program. He placed second among eight hot foods competitors. He made a Thai celebration summer roll with jerk chicken and pineapple fried rice with nuoc chum and tamarind sauces.

The symposium is sponsored by the Los Angeles Orange County Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism consortium for California Community Colleges through the Doing What Matters for Jobs and the Economy program.

The Lake County Campus culinary students have competed in the competition for the past four years and have brought back trophies every year.

For more information on the Culinary Arts program at the Lake County Campus, call 707-995-7310 or follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AromasLakeCountyCampus/.