Nicolet College Culinary Arts Student Maja Holcomb Wins National Veal Recipe Competition

A delectable dish created by Nicolet College Culinary Arts student Maja Holcomb recently earned her top honors as her recipe was selected as the best in the national Veal – Discover Delicious Collegiate Veal Recipe Competition.

Holcomb’s recipe advanced to the national competition by first winning the Wisconsin round with her dish of grilled veal chops with cherry agrodolce. 

“Winning the state competition was exciting and then when I heard I won the national competition, it was almost hard to believe,” Holcomb said. “It was great to be awarded the winning title by the judges and have my hard work recognized by professionals in the industry.” 

She started creating her original recipe by first researching veal and different sauces. 

“I wanted to keep the dish simple and somewhat rustic,” Holcomb said. “Agrodolce is an age-old Italian sauce that translates to ‘sour-sweet’. It typically consists of a vinegar and a sweet component such as fruits, tomatoes, or sugars. I developed a recipe using these techniques and tied in a well-loved Wisconsin ingredient - cherries!” 

For her efforts she’ll receive a $500 scholarship from the Wisconsin Beef Council and the top prize of a $1,000 scholarship from the New York Beef Council, which sponsored the national competition. 

For Nicolet Culinary Arts Instructor Vicki Mendham, Holcomb’s win wasn’t necessarily surprising. 

“Maja ranks right up there with some of the best students we’ve had come through the program,” Mendham said. “She’s passionate about creating the best dishes she can and it shows. When you get to a national-level competition like this, you really have to bring your A game and she did exactly that.” 

Holcomb plans to graduate from Nicolet in 2023 with two associate’s degrees, one in Culinary Arts, which focuses on food production, and the second in Culinary Management, which focuses on the business side of the house. 

Her long-term goal is to someday operate her own restaurant. 

“I’ve always had this love for Wisconsin supper clubs,” she said. “My biggest goal after graduation is to operate an establishment that gives back to employees and the community.”