Meet Matt Renaud. He's been working at Craftsbury in the kitchen on and off for five years as jack of all trades. If he had one title, it would likely be prep cook, but he does a little bit of everything back there. Since the Craftsbury kitchen mavens work together and there are no titles, everyone pitches in to get those scrumptious meals ready and available for the hungry athletes lining up.

The kitchen staff are seasonal employees. In the same way that the broader Center is working to expand programming year-round, the kitchen is brainstorming ideas that could provide more year-round work. As of just last week, the Craftsbury kitchen has received a license to operate as a small commercial bakery. This is exciting because it means that our breads, granola and oven-fired pizzas can be potentially marketed and sold locally to the community and farther afield. Hopefully our dining hall favorites are going to be finding a larger audience in the near future.

One of the ideas was to create an energy bar. Yeah, there are plenty on the market, but the kitchen wizards went in a different direction: how about a healthy energy cookie? It's a unique niche so Matt's been coming up with some recipe ideas and giving them a test go with the running and sculling campers and coaching staffs.His latest iteration is yummy to the max. It's a loose interpretation from a recipe in the King Arthur cookbook (a VT company). It's a cookie packed with great ingredients. The cookies flew off the tray last night so Matt made a larger batch for tonight.

What's in 'em? Whole wheat flour, oats, Smart Balance (easier and faster to digest than butter), dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, orange juice instead of milk and chocolate chips along with some baking powder and baking soda. It's an ongoing project with slight variations from batch to batch. Matt's eager for feedback not to mention potential naming ideas. This cookie is just his latest effort. I'll be checking in with Matt frequently to see what he's going to try next in the quest for the perfect healthy and delicious energy cookie.