Contrived and cookie-cutter as they were, the Spice Girls managed to inject girl power into the 1990s pop music scene. A decade and half later, the real spice girls of Miami are bringing girl power to the male-dominated culinary world.

On Monday, four women from Johnson and Wales University in North Miami will travel to Orlando to compete in the American Culinary Federation's national Knowledge Bowl championship -- the first time a school team has reached the finals.

''It was one of the highlights of my career,'' chef-instructor and team coach Alan Lazar says of the regional win. ``They're very intelligent young ladies.''

Marisa Roussell, 19; Victoria Gonzalez, 19; Alissa Ebel, 21; and Catherine Gonzalez, 24, will represent the private university, the state and the southeast region of the country in the quiz-bowl competition. Although they say they're excited, it hasn't been easy.

''It's basically studying for fun,'' Roussell says. ``You're not just studying for your finals.''

Roussell, Ebel and Victoria Gonzalez practice together for three to four hours a week in a brightly lit room at the Johnson and Wales library, reading culinary books with colorful covers and daunting innards and quizzing each other from more than 900 note cards, each of which is scribbled with up to three questions.

''What is borscht?'' asks Victoria Gonzalez.

''Like a Russian dish?'' Marisa Roussell responds.

``But what does it include?''

Roussell only remembers beets, so Gonzalez reminds her that the beet-based soup also contains carrots and potatoes and is often topped with sour cream.

Then it's on to the next question.

Team captain Catherine Gonzalez (no relation to Victoria), who just returned from a study-abroad program in Singapore and Thailand, has been training on her own.

Gonzalez, who is president of the school's Junior ACF chapter, says she had colleagues quiz her during bus rides, read her 1,050-page culinary-fundamentals book at night and shared questions with her teammates via e-mail.

''I have a lot of dedication for this competition,'' she says. ``A win would mean the world.''

The road to nationals started in April when the team won the ACF regional competition in North Carolina. Since then, they have been hitting the books, learning everything they can about food sanitation and safety, nutrition, culinary arts and sciences, management, baking and the techniques of Auguste Escoffier, the French chef who literally wrote the book (Le Guide culinaire, 1903) on classic cuisine.

''He's the king of chefs and the chef of kings,'' Roussell. ``He follows his own rules. He makes up his own stuff.''

The finals could also include a section on knife and sensory skills, testing their practical abilities.

The scariest part? Not knowing what to expect, the women say.

''It's so nerve-wracking,'' Victoria Gonzalez says.

The American Culinary Federation, which accredits culinary programs and provides training and networking opportunities for food professionals, has hosted the Knowledge Bowl since 1992, says Kristy Begley, its director of education and professional development. Questions are drawn from from six textbooks, she says.

''These are some of the sharpest, brightest students that I have seen,'' Begley says. ``It's unbelievable the caliber of students that come through this competition.''

At first, Ebel says, the team studied glossary definitions, but after the regional round the women realized questions would be broader. Victoria Gonzalez says she has read through her kitchen, staff and restaurant management book twice, jotting down questions with which to quiz herself and her teammates.

''You don't know what they're going to ask,'' she says. ``It's the little things that you will never notice. And I don't want to be the reason why we get something wrong.''

They take turns bringing lunch, and have started using a Trivial Pursuit board to make studying more like a game. Sometimes they practice at the beach. And during the school year, they turned class lectures into practice sessions.

Roussell says she and Victoria used to pretend to buzz in when their teachers ask questions. But they were careful not to answer too often during class.

''People get annoyed,'' she says.

Although studying can be a bit of a bore, Victoria Gonzalez says this is just as much an academic as a social venture.

''This is kind of like our social life,'' she says. ``We kind of look forward to practice.''

''This is part of our lives,'' Roussell says. ``Our lives revolve around Knowledge Bowl.''

Ebel says that because they all get along so well, there's no animosity when someone misses a question, as when Roussell missed the first question at the regionals.

''We started off with minus 40 points,'' she says. ``But we're all a team, so it doesn't really matter.''

Their parents, friends and teachers are supportive, including one Johnson and Wales administrator who made a promise Roussell says she won't forget.

''The dean definitely says that if we won nationals that he would buy us Disney tickets to celebrate,'' she says. ``He promised.''

If they win the Knowledge Bowl, they'll be the first all-female championship team, according to the ACF.

''It's a big deal,'' Roussell says. ``It's definitely a man's world. But we could be national champions. I'm excited about it.''

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