Best of the Midwest Day Two

One of the nice things about the Best of the Midwest cook-off was we could start baking and cooking any time of the day that we wanted to, as long as it was before 2:00 PM. The Midwest Living staff gave us recommended times that we should start at; mine was 11:30 AM.

After a leisurely morning, Eric and I arrived at the kitchens around 11:00 AM, and I started to get to work on my cake(s). And that's another nice thing about this cook-off - Eric was able to come into the kitchen with me, watch, and take pictures.


BUTTER! My love.



Midwest Living had a videographer there to film bits and pieces of us making our dishes. They also had a photographer there taking pictures the whole time.



Mix, mix, mix...



I had to bake two of my pumpkin cakes to be able to feed all of the judges and audience (more on that in a second).






Libby's pumpkin! My favorite. Let's not forget about King Arthur flour.



Look how much cake batter was in the bowl! It was filled to the brim.



I had to have one of the assistants help me pour all of the batter into the pans.



Then I baked the cakes in the world's largest oven.


Forty-five minutes later, they were done! Voila! I was happy with how they turned out. It's a very easy, delicious recipe. I believe the recipe will be in Midwest Living magazine's May/June issue.



After baking the cakes, Eric and I had some free time. We had lunch with Eric's dad, who came out to support me. Thank you! Then we met up with my family - my mom, dad, sister-Rachel, and my baby-niece, who came to support me as well. Thank you, guys!



We had to present our dishes to a classroom full of people at the culinary & craft school they have at Silver Dollar City. I've mentioned the school before... they teach themed classes every month or so, I think.

My family, Eric, and Eric's dad purchased tickets for the class so they could watch me present my cake and taste and see everyone else's dishes. The judges sat next to the counter, right where we would be bringing in our food and presenting it. The judges were the Midwest Living staff, the culinary school's teacher, a local chef, and a local newscaster.



Quite a few of the other finalists went before me... it was a long wait. But finally I was able to walk into the room and present my cake to the judges. The culinary school teacher handed me the microphone and had me talk a little about the cake.



She had a loud, booming voice and she frightened me a little bit. She said she liked comforting desserts though, so I took that as a good sign.



And then after a long day of baking and waiting, it was over.



I wandered around Silver Dollar City with my people for a while before we met at the gazebo for the awards ceremony. A big crowd of people had gathered around the gazebo for the ceremony and lighting of the Christmas tree. We had an MC for the ceremony. Do you know who that man is?



Let's take a closer look. Any guesses? Put your glasses on, ladies...



Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree
It's been three long years, do you still want me....


That's Tony Orlandooooo! Yeah! Wave your hands wildly in the air! OMG.
He is so dreamy.

He started singing that song when he got on the stage and a bunch of women started screaming and singing along with him. It was cute. But disturbing?


Is that me? Or is that just my hair?



Tony walked up to each competitor, held the microphone up and asked us what our names were, where we were from, and what our recipes were. When he got to me he grabbed my face into his hands and said something about me being cute.

I was like, Oh Tony! And I blushed.




I later found out that Eric, in the audience, was threatening to beat him up.








There were ten competitors in the competition, and all of their recipes were so good. I knew the judges had a tough time choosing the winner. Earlier in the day a particular recipe caught my eye: a rice krispie bar made with kettle corn, caramel and chocolate.

I was able to sample a bite, and they were very rich and good. The recipe seemed simple and straightforward, and the presentation on them was beautiful. So I wasn't at all surprised when Judy Reynolds from Indiana took home the grand prize of $10,000. Congratulations, Judy! Well deserved!



I was a little bummed, but not too badly. I'm so, so happy... so thrilled I got the chance to compete and go to this event. I am truly honored and I will remember this day for the rest of my life. Thank you Midwest Living and Silver dollar City!!

I will also remember this day as the day Eric and I had to wait an hour, in the cold, in line at a mine buffet at Silver Dollar City because we were hungry and had free meal passes to use.

And that's why we now both have colds.



But the mashed sweet potatoes were so worth it.



Heyyy Tony! How about one more, Tony? For old time's sake?