Desserts, barbecue make last half of state fair food competitions sweet and saucy

Cobblers, cupcakes, pies and barbecue rounded out the last half of the Missouri State Fair food competitions in the Home Economics Building last week.

Cooks for the Starline Red, or Pink Hat Cobbler, contest on Aug. 16 made an assortment of tasty entries from blueberry-strawberry-rhubarb to pear and cranberry to grape.

First place went to a black Corinth table grape cobbler, made by Pat Finkes, of Steelville.
“I’ve always made a concord grape pie, but I didn’t realize they weren’t ripe right now and I wanted a purple grape,” Finkes said.

She sent her friend Megan Roe, of Cole Camp, to the grocery store to find some grapes. Roe was fortunate to find the small, sweet, black grapes.

“It was lots of luck! The cobbler gods were on my side!” Finkes added.

 Finkes not only received a blue ribbon, but took home a cash prize of $300.

Faye Hunton, of Sedalia, took second; Sue Larimore, of Green Ridge, placed third; and Shelly McConkey, of Albany, came in fourth.

Aug. 17 saw a new competition with the Sedalia Scottish Rite’s Cupcakes for a Queen contest, which brought in a “baker’s dozen” in entries. A box of the first-place cupcakes was given to the Missouri State Fair Queen, Meredith Laine Jones.

It was a feast for the eyes as well as the tummy. Each entry was so well displayed and tasted so good that judges Lois Kuhns, and Carl and Crystal Mittelhauser, had difficulty choosing the winners.

“It was a very big field — cupcakes are very popular right now,” Carl said. “There were 13 different flavors, textures and displays. It was tough. You’d think you’d have a winner and then I came to another and it would have a flavor just as good.”

 “They were beautiful and they were gorgeous,” added Crystal. “It looked like people went to a lot of work.”

There were cupcakes ranging from key lime to orange cake push-ups to coffee- and chai tea-flavored ones.

Winning first place was Roe for her “Queen of Tarts” key lime cupcakes. Taking second place was Finkes for her “Orange-Licious” push-up cupcakes and winning third place was Laura McDougal, of Preston, for her “Scottish Traditional Sultana Cake with a Twist.”

Highlighted on Thursday was the Missouri First Lady’s Pie contest, which brought in 48 entries and a packed house. Behind the scenes and keeping everything running smoothly were contest coordinators Jenny Emery, Helene Wolf and Juanita Long.

This year’s contests included more young people and the same held true for the pie competition. Sarah Wilkison, 29, of Kansas City, entered her “Elvis” pie made with peanut butter and bananas. Her friends, Jenny Merrigan, 34, and Holly Pollard, 30, also of Kansas City, entered, too. Merrigan went on to win first place in the fruit category with her chocolate berry delight made with blueberries, black berries and dark chocolate.

“I’m really excited to see so many young people. It’s an energy. It’s hopeful, “ said Wilkison’s mother, Jan Lea.

While contestants waited for the judges’ decision, Sedalia pie-making veteran Faye Hunton gave a pie crust demonstration with Missouri’s first lady, Georganne Wheeler Nixon.

Hunton shared her pie-making secrets with the first lady and the crowd such as using cinnamon in the crust if it’s in the filling, using a glass transparent pie pan to check the dough, and keeping spices in the freezer to maintain freshness.

“I just want to say thank you to Faye,” Nixon said. “We all know so many chefs that won’t share their secrets.”

During the event, Nixon went on to say, “This is a place where we keep our traditions alive and we share them with the next generation. Today’s (pies) and winners are all made with love. I’m so glad to be part of this.”

Kristie Price, of Marshall, went on to win best of show with her wonderfully light and delicious peanut butter crumble cream pie. She also placed first in the cream pie category with her entry and placed third in the fruit category with her fresh peach pie.

“This was a great surprise,” Price said.

Price had only made the pie once before as a “trial run,” her daughter, Lorin Fahrmeier, of Lexington, said.

Fahrmeier, a winner from last year, also won third place for her classic lemon meringue pie. Both mother and daughter shared the kitchen the night before to make their winning entries.
Friday’s storm canceled two food competitions and put Hunton in a bad position for Kehde’s Barbecue Beef Short Rib contest on Saturday. Having no electricity, Hunton took her ribs to sister Debbie Fillinger’s house.

Fillinger said the ribs looked so good that they should be renamed “Naked in the Bathtub Ribs.”

The judges must have agreed — they awarded Hunton first place. Hunton said the ribs were cut in serving-sized pieces and boiled for two hours in a broth along with celery, onions and carrots. She then made a sauce of ketchup, molasses, garlic powder and dry brown mustard. The ribs were drained, slathered with the sauce and then broiled in the oven.

Finkes took second for her “Doesn’t Get Much Better Than This” ribs and Pam Steen, of Oak Grove, placed third for her smoked beef short ribs.

Although the fair is over, there’s something to look forward to — all the winning recipes from this year and last will be available in the 2012 Official Missouri State Fair Cookbook next year.