I'm a winner!!!

[melidasaur]

This could also go into the food section, but heck, I'll put it here.

I am a competative baker. I was in 4-H as a kid and always submitted some sort of food product to the county fair. My mom was a fair judge at one time, so she always judged everything that we did and assigned ribbon colors - you know, my spaghetti sauce was good enough for blue, but the pasta was overdone, therefore I got a white. It was all in good fun though.

During high school and college, I really didn't have time. While living in NC, I went to the NC state fair, saw all of the food entries and was not impressed - I said - I can so take these people. So the following year, I entered two cookies - a coffee flavored chocolate chip cookie and an oatmeal apricot cranberry cookie. I took 2nd place and got an honorable mention respectively. Last year, I entered two cookies - but they realliy sucked and I didn't place - I got cocky I suppose.

So when we moved to Illinois, I was (still am) unemployed and decided I could really hone my baking skills and take the Illinois State Fair. Midwest State Fairs have very SERIOUS competators, so I knew it would be a challenge. I entered 4 things: Chocolate Whoa Cookies (Chocolate chocolate chip cookies with walnuts and espresso), Molassess Ginger Snaps, Cheddar Onion Biscuits and Key Lime Cake.

The results:
1st place - Chocolate Chip Cookie Other (not the standard chocolate chip)
2nd place - Clabber Girl Baking Powder Contest - Biscuits
3rd place - Ginger Snaps

The cake didn't place but that's cool. I get a bit of prize money (probably enough to pay for my ingredients) and ribbons. With the Baking Powder Contest, I think I get an apron or cookbook or something - not quite sure.

All in all, I'm quite proud of myself.