Posted by Peoria Journal Star, IL on June 05, 2008 at 12:16:59:
Blue-ribbon rivalry
Heart of Illinois Fair food competition (06/04/08)
By JENNIFER DAVIS
PEORIA — The years they've been cooking and entering dishes in the Heart of Illinois Fair may blur together, but Elaine Johnson distinctly recalls the day her daughter's passion for cooking started.
"She was 12 or so. She wanted me to help her bake some bread, and I remember I had to take her older brothers to get registered for community college, so I told her we'd do it when I got back. When I got home, she had that loaf of bread made - and it was perfect.
"I thought, 'Holy smokes.' "
Today, the mother-daughter team think nothing of entering a dozen or more dishes apiece in the fair.
"We work in the same kitchen so we do this together. We cook right through the night. It's an all-night affair," laughs Johnson of Brimfield. "Some of our best dishes have been at 3 or 4 in the morning. We were never people to travel in the summer so this is something fun for us to do together."
Jennifer Manzke, who lives in nearby Edwards, agrees: "We have such a good time at it. This is something we look forward to doing every year. It's kind of a tradition. Once we have everything made, the real joy is to go and see how we placed. We always go together to see how we did."
Though the fair isn't until July 11-19, this year's entries for the numerous food contests - everything from best cookie and cake to the "big" deals like the Hidden Valley Ranch contest, which can lead to a chance at national competition - are due July 1, as are all other departments except photography. Photography entries are due June 13.
Details on how to enter your grandmother's cherry pie are available on the fair's Web site at www.heartofillinoisfair.com. Just remember, part of the judging process requires you to divulge your recipe - so any family secrets won't be secret anymore.
Both mother and daughter keep their own files of possible recipes they might want to submit and, incredibly, they've never once wanted to do the same dish. One thing might explain it: "She's not a sugar person; I am," says Johnson, adding that her daughter also still has a special touch with breads. "I don't have that knack."
Manzke once won Grand Champion for her lemon raspberry sweetbread, a recipe she tweaked from one she had. And one year, their best year, Johnson took Grand Champion for her carrot cake and Manzke won Grand Champion for her pecan pie - a double honor they've yet to repeat.
"There are so many good bakers and cooks who enter. It's amazing to see everything brought in. It's really an honor when you place," Manzke says. "It's really hard because of the level of competition."sugar person; I am," says Johnson, adding that her daughter also still has a special touch with breads. "I don't have that knack."
Manzke once won Grand Champion for her lemon raspberry sweetbread, a recipe she tweaked from one she had. And one year, their best year, Johnson took Grand Champion for her carrot cake and Manzke won Grand Champion for her pecan pie - a double honor they've yet to repeat.
"There are so many good bakers and cooks who enter. It's amazing to see everything brought in. It's really an honor when you place," Manzke says. "It's really hard because of the level of competition."
Jennifer Davis can be reached at 686-3249 or jdavis@pjstar.com.