07/30/2007

Cooking is fair game

Kids enter foods in fairs for fun, ribbons

By CYMBRE FOSTER
Special to the Record-Eagle

Special to the Record-Eagle/
Joanie Moore
Katie Hinds with her homemade jam. Hinds is among area young people who submit food for fair compe- titions.

Katie Hinds has been spending time in the kitchen since she was a preschooler.

Today, at the ripe old age of 12, she can whip up a batch of brownies or a cake without any adult help.

There are still many northern Michigan families like Katie's that are carrying on the tradition of baking and cooking from scratch, often said to be a lost art in today's society that often opts for the convenience of ready-made food. Like dozens of other children, Katie will have the opportunity to showcase her culinary talents at the county fair in August.

Fair cooking competitions give children — many 4-H participants — a venue where traditional home arts like baking and canning are paid homage.

Katie, who lives in Mancelona, said she learned to bake from her mom.

"She helps me to measure if I need it,” she said.

Katie will enter her home-cooked creations in the Antrim County Fair, which runs Aug. 9-11 at Craven Park in Bellaire.

"I'm not sure what I'll be doing this year, I'm still thinking about it,” she said. "I'm thinking maybe raspberry jam.”

Categories include candy, food preservation, which includes goodies like jams, jellies and pickles, and culinary arts with baked goods such as breads, cakes and cookies. Each entry must be made from scratch, and entrants answer questions from the judges about how they were made. Judges also take into account how the item looks when choosing a winner.

At the Antrim County Fair last year, children comprised the majority of the food entries. There were 25 children, mostly teenagers, accounting for 80 of the 95 entries, according to fair treasurer Gloria Campbell.

In past years, Katie has entered an array of treats like caramel corn, strawberry jam, banana nut cake, apple dumpling pie and cookies.

"I won a purple ribbon, which is first prize, for my caramel corn,” she said proudly. "My mom had the recipe for years and we made it a couple of times first.”

Her banana nut cake also took first place.

Linda Hinds, Katie's mom, helps her daughter decide what to enter and in other ways as necessary.

"We look through cookbooks and the fair book and see what we'd like to do,” she said.

The Swain children of Mancelona also take part in the Antrim County Fair, not only entering food they've stirred up in the kitchen but also fresh fruit and vegetables from their family's half-acre garden.

"The day of the fair, the kids go out into the garden and choose what they want to enter so we never know what we'll take until the last minute,” said mom Crystal.

Daughter Carol, 12, was named horticulturist of the year because she entered so much, said Crystal. Carol also took home a blue ribbon for her lemon blueberry cake.

Crystal said that they haven't decided what they'll be baking this year.

"We always like to try different things,” she said.

The Haven family in Kingsley looks forward to competing at the annual Northwestern Michigan Fair. This year Lydia, 17, has decided to enter the cake-decorating competition.

"I looked through the fair book and decided that maybe it would be fun to do,” she explained.

Lydia has never decorated a cake before, but her sister has a friend who will help. Meanwhile, 13-year-old sister Esther is sticking to craft entries this year, but has entered peanut butter cookies and angel food cake in past years.

Esther said she has her grandmother to thank for her success in the kitchen.

"My grandma is a really good cook and helped me with my entries,” she said.

Ian Mielke, 14, typically enters his blueberry muffins in the Northwestern Michigan Fair, held Aug. 5-11 this year.

"I have a trusty recipe,” he said, "And they get better each time I make them.”

His blueberry muffins have won first and second place in the past.

"I entered chocolate cookies once, but I think I forgot an ingredient,” said the Traverse City teen.

Mielke learned to cook from his mom and said he enjoys working in the kitchen.

"I think it's fun cooking and it's also interesting; things don't always come out the same,” he said.

For most of the kids, entering food at the fair isn't so much about taking home the blue ribbon but spending time with loved ones and being part of the event.

"What was fun for me was being with my grandma in the kitchen,” said Esther.

Katie said she does it simply because it's "really fun.”

"It doesn't matter about the ribbon,” she said. "It's about the fun you have.”

Blueberry Muffins

• 2 c. sifted flour
• 4 t. baking powder
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 t. salt
• 1 c. frozen or canned blueberries, drained or 1 c. frozen or canned tart cherries (drained)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. melted butter
• 1 c. milk
• Cinnamon and Sugar Topping:
• 1/8 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 c. sugar
• Paper muffin cups

Place paper cups in ungreased muffin tins. Sift dry ingredients together in large bowl. Add blueberries or cherries to dry mix and mix until well coated. In a small bowl, beat eggs well. Add melted butter and milk. Quickly stir liquid mixture into dry mix. Do not overmix as overblending will cause a tough texture. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full, and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon topping. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes until brown. Makes 12-14 muffins.

— Ian Mielke's recipe, from "Favorite Recipes” from Boder's On-the-River and The Woolen Mill Inn in Wisconsin

Chili Sauce

• 1 peck tomatoes
• 8 onions
• 3 large green peppers, seeds removed and chopped
• 3 large red peppers, seeds removed and chopped
• 4 c. brown sugar
• 4 c. white sugar
• 2&1/2 c. white vinegar
• 3 T. salt
• 1 bunch celery including leaves, chopped
• 10 large apples, peeled and chopped
• Black pepper to taste
• 1/2 t. ginger
• 3 T. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. cloves
• 1/2 t. nutmeg
• 1/2 t. allspice

Boil tomatoes for a brief period until skins start to crack. Remove from water and remove skin. Mix all ingredients together and cook until reduced to desired thickness. Prepare jars and follow normal canning process. Makes a good sloppy joe base.

—Carol Swain (her great-grandmother's recipe)

Lemon and Blueberry Tea Cake

• 1&1/2 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 2&1/3 c. flour
• 8 T. butter, room temperature
• 1 t. cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c. half and half
• 1/2 c. sour cream
• Juice of two lemons
• 2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 2&1/2 c. fresh blueberries
• 2 T. grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 375°. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan.

In a small mixing bowl, combine 1/4 c. of the sugar, brown sugar, 1/3 c. flour, 4 T. butter and 1/2 t. cinnamon. Mix until the topping is incorporated. Using an electric mixer, cream the remaining sugar and butter together. Add the egg, half and half, sour cream and lemon juice, blending until smooth.

In a mixing bowl, sift the remaining flour, baking powder, salt and remaining cinnamon together. With the machine running, slowly add the flour until all the flour is incorporated. Fold in the blueberries and lemon zest. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the topping on top of the batter. Bake the bread for about 50 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Remove the pan from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Remove the bread from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Slice and serve.

— Emeril Lagasse