SAVANNAH - Savannah's Potato Festival Cooking Contest has been a staple at the Potato Festival for the past 11 years.
The winner at last week's festival was Auburn resident Christine VanDuyne Bilynski, for her sweet potato cake, which won "Best in Show."
Anyone can enter the cooking contest, but there is only one rule to follow: all entries must include potato as an ingredient.
Even though Bilynski was born and grew up in Savannah, this is the first time she entered the contest. She found the recipe for her prize-winning cake on the Internet and tweaked it a little to suit herself.
"I just got married in August," said Bilynski. "I love to bake and I try new recipes all the time."
The contest was organized this year by Joyce Stowell of Savannah, who recruited Darrell Foster of Seneca Falls; and Sherlene Alvaro and Marge Wadhams, both of Lyons, to act as judges. As country music played over the loudspeakers and midway rides twirled in the background at last week's festival, the three judges tasted each entry thoughtfully and rated each on a number of factors, including appearance, taste, nutritional value and clarity of the recipe. Stowell, assisted by volunteer Carol Taylor, displayed each dish to the judges before giving them samples on paper plates and passing around the recipe for the judges to review. The names of the contestants were not revealed to the judges, who silently made notes and comments in their individual notebooks.
When the judges were finished, Stowell compiled their ratings and announced the winners at the festival. In addition to Bilynski's "Best of Show" award, first prizes were given in each of three categories: the main dish category was won by Pat Marriott, of Savannah, for her pork chop and potato casserole; the breads category was won by Monica Longer, of Newark, for her sweet potato apple streusel muffins; and the desserts category (with the largest number of entries by far) was won by Keeley Marchitell, of Clyde, for her mashed potato candy. The cash prize for "Best of Show" was $100 and each first prize winner will receive $35.
Stowell has worked on the contest for the past three years and is looking forward to an even bigger and better field of entries next year.
What will Bilynski do with her prize money?
"I'm taking my husband out to dinner," she said.
Anyone can enter the cooking contest, but there is only one rule to follow: all entries must include potato as an ingredient.
Even though Bilynski was born and grew up in Savannah, this is the first time she entered the contest. She found the recipe for her prize-winning cake on the Internet and tweaked it a little to suit herself.
"I just got married in August," said Bilynski. "I love to bake and I try new recipes all the time."
The contest was organized this year by Joyce Stowell of Savannah, who recruited Darrell Foster of Seneca Falls; and Sherlene Alvaro and Marge Wadhams, both of Lyons, to act as judges. As country music played over the loudspeakers and midway rides twirled in the background at last week's festival, the three judges tasted each entry thoughtfully and rated each on a number of factors, including appearance, taste, nutritional value and clarity of the recipe. Stowell, assisted by volunteer Carol Taylor, displayed each dish to the judges before giving them samples on paper plates and passing around the recipe for the judges to review. The names of the contestants were not revealed to the judges, who silently made notes and comments in their individual notebooks.
When the judges were finished, Stowell compiled their ratings and announced the winners at the festival. In addition to Bilynski's "Best of Show" award, first prizes were given in each of three categories: the main dish category was won by Pat Marriott, of Savannah, for her pork chop and potato casserole; the breads category was won by Monica Longer, of Newark, for her sweet potato apple streusel muffins; and the desserts category (with the largest number of entries by far) was won by Keeley Marchitell, of Clyde, for her mashed potato candy. The cash prize for "Best of Show" was $100 and each first prize winner will receive $35.
Stowell has worked on the contest for the past three years and is looking forward to an even bigger and better field of entries next year.
What will Bilynski do with her prize money?
"I'm taking my husband out to dinner," she said.
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