FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, SEPT. 11, 2023

CONTACT:

Jill Taylor, entry department coordinator N.C. Mountain State Fair 828-687-1414 or jill.taylor@ncagr.gov

Opening weekend N.C. Mountain State Fair cooking contest winners announced

FLETCHER – Sharon Gates of Leicester took home two top prizes and a total of $300 in prize money in the N.C. Tomato Growers Association’s Fresh Tomatoes Contest and the N.C. Cattlemen’s Beef Council Classic Comfort Food Contest. Her winning recipes were Is That Really A Tomato Cake? and Buncombe’s Best Beefed Up Chili.  

Jennifer Currie of Clyde earned first-place honors and $200 for her Trout Chowder recipe in the N.C. Mountain Trout Cook-Off. Both contests were held during the opening weekend of the Mountain State Fair.

Gates also took home second-place honors and $150 for her Pesto Parmesan Baked Trout recipe in the trout contest. Second place in the tomato contest and $75 went to Chad McCall of Hendersonville for his Tomato Feta Salad. Second place and $150 in the beef contest went to Justin Pegg of Asheville for his Sloppy Joes wth Bacon recipe.

Third place in the tomato contest and $50 went to Carole Carter of Mountain Home for her Tricolor Tomato Tian.  Third place in the trout contest and $100 went to Martha Gates of Candler for her North Carolina Trout Tacos. Third place and $100 went to Jordan Robertson of Swannanoa in the beef contest for his Basil Pesto Meatball Skewers recipe.

Following are the winning recipes:

Is That Really a Tomato Cake?

Ingredients:

¾ cup vegetable oil                                                     1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup granulated sugar                                                1 teaspoon baking soda

½ cup brown sugar                                                      1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs                                                                          ½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract                                           4 medium NC tomatoes ( to make 2 cups pureed)

2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine oil and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla and stir. Sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and nutmeg and add to batter.

Remove tops from tomatoes and roughly chop. Add to a blender and puree until smooth. Pass tomato puree through a sieve to strain out any large chunks. Add two cups of tomato puree to batter.

Grease and flour a large loaf pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 55-60 minutes or until done in the middle. Yields 8-10 slices.

Trout Chowder

Ingredients:

• 4 trout
• 4 tablespoons butter  -2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 6 scallions – chopped (keep blub and tops separate)
• 2 cloves garlic  - 2 tablespoons butter
• 5 cups diced potatoes
• 1/4 cup white wine (optional)
• 2 cups water  - 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon thyme  
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup half-n-half

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a 9x13 baking dish, melt butter. Sprinkle trout with seasoning and bake 15-20 minutes or until flaky. In a large pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add celery, scallion bulbs and garlic. Cook on medium-high heat stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Add potatoes, wine, water, broth, thyme and bay leaf.

Bring to a boil Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 15 minutes. Stir in half-n-half and cream into the soup.  

Simmer until well incorporated – 5-7 minutes. Remove pot from heat. Remove bay leaf. Flake off chunks of fish with a fork and set aside. Gently stir in trout and scallion tops. Serves 6-8.

Buncombe’s Best Beefed Up Chili

Ingredients:

2 ½ lbs. of ground chuck                                                        2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce

½ cup chopped onions                                                           1 (28 oz.) large can crushed tomatoes

1 cup bell pepper, chopped                                                   1 (12 oz.) can diced tomatoes and green chilis

1 jalapeno pepper, ribs and seeds removed, minced      1 (12 oz.) can soda – Coke or Pepsi, etc.

1 teaspoon salt                                                                         1 (12 oz.) can soda – Coke or Pepsi, etc.

½ teaspoon ground black pepper                                         1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, drained

1 teaspoon garlic powder                                                       1 teaspoon chili powder                                 

2 cups beef broth

Directions:

In a large pot over medium heat, cook chuck until no longer pink, 5-6 minutes, while breaking apart meat with e spoon or spatula. Add all other ingredients and spices and lower heat to simmer.

Cook chili on low heat until ready to serve, at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

To serve, top bowls of chili with cheese, sour cream or additional chopped onions, or garnish as desired. Serve with tortilla chips or crackers. Yield 10-12 servings.

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