Saturday, October 13, 2018

Over the past several years, Somethin’ Pumpkin has become a family-centered event which carries on not only the skill of cooking, but also the enjoyment of preparing food with family and friends.

Grand Prize Winner – Cassandra Evans
Recipe: Stuffed Pork with Pumpkin & Blue Cheese

Somethin’ Pumpkin is a cooking contest, pumpkin decorating contest, and festival designed by NC Cooperative Extension as part of Cotton Ginning Days. From growing and cooking with pumpkin, activities encourage families to connect with local agriculture, as well as community resources.

The contest includes six categories – main dish, desserts, miscellaneous, homegrown, youth:  ages 8-12, and youth:  ages 13-18. Entries are judged and displayed as part of Cotton Ginning Days. Cash prizes are awarded for first, second, and third place in each category, as well as a grand prize winner.

2018 HAPPENINGS

Congratulations to all participants of the 2018 Cooking Contest! With over 50 IMPRESSIVE pumpkin dishes, our judges had a very difficult time in selecting winners…but enjoyed every bite!

See our full photo album on Facebook:  @GastonExtensionHealthyLiving

Somethin’ Pumpkin 2018 Recipe Collection

2018 Contest Winners

Overall Grand Prize Winner: Cassandra Evans – Stuffed Pork with Pumpkin & Blue Cheese

Dessert Category:

• 1^st place:  Betty Jones – Mini Ginger-Pumpkin Cheesecakes
• 2^nd place:  Lucinda Thornburg – Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake
• 3^rd place:  Cassandra Evans – Pumpkin Cake Cheesecake with Pecan Caramel Drizzle

Main Dish:

• 1^st place:  Aaron Hines – Pumpkin Ravioli with Brown-Butter & Sage Sauce
• 2^nd place:  Debra Clancy – Harvest Pumpkin Tacos with Lime Crema
• 3^rd place:  Janet Bowen – Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

Miscellaneous :

• 1^st place:  Audrey Hunt – Slow Cooker Pumpkin Butter
• 2^nd place:  Don Keller – Pumpkin Poppers with BBQ Sauce
• 3^rd place:  Cassandra Evans – Fall Pumpkin “Fatbread”

Homegrown:

• 1^st place:  Sarah Scism – Pumpkin Casserole
• 2^nd place: Adrienne Jones – Pumpkin Caramel Swirled Cheesecake
• 3^rd place: Addison Brown – Pumpkin Cheesecake Sundaes

Youth:  Ages 8 – 12:

• 1^st place:  Payton Lenox – Pumpkin Cake with Maple Pecan Frosting
• 2^nd place:   Alaina Renn – Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
• 3^rd place:  Rylee Crocker – Pumpkin Bundt Cake

Youth:  Ages 13-18:

• 1^st place:  Caroline Ivester – Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
• 2^nd place:  Faith Waelz – Low Carb Pumpkin Mousse
• 3^rd place:  East Gaston High School Food & Nutrition II Students – Group #4:  Kourtney Beatty, Marissa Beatty, Brittany Hudspeth, Sierra Lineberger, Austin McLeroy, Steven Silva, and Logan Singleton – Pumpkin Brownies