News & Announcements
The Crescent City Skillet Named Grand Prize Winner at 2004 National Cornbread Cook-Off
South Pittsburg, Tenn. (June 2004)- The Crescent City Skillet took the top prize in this year's National Cornbread Cook-Off, sponsored by Martha White and Lodge Cast Iron, and held in conjunction with the National Cornbread Festival.
Valerie Holt, a fourth grade teacher from Cartersville, Ga., developed her winning recipe with inspiration from New Orleans and Cajun cooking. Spicy sausage and shrimp are combined in a rich creamy cheese sauce, made by simply stirring together broth, cream and two cheeses. The cornbread topping, made with Martha White® Cornbread Creations® cornbread mix, cooks up soft and moist on the inside with a crisp golden brown crust.
Holt's original recipe earned her the top prize of $4000 cash and a FiveStar stainless steel range from Brown Stove Works of Cleveland, Tenn. She was crowned with a specially designed cast iron tiara during the award ceremonies
"I am so pleased with this year's winning recipes," said Linda Carman, Martha White® spokesperson. "They are all imaginative and taste great, but are not too complicated to prepare. In fact, all the recipes are made with convenient Martha White® cornbread mixes and other timesaving ingredients."
Entrants were asked to submit original main dish recipes prepared with Martha White® corn meal or cornbread mix and cooked in Lodge® Cast Iron cookware. Cheered on by festival-goers, ten finalists cooked their original recipes under a big tent on FiveStar gas ranges. A panel of food experts judged the prepared dishes and selected the winners.
Leah Lyon, an elementary school computer teacher from Ada, Okla., won second place and a $500 cash prize for her Pesto Cornbread with Chicken and Sun-Dried Tomato Streusel. Leah used some shortcut ingredients, like a cornbread mix and prepared pesto, to create a unique recipe that is easy to make. Seasoned with basil pesto, olive oil, marinated sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan and Mozzarella cheeses, the flavors in this dish are distinctly Mediterranean and definitely delicious.
This year's third place prize and $300 was awarded to Ashley Brock for her Sausage Gravy Breakfast Skillet. Perfect for a weekend brunch, her recipe is a comforting combination of hot sausage, gravy mix, and boiled eggs baked under a moist cornbread topping. Ashley, 19, of New Albany, Ohio, has the distinction of being the youngest finalist to participate in the National Cornbread Cook-Off. She is a computer science/engineering major at Ohio State University.
Other National Cornbread Cook-Off finalists were Kathryn Aycock, Knoxville, Tenn.; Emily Habel, Shelbyville, Tenn.; Sherilyn Johnson, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Ruth Kendrick, Ogden, Utah; David King, Ashland, Ky.; Sandi Klinger, Auburn, Ala.; and TerryAnn Moore, Oaklyn, N.J.
The National Cornbread Cook-Off is held each year the last full weekend in April in conjunction with the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, Tenn. Contest rules and entry requirements for the 2005 National Cornbread Cook-Off will be available in December and can be found after the first of the year on the Martha White web site - www.marthawhite.com.