News & Announcements
Chicken Taco Cornbread Wedges Sweeps 2007 National Cornbread Cook-Off
SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. (May 2007) - Chicken Taco Cornbread Wedges with Ranchero Cilantro Drizzle was named the grand prize winner of the 2007 National Cornbread Cook-Off, sponsored by Martha White® and Lodge® Cast Iron and held in conjunction with the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, Tenn.
The competitors served up quite a bit of competition as food experts from across the country judged main-dish cornbread recipes. The ten finalists were chosen to compete from more than 700 entries nationwide. Entrants were asked to submit original, main dish recipes prepared with Martha White® cornmeal or cornbread mix and cooked in Lodge® cast iron cookware.
"This year's recipe entries prove that cast iron and cornbread continue to be a source of great inspiration for creative cooks," said Linda Carman, the Martha White® baking expert. "We are extremely pleased to have these contemporary main dish recipes to share with cornbread lovers everywhere."
Jenny Flake from Gilbert, Ariz., created the grand prize winning recipe Chicken Taco Cornbread Wedges with Ranchero Cilantro Drizzle by expanding on the ever-popular taco theme. A cornbread crust, accented with crushed corn chips, is topped with a spicy chicken, tomato and green chile filling. The dish is sprinkled with cheese and baked up in a cast iron skillet. For a special finishing touch, wedges of cornbread are topped with romaine, tomatoes and a drizzle of Jenny's special cilantro sauce - an easy-to-make combination of ranch dressing, salsa verde and cilantro.
Flake's original main dish recipe earned her the top prize of $5,000 and a FiveStar® stainless steel range from Brown Stove Works, Inc., of Cleveland, Tenn. As friends and family cheered with excitement, she was crowned with a specially designed Lodge® "Cast Iron Tiara" during the award ceremonies.
Lanie Smith of Topeka, Kan., won second place and a $500 cash prize for her Caribbean Cornbread Crab Cakes. Smith added delicate flavor and texture to her crab cakes by using cooked, crumbled cornbread in the seafood mixture. Browned in a cast iron skillet and topped with a fresh mango salsa, this recipe was a big hit with the cook-off judges.
Other National Cornbread Cook-Off finalists were Debbi Bracker, Carl Junction, Mo.; Melinda Kay Bell, Lake Village, Ark.; Sherry Klinedinst, South Bend, Ind.; Bev Jones, Brunswick, Mo.; Betty Cariaco, Peachtree City, Ga.; Veronica Callaghan, Glastonbury, Conn.; and Renata Stanko, Lebanon, Ore.
The twelfth annual National Cornbread Cook-Off will be held April 26, 2008, in conjunction with the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, Tenn. Contest rules and entry requirements for the 2008 National Cornbread Cook-Off will be available after the first of the year at www.marthawhite.com
A leading manufacturer of Southern baking mixes and ingredients, Martha White® was founded in Nashville, Tenn., in 1899.
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