Great Butler Bake Off served up prizes, sweetness Saturday
The inaugural Great Butler Bake Off at Butler Art Center and Gallery was a treat for all those in attendance Saturday, April 20, and getting a slice of each entry was just the cherry on top.
The competition was stiff, with nine contestants vying for a prize, but each masterpiece was praised by the judges and the slew of audience members who showed up to get a piece of the action.
Courtney McNamara, marketing and education director at the art center, said the event was the first of its kind. The only requirements to enter were contestants had to be amateurs.
“We’ve been trying to incorporate more of the arts,” she said. “I just like bringing the community together, bringing in new people.”
Bakers ranging from teens to adults brought their confections before the three judges: Barry Cummings, owner of Cummings Candy & Coffee; Brittany Furka, owner of Harvey’s Sweet Shoppe; and Linda Martsolf, owner of Sugar Store and More.
Audience members were transfixed as the judges held up a slice of each cake and tasted it. Each judge would then comment on how the sweets measured up to the categories they were judged on, which included presentation and creativity.
The cakes ranged from pistachio to whoopie pie to strawberry lemonade.
Two bakers created chocolate cakes from family recipes. Hannah Anderson, of Renfrew, said her cake comes from her maternal and paternal grandmothers.
“The icing is from one side and the cake is from another side,” she said.
Anderson said she has baked for her family dinners on Sunday.
“They wouldn’t have said to enter it in a competition if they didn’t approve of it,” she laughed. “For my family, I don’t typically decorate. I think that was my biggest struggle.”
Alessia Hammond, of Slippery Rock, has been baking since she was 8 years old. She was one of the youngest to participate in the competition at only 14.
“It’s my great-grandmother’s recipe,” she said.
When it came to the icing and the ganache on her creation, she said she trusted herself to do some guesswork.
“They were just eyeballed,” she said.
While the judges convened, people got a chance to taste the cakes themselves. Brenda Hunter, of Seven Fields, and Sue Miller, of Etna, tested them while wearing their finest hats
“It’s like the ‘British Bake Off, ” said Hunter, who sported a pink sun hat, said. “And (Miller) said if I don’t wear a hat, she wouldn’t take me.”
Hunter said she was impressed by the pistachio blood orange cake, which was topped with cannolis.
“It was different. That blood orange icing was fabulous. And the cannolis on top, you can’t beat that,” she said.
Miller ended up picking the winning cake, which was titled “Murder on the Dance Floor” after the famous pop song. Topped with disco balls and featuring flavors of chocolate and maraschino cherries, the judges awarded it first place.
“Cherry and chocolate always go together,” Miller said.
Julia Stobert, of Cabot, was the brains behind the winning cake. She said she has been baking all of her life, often providing the desert at family functions.
The recipe intrigued her because of the decorating techniques, and she even made a test cake in advance of the competition to get it right.
“I was excited about the drip, I wanted it to look a little bloody,” she said. “I just wanted to step out of my comfort zone. I learned a lot, especially with getting the colors right.”
What the judges enjoyed most about the competition was how it showcased the talents of others.
“It was very good. For nonprofessional bakers, it was stellar. There was a lot of creativity,” Martsolf said.
“I was very impressed by the flavor combinations,” Furka said.
“I thought all the contestants did a lot with their presentation,” Cummings said. “I think the best thing about it is I got to meet the other judges. We got a bunch of people in the same room at the same time with commonalities.”
