|| From The Judges Corner ||

It’s a dirty job but someone has to do it. Have a seat Mike Rowe, I’ve got this one covered. There are some things that people were born to do. I was born to judge people… in a bake-off.


As far as Tuesday mornings at the office go, this ranked among the best. Laid out before myself and the other judges were an array of deserts that could send the healthiest of people into a diabetic shock. We had pumpkin, we had chocolate, we had apple, I had collapsed in a sugar coma. I will say, when there is a smorgasbord-of-delicious laid out in the office, I feel bad having “more” than my share but being a judge means you get ONE OF EVERYTHING. I later found out that’s not necessarily a good thing.


Right out of the gate we had a clear front runner – pumpkin, white chocolate chip cookies. Simple, I know but the time and care that went into these… It really showcased the bakers expertise. They were moist but with a nice crust on the bottom. Not that thick char that I usually get. These morsels of heaven landed a strong 3rd in the competition.


In 2nd place, was my favorite, an apple pie with a delicious brown sugar and nut crumble. The apples were soft but not mushy. The crumble was a nice compliment without being overpowering. I’m salivating just thinking about it.


And the winner on the day was an office favorite – pumpkin cheesecake with a caramel drizzle. This judge is still challenging who actually baked it but unfortunately the criteria for the competition was on taste alone.

What a day. What a breakfast. Way to go Renegades. Anyone interested in a Christmas cookie bake-off? Or a birthday cake cook-off? Hot dog eating contest? Never mind. I’m going to lunch…




-- Jim Luparello Account Extraordinaire Lover of Little Debbie, Judger Of All