That’s right! It was a day full of foodie fun at the 4th Annual Hood New England Dairy Cook-Off this past Sunday at the Providence Convention Center in Providence, RI. At the event, 30 semi-finalists were narrowed down to five finalists in each category and these five competed on live TV for the $10,000 prize.
I went with my friend Jane who blogs at Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms. This is our second year attending the event. Click here to check out last year’s post.
We arrived on Saturday and stayed overnight at the Wyndham Garden Hotel in Providence. If you’ve been following along, you would know that I gave away an overnight stay and two tickets to the event. I didn’t get a chance to meet my winner, but I hope she had a great time! The Wyndham had very nice accommodations – even sleep number beds in each room. That was an unexpected surprise. (65 in case you were wondering.)
The semi-finalists competed throughout the day. We actually caught the Lunch/Dinner (entree) and the Dessert portions of the event. I was able to sample a Sour Cream Potato Gnocchi with Tomato Cream Sauce (Lunch/Dinner) and two desserts – Flanuccino and Cranberry Limóncello Tarts in a Gingersnap Hazelnut Crust. I loved the Flanuccino which was a coffee flavored flan/custard with a wonderful cookie-type crust. Click here to see all 30 semi-finalists and their dishes.
During this time, we met up with several other New England bloggers covering the event. I enjoyed meeting these super-nice ladies. Thanks to Carly for taking this photo.
My family kept asking me what I would be making for the Cook-Off. The same thing I made last year! Nothing! I’m happy to just watch the competition. I could never compete against these very talented home cooks. In fact, the 30 semi-finalists, who competed throughout the day, were narrowed down from over 1,000 recipes. One amateur chef from each New England state competed in each category. Competitors had only 60 minutes to prepare and plate their dishes. All recipes were original and included at least one Hood dairy product and were judged based on taste appeal, presentation/appearance, and creativity/originality.
Those 30 semi-finalists were narrowed to these five finalists.
Breakfast/Brunch: Jean Dziedzinski of Chelmsford, MA – Late Summer Layered Crustless Quiche
Soups/Chowders: Kevin Towle of Gonic, NH – Heaven & Hell Chowder
Appetizers/Side Dishes: Forrest White of Williston, VT – Acorn Squash’n’Blossom Fritter with Vichyssoise Shooter
Lunch/Dinner (Entrée): William Gillard of Damariscotta, ME – Ocean Bounty Creamery
Dessert: Mary Jo Fletcher LaRocco of North Kingston, RI – Cranberry Limóncello Tarts in a Gingersnap Hazelnut Crust
Before the finalists started cooking, we attended the VIP reception where we had some munchies (like last year’s finalist Marie Connor’s Mystic Magic Chocolate Tarts) and were able to sample some Hood products. I tried the Caramel Hood Egg Nog. I love caramel, so this was a sweet treat for me. Shaw’s Supermarket was the Official Supermarket of the event.
Billy Costa from the New England Cable News show “TV Diner” hosted the event again this year as the finalists prepared their dishes in front of a live audience for the $10,000 grand prize.
The final round judges included Celebrity Chef Michele Ragussis. Michele was featured on Food Network Star Season 8, Chopped, and 24 Hour Restaurant Battle.
Each finalist had to describe their recipe to the judges including which Hood product was used in the dish. Here, finalist Forrest White of Williston, VT serves his Acorn Squash’n’Blossom Fritter with Vichyssoise Shooter. The judges really loved the contrast of the warm fritter with the cold soup shooter (Vichyssoise). Was it enough to win?
Not quite! The $10,000 winner was Mary Jo Fletcher LaRocco of North Kingston, RI who made Cranberry Limóncello Tarts in a Gingersnap Hazelnut Crust. I am happy to report that as I mentioned, I had a chance to sample this earlier in the day. It was delicious – a dessert full of flavors like tart (yet sweet) cranberries and tart (yet sweet) lemon and a super-sweet gingersnap crust – a real treat for the pallet. (Do I sound like a judge?)
Mary Jo has entered 4 years in a row and finally took home the grand prize. I was thrilled that I caught her reaction!
“I have been competing in the Cook-Off since it started four years ago and have been vying for the Grand Prize ever since, “ said Mary Jo Fletcher LaRocco. “I have always loved to cook and create new recipes for my family and friends and am so excited I finally won the $10,000.”
This winning recipe can be found on Hood.com.
The other finalists didn’t go home empty handed. For their efforts, they received $500 each.
The Cook-Off will air on TV Diner in November.
Many thanks to Carly and Hood for the hotel stay and tickets to the event.
Sounds like you guys had a blast! And your hotel room is so nice. How lucky that you guys got to get away!
We do not get these products where I live, but what an interesting Cook Off. I am glad that the lady that won that has been trying for so long finally won! I just looked at this recipe, and I can see why it won! It looks and sounds delicious!
I’m still thinking about how much fun we had and how much talking we do when we get together! I hope we can do it all again next year!
I have a 2 house in VT an we love Hood products,,they are so good an looks like you had a good time
Looks like you had a great time. It’s nice to see everyone when home with something.
What an awesome fun trip, in a ton of ways it looks like!! Love the pics. Glad you had a good time.
I’ve never been to a cook-off but I think it would be quite fun. I do all the food preparation at my house and really enjoy it . It would be even better to be a judge!
Sounds like a very wonderful time! I would love to have done that!!!
wow looks like so much fun
This event sounds amazing. Wish they had more events like this throughout the year!
I’ve never been to a cook-off, this one looks like so much fun!