82-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 5, 2000 PeopCc Wko Maty Ike LOU ANN GOOD Lancaster Farming Staff NORTH CORNWALL (Leba non Co.) Swingin’ at the 44th annual Lebanon Area Fair, from July 29-Aug. 5, included lots of new entertainment this year, but it’s the traditional competitions and food that continue to pro vide day-to-day enjoyment for thousands of people. From 5 a.m. to midnight, vol unteers keep busy preparing and serving food, and of course, cleaning up the mess. Catherine Schott, who is in charge of The Eatery, said that 3Vi tons of po tatoes are turned into French fries. Some of the other amounts needed to satisfy the cravings of fair visitors include 900 pounds of soup, 1,200 hamburgers, 800 of pounds pork barbecue, and 40,000 drinks. Required daily are three shifts with 25-30 people on all shifts. “I want to stress that these are all volunteers. None of us are paid for the eight days. It’s Queen, Beth Kreider wrote an essay on what the fair means to her, presented a 3-5 minute speech, an swered the impromptu question about ethics and how it affects her genera tion, and underwent the in terviewing process. The 16-year-old is one busy lady this week. She arises early to pick produce to sell at the family farm’s road side stand before rushing off to represent the fair. Danette Ocker, right, shows off her Apple Streusel Pie that placed first and enables her to advance to state com petition. Dot Martin placed second. amazing how everyone pitches in to get the work done,” Schott said. Schott celebrated her 65th birthday during fiklr week. She said, “I love what I do. I hate to fetire.” In her years at the fair, Schott has watched several generations grow up and help her in the kitchen. Baking competitions include a mix of old and new names. An ecstatic Danette Ocker, Myers town, claimed the top prize in the Blue Ribbon Apple Pie con test. Last year, she took second place, so this year, she used a new recipe. The unusual aspect of her recipe is that it uses yellow deli cious apples. “I’m diabetic, so I don’t want to add much sugar,” Ocker said of her choice of the apple vari ety. Ocker is following in the footsteps of her grandmother, who was an award winner. Ocker’s hobby is baking and one that was perfected with the oversight of her grandmother and mother. In competition, Ocker also en tered and received ribbons for shoofly pie, apple oatmeal cof feecake, oatmeal whoopie pie, pumpkin cookies, and zucchini bread. At this point, Ocker only enters her local fair, but she is considering doing what many others are doing traveling the fair circuit to enter other county fairs. Dot and Oeb Martin are a mother and daughter team from the southern end of Lancaster County. The two are prolific bakers who have garnered hun dreds of ribbons from local fairs and from the Pennsylvania Farm Show. At the Lebanon Fair, Deb took first place in the Hershey’s Cocoa Cake contest. She’s keep ing her recipe a secret in quest for the state competition. Her mother Dot placed second in the apple pie contest with her cream cheese streusel pie. Another mother and daughter duo who enter numerous fairs also had a good reward at the Lebanon Fair. Katie Myers, Dal lastown, took first place with her chocolate brownies. The 16- year-old is a former first-place winner at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in the same cate gory. Katie’s mom, Belinda, placed third in the chocolate cake con test. Belinda baked the best cake in the state at the Farm Show three years ago. Mollie Knause, 11, placed second with her Black Forest Brownies. Two years ago, she also placed second at the Leba non Fair. Her sister Emilee and mother Connie are former top winners in baking competition at Lebanon. In her first competition, Tara Dice, 10, took third prize for her S’mores Brownies. “My mom made me enter,” the 10-year-old said. Tara wasn’t complaining. She hopes to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Her mom Lori re ceived the Homemaker Award of the Year this year. This was her fourth year in placing in that category, but the first time to walk away with the top prize. Competition for the Home maker of the Year involves set ting up a display that includes two sewing articles, a craft, a canned item, and a baked item. Lori set up an eye-appealing display by covering the table with a folk-art chicken theme. Inside an authentic chicken crate was the replica of a hen. Surrounding the display to illus trate her homemaking skills were a quillow, canned peaches, apron, flowers, decoupage plate, flowers, and a plate of molasses cookies. Here are some of the winning recipes for readers to enjoy. Chocolate Cherry Cream Cake Cake: 2 cups sugar 1 cup butter 1 teaspoon vanilla V* cup sour cream 2 cups buttermilk 2 eggs 2Vi cups cake flour 1 cup baking cocoa 2 teaspoons baking soda Grease three 8-inch cake pans. Cream sugar and butter to gether. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Mix flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Blend into creamed mixture alternately with sour cream and buttermilk. Divide dough batter evenly between three prepared pans. Bake in 325-degree oven for 30-35 minutes. Cool. Place one layer on doily-covered cake board. Cherry Cream Filling; 3-ounce package cooked va nilla pudding 1 cup evaporated milk Cook in smalt saucepan over medium heat until mixture thickens. Cool. Cream: Vi cup butter 1 cup sugar Vi teaspoon vanilla Vi cup shortening Beat butter, sugar, vanilla, and shortening in large mixer bowl until fluffy, approximately 10 minutes. Fold in cooked pud ding mixture. Blend well. Add 1 cup chopped cherry pie filling and 1 tablespoon Kirsch cherry liquor. Fold in completely. Icing: V/i cups butter 1 cup cocoa 1 tablespoon vanilla 6 cups confectioners’ sugar Melt together cocoa and butter. Stir until smooth. Place all ingredients in large mixer bowl. Gradually add drops of milk until icing is of spreading consistency. fair Qo 'Hound Part of the crew that feeds fairgoers include these vol unteers, clockwise from front, Chelsea Horst, 11; Cathe rine Schott, chairman of the food stands; Dustin Lentz, 12; Mark Ruhl, 13; Kevin Kreider, 13; Eric Ziegler, 14; and Kirby Horst, fair board member and dairy committee chair man. To assemble cake: Split or torte each cake layer in half. In between layers, spread Vi cup cherry cream fill ing. Continue to layer each layer ending with cake. Frost cake with icing. Decorate top of cake with cherry cream, cherries, and chocolate. Makes one three-layer 8-inch round cake. Belinda Myers S’mores Brownies Vi cup butter, melted 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 eggs Vi cup unsifted flour Deb Martin, left, baked the best cake in the Hershey’s Cocoa Cake Contest, and Belinda Myers, last year’s first place winner, placed third. 'A cup baking cocoa Va teaspoon baking powder Va teaspoon salt Topping: 1 cup mini marshmallows Vi cup mini chocolate chips Vi cup fine chopped nuts Mix together butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 de grees. Remove from oven and spread on topping in order listed. Bake 5 more minutes. Place on cooling rack and cool completely. Cut into squares. Makes 9-12 brownies. (Turn to Pago B 9) Tara Dice
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