International Biscuitfest Bake-Off winner 2013

Christopher Lowe was crowned the winner of the 2013 International Biscuit Cook-off in Knoxville. In doing so Lowe will hold the title of Mr. Biscuit and claim bragging rights for the next year. This was Lowe's second year as a contest finalist. His entry last year, 'Southern Debutante', a Parmesan black pepper biscuit w/ fried pork medallion, apple compote and spicy mustard, won 1st place in the Special biscuit category. Lowe's Grand Champion Biscuit 'Fire on the Mountain', was inspired by a blackened fish appetizer he had in New Orleans. Lowe added a couple of twist and turns to turn that inspiration into his award winning entry and the rest is history. Fire on the Mountain Biscuit Biscuit ; 21/2 Cups all purpose flour, 1 Tablespoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1 1/2 sticks cold butter, 1 Cup chopped scallions, 3/4 Cup chopped cooked bacon, 1/2 cup cornmeal. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, pepper and salt. Cube butter into 1/2 inch cubes and add to flour mixture with your hands. Combine. Freeze mixture for 15 minutes. Remove from freezer and add; buttermilk, bacon and scallions. Don't over mix. Pat out into a 1 inch square and cut into rounds. Place on a silpat sheet lined baking. Brush with egg wash 9 1 egg beaten w/ 1 Tablespoon water)and Bake for 17 -21 minutes. Blacken Catfish Fillets 4 fresh skinless catfish fillets, Cajun Blackened seasoning, 2 Tablespoons butter, 1 Tablespoons canola oil, 1 Tablespoon lemon juice. Heat a cast iron pan with canola oil. Dust fish fillets w/ Cajun seasoning and fry on each side 2 minutes. Top fish with butter and lemon juice and finish cooking in a 400 degree oven for 5-10 minutes until done. Lime and Cilantro Creamy Slaw 2 Cups packaged chopped Cole slaw, 1/2 Cup sour cream, 1 lime, 1/2 Cup copped cilantro, 1 Tablespoons vnegar,1 Tablespoon sugar, salt & pepper. Mix together. Adult Honey Mustard 4 Tablespoons hot sauce, 2 Tablespoons honey Combine To Assemble: Slice biscuit. Place catfish on biscuit. Serve with Cole slaw and adult mustard.

International Biscuit Festival 2013

Well we are finally starting to recover from all the activities surrounding Knoxville's 4th annual biscuit festival. What a fun time! My biscuit entry 'Lemon-Lime Pecan Stick Biscuits won 1st place in the sweet division. I was so excited. I am always pleased to be chosen as a finalist in any cooking contest and am always surprised if I win. Lemon-lime Pecan Sticky Biscuits 2 Cups Self-Rising Flour ½ Cup Sour Cream ½ Cup + 3 Tablespoons Lemon-Lime Soda ½ Cup soft butter, divide ¼ Cup Cinnamon Sugar ¾ Cup Brown Sugar 1 Cup Pecan Halves Preheat oven to 400 degrees Combine to make the biscuit; 2 Cups Self-Rising Flour ½ Cup Sour Cream ½ Cup Lemon-Lime soda Knead lightly. Roll out on a floured board into a rectangle 6”x12”. Spread dough with ¼ cup soft butter. Sprinkle with ¼ cup cinnamon sugar. Roll up jelly roll style. Slice into 9 pinwheels. Grease a 9” baking pan with ¼ cup soft butter. Combine ¾ cup brown sugar with 3 Tablespoons lemon-lime soda. Pour into greased baking pan. Sprinkle on 1 cup pecan halves. Lay biscuit pin wheels over pecans. Bake in hot oven 400 degree Time 20-22 minutes or until light brown. Remove from oven and carefully turn onto serving dish. This is the Biscuit Festival's 4th year and every year it gets bigger and bigger. Two new sponsors to this year's festival were Southern Living Magazine and Pillsbury. Contestants came from as far away as Vermont and the variety of biscuits entered in the contest and sampled on Biscuit Boulevard was amazing. The Grand Prize winner was Christopher Lowe with his 'Fire on the Mountain' Biscuit. Christopher becomes the first Biscuit King and it was fun watching the excitement on his face when he won. Christopher's entry was in the Special Biscuit category. I will post his recipe as soon as I get it. Rounding out the finalist is Megan Fleming in the youth division with her' Big Orange Biscuit', and Matt Sandbank in the savory for 'Paige's Family Dinner' Biscuit.

International Biscuit Festival Biscuit Bash

Last night we attended the Biscuit Bash one of the events surrounding Knoxville's International Biscuit Festival. The Bash was billed as a 'Meet and Greet' for Biscuit Fest sponsors, Bake-Off finalist, judges, demonstrators, VIPs, Southern Food Writing Conference Speakers, attendees, friends and family. The menu featured a Taste of the South with chefs and cook book authors pulling out all stops to showcase their talent. Thanks Liz Thorpe author of " The Cheese Chronicles" and owner of The People's Cheese, I have a new favorite cheese Sandy Creek, from Goat Lady Farm in Climax, N.C. I was especially interested in sampling Julia Reed, contributing editor at Garden & Gun Magazine and 4 x Cookbook author's offering of Bacon Wrapped Watermelon. All I can say is "Yummy" and I can't wait to spring it on friends and family. Another hit of the evening came from Knoxville chef Holly Hambright, owner of Holly's Eventful Dining. The dish was Smoked Trout Cake with Pickled Pecan Remoulade. Chef and Cookbook author , Regina Carboneau also got my attention with her Shrimp and Grits. The evenings menu offered something for everyone. The food delicious and beautifully presented and no one went home hungry. Attendees were also treated to a new full length film from the Southern Foodways Alliance, 'Pride and Joy'. The documentary directed by Joe York featured providers of Southern food from Virginia to Texas. Two of my local favorites, Benton's Country Hall and Cruz Farms were featured in the film. The film was a wonderful end to a beautiful evening. And now today I head for Market Square, put on my apron and compete in the Biscuit Cook-Off. Wish me luck!!!

National Buttermilk Biscuit Day

Today is National Buttermilk Biscuit Day, something I found out thanks to Foodimentary blog; In Knoxville, this is Biscuit Week as the countdown begins for this year's International Biscuit Fest which runs Thursday through Saturday. This will be my third year participating in the Biscuit Contest. I grew up on biscuits made with Bisquick and when I married my Southern husband, he informed I should learn to make a true Southern biscuit. Doing my research I learned great biscuits begin with a soft wheat Southern flour like White Lily, buttermilk and love. The first year I entered a Bacon, Lettuce and Fried Green Tomato Biscuit in the Special ( Weird) category and came in 1st place in the category. The next year I went for an International entry with my Peruvian Chicken Biscuit, also in the special category and finished in 2nd place but got to meet Southern Cooking icon Natalie Dupree. Both entries used buttermilk as a main ingredient in my biscuit. This year I am entering a sweet biscuit and there is not a drop of Buttermilk in sight. It almost seems sacrilegious! So for now I am counting down the days to the Biscuit Cook-off and for another chance to take hope the trophy of Biscuit Queen. Stay tuned:)

Bloomin' Barbeque and Bluegrass Festival

One of my favorite festivals of the year is the Bloomin' Barbeque and Bluegrass Festival in Sevierville. This year's festival takes place May 17 & 18 and I can't wait. What can be better in Tennessee than Barbeque and Bluegrass and better yet ...it is free. Not the barbeque of course, but hungry visitors can choose from several 'que vendors, all displaying trophy's from past competitions at a reasonable price, stake out a spot in front of one of the bandstands and enjoy life. Friday night along with BBQ & music there is a kids burger cook off for those 6-16 years old. The following day 46 World Class Barbeque Cook-Off Teams compete in the Kansas City Royal BBQ Society Sanctioned Event to claim the trophy, $$$ prize and bragging rights for the year. What makes this event different from any other BBQ Cook-Off is it includes the Mountain Soul Competition. Sevierville is home to Dolly Parton and the Competition gives a chance for singers a chance to showcase their talent by singing one of the 3,000 songs written by Ms. Parton. Thirty finalist get a chance to preform and a winner is chosen from the kids division ( under 12 ) and the adult ( 12 + ) group. The winner receives a cash prize, a recording session in Nashville and a guitar autographed by Dolly. For more information about the Festival go to ; http://www.bloominbbq.com

Wild Ramps

Ramps, wild leeks or stinking onion, is a much loved sign of spring in Eastern Tennessee spawning festivals across the region. While West Virginia holds the title of most Ramp Festivals held each spring, Tennessee comes in a close second with Ramp Festivals held each spring dating back to 1959. Old timers speak of ‘ramps’ with nostalgia, recounting stories of going up to the mountains with their grandparents to harvest the pungent bulbs, and anticipation in enjoying this springs harvest. So for the uninitiated what are ramps, where are they found and what to do with them? Ramps/allium tricoccum Ramps are a member of the allium family. The flavor of ramps is a cross between an onion, leek and garlic. While the bulb resembles a spring onion, the top is broad and flat, resembling lily of the valley plants. Ramps are part of mountain folklore and used as a spring tonic as one of the first plants to emerge in the spring. Finding Ramps Ramps can be found growing from South Carolina north to Canada and west to Missouri and Oklahoma. They are found growing wild in the mountains and forest and prefer to be close to streams. Because of the growing popularity of ramps the state of Tennessee has listed the plant as ‘commercially exploited’, and in 2002 both Tennessee and North Carolina made it illegal to harvest ramps in the Smoky Mountains. Ramps may be ordered during their growing season from April to May from a West Virginia forager at http://www.bloggingwv.com/wild-ramps-for-sale/ Cooking Ramps A traditional ramp dinner consists of potatoes fried in bacon fat with ramps, eggs scrambled with ramps, striped meat (side meat/ bacon), beans and cornbread. The cleaned ramps are chopped including both the bulbs and leafy greens and par boiled for 10 minutes; drain and add to the potatoes or eggs while frying. Boiled ramps are also eaten as a green vegetable, with pasta, soups and any dish that calls for leeks. Tennessee Ramp Festivals Unfortunately the oldest Ramp Festival in Tennessee, The Cosby Ramp Festival, has been cancelled. The festival began in 1954, and brought dignitaries from around the nation including President Harry Truman, to the Smoky Mountains to try the treasured allium. Fortunately other communities around Tennessee have continued the Ramp tradition; Tellico Plains Ramp Festival, Traditional dinner, crafts, entertainment; Third Saturday in April. http://Tellico-plains.blogspot.com/2012/03/ramp-festival Polk County Ramp Tramp Festival; since 1958 this is the place to go to learn to identify and dig ramps. The Wednesday before the festival volunteers meet and go out to dig the ramps. On Friday volunteers prepare the ramps and on the last Saturday in April the festival and dinner takes place. http://ramptramfestival.com Unicoi County has been celebrating ramps for 28 years. The event takes place the 2nd Saturday in May and is held at the Flag Pond Community Center. www.flafpond.com/festival/ramp/fest.htm