Hemet’s Janelle Flores and Lake Elsinore’s Robin Ralls received exceptional division awards at the San Diego County Fair’s baked and decorated meals and candy opposition.
Flores entered a Southern banana nut cake that was given first-class of the department and gained the first vicinity in the department aside from indexed elegance. Ralls received the department’s first-rate within the shortbreads and pastries division for her bread, which also gained the first vicinity in the department aside from listed sweet elegance.
The exceptional division cake becomes a Southern banana nut cake.
“It’s very moist and extraordinary,” Flores said.
The cake was a nine-inch, triple-layer cake before being cut into slices. Its primary components were bananas, nuts, and buttermilk. Flores flavored the cake with vanilla. Nuts were sprinkled on the frosting and inside the cake. The cake was no longer decorated.
“It’s just very wet, no longer to candy and a lovely cake,” Flores said.
Flores was born in New Orleans but raised in Chula Vista. She graduated from Castle Park High School and became a San Diego County resident for most of her life earlier than moving to Hemet from Escondido three and one-half years ago. She lived briefly inside the Chicago suburb of Elk Grove Village and gained Chicago-place baking contests.
The Chicago-area contests had been Flores’ only opposition before joining the San Diego County Fair 2003.
“I enjoy going to the truthful,” Flores stated. “The Del Mar Fair’s an excellent vicinity to reveal the wares.”
The San Diego County Fair in Del Mar became formally known as the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001.
Flores’ cakes gained a high-quality display for the baked and adorned foods, and a sweet portion of the house and hobby were showcased in 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2010.
“My cakes pretty an awful lot win almost yearly,” she said.
In 2017, Flores took the first location within the desserts division’s chocolate magnificence for her darkish chocolate cake with chocolate ganache. The home and interest show-off also has unmarried-day contests, and in the closing year, Flores won the Spam contest.
The cakes department had bundt, cupcake, fruitcake, and pound categories apart from the indexed class.
“I’m usually surprised,” Flores said of her fine of department award.
“I’m delighted that I did,” Flores said, triumphing great of division. “I’m very pleased.”
Flores also entered pumpkin pecan bread, which was not placed within the shortbreads and pastries department’s fruit magnificence.
“It’s a wonderful showcase,” Flores stated. “They do an exceptional task there.”
The subject of this 12 months, the San Diego County Fair, changed into “Oz-some” and honored the 80th anniversary of the “Wizard of Oz” film. Ralls gained her high-quality division award for what she called Yellow Brick Road lemon loaf.
“That turned into quite outstanding, so I sense quite glad,” Ralls said.
“I have wanted to do lemon as it’s a nice summer season flavor,” Ralls stated. “Since the theme becomes the ‘Wizard of Oz,’ I think doing the yellow brick lemon loaf would be lovable.”
For her lemon loaf, Ralls used hand-squeezed lemon juice and “lemon dust,” made from grated lemon peel.
“It offers it lots of taste,” she stated. “it’s all herbal flavors. I assume that’s what sets it aside.”
Apart from indexed, sweet elegance became one of six items in the brief bread and pastries division; the other five were banana, coffee cake, fruit, desserts, and zucchini.
“I recognize that shortbreads is a quite massive competitive category, and I had high hopes for it,” Ralls stated.
Ralls also won the satisfactory department award for shortbreads and pastries in 2017. Her cranberry orange cream cheese loaf with toasted pecans was also placed first in the department’s fruit, without or with nuts magnificence. Over the last twelve months, Ralls obtained third-area awards, including inside the apart from an indexed class of the quick bread and pastries department for her pumpkin pecan bread with praline glaze and one honorable mention ribbon.
“I redeemed myself,” Ralls stated of her first-class of department award after a one-year lapse.
Ralls first entered the baked and decorated meals and candy opposition in 2014, when she received a great division inside the sweets division for a Java chocolate chip truffle. In 2015, her carrot cake with cream cheese filling became a high-quality division for desserts, and her lemon creme truffle obtained a fine from the department for chocolates; 12 months later, her caramels dipped in dark chocolate received the first location in the dipped chocolate category that is in the equal department as the muffins class. Ralls did now not take first place in any courses in 2016.
The yeast bread and rolls department has seven classes, apart from listed and expert classes. Ralls took first place in the cinnamon bread or rolled magnificence category for her monkey bread cinnamon roll.
“I’m quite commemorated to get the primary place,” Ralls stated.
The monkey bread was cooked in a loaf pan. Ralls used cinnamon butter and honey sugar and crowned her advent with cream cheese frosting.
Ralls had now not formerly entered the yeast bread and rolls division.
“The monkey bread first location took me extra by way of surprise,” she stated.
An entry within the cheese magnificence took pleasant division for yeast bread and rolls and nice of the show for the baked and adorned meals and candy opposition.
Ralls introduced a second area within the sweet department’s muffins class for her Emerald City mint chip truffle; Paula Beck of Fallbrook took both first region and 1/3 place in that category.
“To get a 2d-place ribbon, I assume a pretty excellent putting,” Ralls stated.
Ralls did now not place for “Munchkindoodles” she entered in the drop, other than lislistinggthe munificence of the cookies department.
Ralls was raised in Vista and has lived in Lake Elsinore for 14 years.
“I changed into happy to get the effects this year,” Ralls said.
Murrieta’s Carin Greenfield took 1/3 of the region within the zucchini, plain or with the wild magnificence of the quick bread and pastries department. Greenfield baked zucchini bread with walnuts.
