War of the cupcake

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Nicholas Benroth
  • 23rd Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Five teams let the icing fly Jan. 24, 2012 during Moody's first Cupcake Wars competition which had the teams going head to head for the title of best baker.

Each team had one hour to cook, decorate and plate three different types of cupcakes before time ran out and they were brought before the judges.

The teams began the competition by learning one of the most important things, the theme that the cupcakes would need to resemble.

This was left a mystery until the competition was about to begin then the teams were told the theme "Winter Wonderland" which came as a surprise to some of the teams.

"Coming into the competition we tried different types of cupcakes and planed for different themes we could use," said Rachel Holder, a member of team Tasty Tiger Baking Company. "The theme winter wonderland really took us by surprise but I think we handled it pretty well."

The teams were gathered and given 10 minutes before the start to collect whatever ingredients they would need to bake their cupcakes, and after those 10 minutes were up the clock began to and the teams set off.

Each team had their own set of cooking utensils and an oven to cook their cupcakes with. The rules of the Cupcake Wars stated that each team had to have three different types of cupcakes with the theme that was given to them.

As the teams baked in the kitchen, supporters watched on the live feed from in the kitchen and cheered on their friends as they raced against the clock.

As the teams were baking away the panel of judges consisting of Col. Christopher Short, 23d Wing vice commander, Chief Master Sgt. Frank Batten, 23d WG command chief, Maj. Brian Freeman, 23rd Force Support Squadron commander, and a special judge Pam Kalil, a bakery owner in Valdosta arrived to prepare their taste buds for judging.

"It was an honor to be asked to be a judge at this baking competition because in this area you don't see many competitions like this," said Kalil. "I have been doing this for over 25 years so I would be more than happy to offer my experience to the base."

As the time ran out the teams were finishing their plates and decorations. The cupcakes were then brought to the judges and as each group's cupcakes were presented to the judge's they would give a brief description of each one and why they decided to bake that one.

As the judges sampled each cupcake they looked for three main categories, taste, creativity and plating.

"When I judge a cupcake for taste one of the things I look for is the dryness of the cupcake which is a big factor," said Kalil. "I always say you eat with your eyes first so presentation is very important when it comes to baking."

After it was all said and done, the votes were tallied and Staff Sgt. Rebecca Gaddy and Rachel Holder of team Tasty Tiger Backing Company took first place.

Congratulations were also given to the other participating teams for their hard work and dedication while making their cupcakes.

For future Cupcake War challenges, information will be sent out for anyone looking to participate or to cheer on their fellow Airmen.