Dutch Oven Cook Off 2018 SPRING INTO SUMMER - Jefferson County Conservation Board
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2018 SPRING INTO SUMMER
Dutch Oven Cook Off
By 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 19th a small crew ar-
rived at Jefferson County Park in Fairfield, Iowa to set
up for the 10th Annual Dutch Oven Cook Off. It was a
smidge foggy and workers found it muggy as they set
up the serving tables and put out supplies. A large
canopy had been put up the night before and was
ready to be transformed into the judging area. Within
an hour the competitors started to arrive. They unload-
ed their Dutch ovens and canopies and set up their sta-
tions. By the time the competition began (after the
9:00 a.m. Cooks’ Meeting) the day was turning into one
of the nicest days this competition has ever experienced
with comfortable temperatures, low humidity and a
light breeze.
Above: Gathering for the Cook’s Meeting. Left: Bud Hearn puts
his jambalaya on to cook. Below Left: Carol Hogan of Cast Iron
Widows accepts a check from Gloria Countryman. Below: Judy
Groenendyk proudly oversees her granddaughter MaKenzi as she
works on her Tie Dye Cake.
This Year’s Teams
You People
Below: Husband and wife team Dennis Laughlin and Michelle
Shock. They placed 2nd place in the Cook’s Choice category
and 1st place in Desserts for their Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake.
Locust Grove Regulator:
Above: Lois DeVore Shreves was the only
member of her team. She is known for her
beautiful pies and bread. Danielson Duo
Below: Doug and Bert Danielson competed for the first time
in this year’s cook off but they are not new to cast iron
cooking! Their biscuits & bacon gravy won 4th place in the
breakfast category with their perfectly baked homemade
Breakfast Category baking powder biscuits impressing the head judge.
1st Place: Team Cast Iron Cousins
“Spinach, Tomato & Bacon Frittata”
2nd Place: Ash Kickers
“Blueberry French Toast”
3rd Place: Cast Iron Widows
“Tator Tot Breakfast Casserole”
4th Place: Danielson Duo
“Biscuits & Bacon Gravy”
Page 2
This Year’s Teams
Willow’s Warriors
Left: Judy Groenendyk supervised granddaughter Makenzi
Groenendyk. Makenzi’s Tie Dye Cake won 1st place in the
Novice Dessert category. Her entry was the only one to earn a
perfect score from ALL of the judges.
Confuzed Cookers
Below: Richard & Deb Taylor and John & Mary Burning com-
peted as Novices this year. They won 2nd place in both the
Dessert and Main Dish categories. Their biggest decision was
what to do with their winnings! Richard suggested investing it.
John wanted to spend it all on a trip to Disney World!
Team Divided
Above: Richard Heald (Cyclones fan)
and grandson Dillan Post (Hawkeye
fans) showed that despite their differ-
ences, they worked well together.
They placed third in dessert with their
Amish Apple Cake.
This Year’s Teams
Country Cooks
Left: After a four year absence Alex
Hausner (right) returned to the cook
off, this time with brother Tyler. Their
mom Chris came along for moral sup-
port and they had help from Tyler’s
girlfriend Rachel. As one member of
the team said “Tyler knows food and
Alex knows Dutch Oven.”
Dessert Category - Novice
1st Place: Willow’s Warriors
“Tie Dye Cake”
2nd Place: Confuzed Cookers
“Pumpkin Crumble Cake”
3rd Place: Troop 129
“Double Chocolate Cobbler with
Walnuts”
Chickenman
Below: Loren Bolkema competed alongside his daughter
Jodie and his granddaughter Morgan. Loren has compet-
ed in almost all of the cook offs since the event began
back in 2008
Cast Iron Widows
Above: Carol Hogan and Teresa Adair of
Niota Illinois competed separately last year
but this year joined together as one team.
They placed third in both the Breakfast and
Cook’s Choice categories.
Page 4
This Year’s Teams
Can’t Dutch This
Left: Mother-daughter team Tammy
and Brianna Haynes traveled from
Cedar Rapids for their first visit to the
Spring Into Summer Dutch Oven Cook
Off. Besides having one of the best
team names in the competition their
Upside-down Pear Gorgonzola Cake
was a favorite of taste testers.
Lid Spinners & The Hawks
Left: Kendra Allison and her dad Erik
formed the Lid Spinners and Sophie Stever
(below) and her dad Joe made up The
Hawks. Family friends, these two teams com-
peted side by side, with both dads being
there to support their Dutch oven daughters.
This Year’s Teams
Cajun Firecrackers
Bud Hearn and his sister-in-law Jacqui
made up the Cajun Firecrackers. It
was the first competition for both of
them. We hope they’ll return...they
made a kickin’ jambalaya.
Main Dish - Novice
1st Place: Willow’s Warriors
“Chicken Cordon Bleu”
2nd Place: Confuzed Cookers
“Meatloaf”
Possum Pot
Above: Mark Harrington of Bata-
3rd Place: Lid Spinners via, Illinois always threatens to pick
“Sweet Mild Chili” up a roadkill possum on his way to
the cook off which is probably the
story behind his unusual team
name! Just so you know, there was
no possum in any of his dishes...that
I know of!!!!
Smokin’ in the Alley
Left: Not only was Bob Keller a competitor but he
also represented Live Wire Electric, a sponsor for the
event. This year he had a little extra help; his wife
Connie came along to help as sous chef.
Page 6
This Year’s Teams
Cooking With Their Spoons
Below: Ducks Unlimited representative Gloria Coun-
tryman congratulates Rosie Witherspoon and Jaya
Coplea on their 2nd place win in Desserts.
Dessert Category: Well-seasoned
1st Place: You People
“Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake”
2nd Place: Cooking With Their Spoons
“Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake”
3rd Place: Team Divided
“Amish Apple Cake”
4th Place: Ash Kickers
“Magic Cookie Bars”
Troop 129
Left: Troop 129 traveled
from Creston, Iowa to take
part in the Cook Off. They
placed in the novice dessert
category but the biggest im-
pression they made was on
the volunteers at the event
who commented on the boys’
enthusiasm and playfulness.
One volunteer said “What
impressed me the most was
that they were so eager to
learn about what was going
on.” Back (l to r): Dan Swed-
lund, Shawn Hall, Doug Ste-
vens, Gina Hall, and James
Hall. Front (l to r) Dane Swe-
land, Simon Privett, Levi Hall
and Talon Bolinger.
This Year’s Teams
Cast Iron Cousins
Above: Marlyn Hoksbergen and her first cousin Ron
Groenendyk are both seasoned Dutch oven cooks.
Their Spinach, Tomato and Bacon Frittata took 1st
place in the Breakfast Category. The head judge
later admitted that she would have gladly stolen it
away to her car and eaten it in its entirety!
Ash Kickers
Below: Husband and wife team Jill and Bob Ferns
returned to the cook off and wowed the judges with
a decadent Blueberry French Toast Bake.
Cook’s Choice: Well-seasoned
1st Place: Cast Iron Cousins
“Chocolate Molasses Pork Roast”
2nd Place: You People
“Bacon Explosion”
3rd Place: Cast Iron Widows
“Dutch Oven Ravioli”
4th Place: Possum Pot
“Tuscan Chicken Wellington”
Page 8
Volunteers
Above: Volunteer Gay Chapman shows off her
idea of a “taste testing spoon”!
Above Right: Clarisa, Dillon, Cathy,
Gerry, Jean and Phyllis were “runners”. Their
job was to take the Dutch ovens back to the
competitors after they had been judged, and in
the process avoid being trampled by all the
hungry people following them!
Right: Volunteer Meg (who doesn’t like her pho-
to taken) takes a photo of the judging team.
Below: Spoon sellers Twila, Twilla and Barb.
Judges’ Area
As the food came into the judges’ area, the judges began to work their way
around the table checking out the appearance and presentation of the dishes.
Are they visually appealing? Is the aroma pleasing? Then the head judge and
her assistant began the task of cutting or scooping out a representative piece
of the dish and dividing it for the judges to taste.
The judges then move around the table and taste each dish. How well did the
cook execute the recipe? Is it over done or under done? Too moist or too
dry? Or is it cooked just right? How’s the texture? How about taste? Does it
have good flavor? Is it well-seasoned? Judges have the option of awarding a
dish a bonus point if they felt that the recipe was exceptional or if they felt
that it was a more difficult recipe to prepare (i.e. a scratch cake over a box
cake).
Once all dishes from the category are judged, the judges hand in their forms to
the head judge and her assistant, who tally the scores. If there is a tie, then the
head judge and her assistant will use their results to break that tie. It is the
only time their results come into play. They are the only two who know the
winners prior to the awards ceremony.
Above: Marlyn of Cast Iron Cousins brings their
“cook’s choice” entry to the judging area. One of the perks of being a sponsor for the Spring Into Summer Dutch Oven
Below: Head judge Diana Flynn cuts samples for Cook Off is that they get the opportunity to be a judge for the event. Not all
the judges. of them are available or interested in doing so but there are always individuals
Below Right: Judges Jim, Jeanette, Denise and
ready and willing to fill in for them! This year’s judges were: Diana Flynn
Kathy check out a newly delivered dessert in the (head judge), Gloria Countryman (assistant to the head judge and Ducks Un-
novice division. limited representative), Kathy Winkelman (Community 1st Credit Union),
Jeannette & Jim Redmann (Preferred Auto) and Denise Venteicher, a volun-
teer who was elevated to judge when one of the sponsors was unable to partic-
ipate. These judges had the tough job of tasting forty three dishes. Dishes
were judged on appearance and presentation, execution of recipe, and taste.
Page 10More Photos Thank You!
The Jefferson County
Conservation staff would like
to thank the many people
who made the Dutch Oven
Cook Off possible:
Sponsors:
Duck’s Unlimited
Community 1st Credit Union,
Preferred Auto Sales,
Bob’s Automotive
Edward Jones
Live Wire Electric/Straight Up
Doors
Judges:
Diana Flynn, Gloria Countryman,
Kathy Winkelman, Jeanette and
Jim Redmann,
Denise Venteicher.
Volunteers:
Meg Earsley, Twilla Luke, Jean
Dorothy, Clarisa McMahon,
Phyllis Freeman, Cathy Matt,
Twila Keller, Gay Chapman,
Barb Giberson, Dillon Timmer-
man, Gerry Garles.
And to our nineteen teams.
My apologies to anyone I may
have overlooked.
Page 11More Photos Page 12
More Photos
Page 13MISSION STATEMENT:
Our mission is to enhance the quality of life in Jefferson County by acquiring, developing and managing public
areas so that its citizens will have opportunities for quality outdoor recreation experiences, and to cultivate
good land stewardship through natural history and environmental education activities.
J E F F E R S O N C O U N T Y C O N S E R VAT I O N
JCCB Staff
Dennis Lewiston, To Contact Us:
Director Phone:
Shawn Morrissey,
Operations Manager 641-472-4421
Bob Leazer, Park & E-mail:
Trail Technician
Matt & Brittney Tiller, therese@jeffersoncountyconservation.com
Park Host
Therese Cummiskey,
Naturalist
That gives me a
Board Members year to rest up
from all the taste
Wayne Atwood testing!
Terri Diers
Cory Klehm
Gene Parker
Kathy Tollenaere
Save the date for next year’s
Spring Into Summer
Dutch Oven Cook Off:
Saturday, May 18, 2019
People are already lining up!You can also read
