Polk County 4-H Members Compete in Local Cooking Contests

Saturday, April 5, two Polk County 4-H members competed in the County 4-H Poultry BBQ Contest.  For the contest, 4-H members are given two chicken halves that they must grill, unassisted, on a charcoal grill.  The chicken can be seasoned any way the participants choose, but the meat cannot be injected.  One of the halves is turned into the judges for judging.  After the judging was finished, the winners were announced.  The judges highly complemented both young ladies and they each received blue ribbons.  The two 4-H members who competed in the BBQ were Makaya F. & Ashley B.   Both young ladies qualified to compete in the District Poultry BBQ Contest.  For the contestants in the BBQ Contest, there was also an Apron Contest.  The winners are as follows: Best Decorated Apron-Makaya F. and Fanciest Apron-Ashley B.

Along with the BBQ Contest, 4-H members could also participate in the County Dairy Foods Contest and the County Baked Goods Contest.  Entries in these contests are prepared at home by the contestants.  The Dairy Foods Contest is sponsored by Farm Bureau.  There are two categories in the contest: Party Food & Main Dish.  With this contest, the more REAL dairy products are in the recipe, the better.  In the Party Foods Category, Lacy F. won a blue ribbon with her Banana Bread.  Chelsea B. won a blue ribbon in the Main Dish Category with her Quiche.  The recipes of both the County Dairy Foods Contest will be submitted to the State Dairy Foods Contest for judging.  The Baked Goods Contest is divided into several categories.  The Winner of the Quick Breads was Katie B. with her Blueberry Zucchini Bread.  Cloverbud 4-H Member Nick V. won the Brownie category with his Mississippi Mud Brownies.  Lacy F. won the Cake category with her Peanut Butter Cake.

For more information about 4-H in Polk County, contact Kathy Beck at the County Extension Office at 211 DeQueen St., Mena, or by phone at (479) 394-6018, or by e-mail at kbeck@uaex.edu.

4-H programs are open to all youth between the ages of 5 and 19 without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, gender, disability, or any other legally protected status. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (large print, audiotapes, etc.) should notify the county Extension office (or other appropriate office) as soon as possible prior to the activity.

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Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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