Bothwell sponsoring baking contest at 2025 Missouri State Fair
Each year, the Missouri State Fair hosts a variety of contests in the Home Economics building on the fairgrounds. Bothwell Regional Health Center is sponsoring a gluten-free baking contest at 2 pm Aug. 8. The deadline to register is July 21, and entries are now being accepted.
Entrants are encouraged to create a gluten-free baked good from scratch and bring it to the Home Economics building prior to the start of the contest. Contest participants will be expected to adhere to the following guidelines: Recipes cannot contain gluten, contestants must be 18 years of age or older as of Dec. 31, 2024, and the recipe, name, address and phone number must be printed on the recipe form and be submitted with entry.
Recipes will be judged based on taste (50%), ease of recipe (30%), and originality of recipe (20%). Cash prizes will be awarded to the first, second and third place winners of $125, $75, and $50 respectively.
All recipes become the property of Bothwell Regional Health Center and the Missouri State Fair. Bothwell has the right to publish or advertise both the recipes and the names of contestants without compensation.
To register for the contest and the recipe form, visit https://www.mostatefair.com/participate/livestock-building/building-exhibitors/home-economics/
Last year’s winning entry was a gluten-free Hummingbird Cake submitted by Katie McLees of Otterville.
Cake ingredients
- 2 cups chopped pecans
- 3 cups gluten-free flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups mashed bananas
- 1 8 oz. can crushed pineapple
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Frosting
- 16 oz cream cheese
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Spread pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven at 300°F for 8 minutes.
- Turn the oven to 350°F and grease three 8-inch cake pans.
- Whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a large bowl.
- Whisk rest of cake ingredients in a separate bowl. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and whisk until combined. Fold in 1 1⁄2 cups of toasted pecans.
- Pour batter into cake pans and bake for 26–29 minutes.
- Make frosting: beat cream cheese and butter for about 2 minutes in a mixing bowl. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat for about 3 minutes or until creamy.
- Assemble and frost cake and garnish with pecans as desired.