(The following is a special report on Bluejeanfoodcritic.com written by guest contributing writer Angela Timm)
Tuesday, September 9, The Tortilla Press, Collingswood, New Jersey. Summer comes to a triumphant end for one South Jersey amateur baker. After months of delicious competition the five South Jersey finalists for the 2nd Annual Perfect Peach Pie Contest sponsored by the New Jersey Peach Promotion Council sat face to face in a final showdown of the sweetest kind. Phyliss Rudolph, of Ventnor, impressed judges at the Margate Farmers Market. Anne Danilak, of Mickleton/East Greenwich Twp, took the title at the NJ Peach Festival at the Gloucester County 4-H Fair. Gretchen Gautier stole the show with impeccably fresh glazed peaches and shortbread pie crust at the Hammonton Downtown Market. Bill Paulin, Brigantine’s Pie Guy, won first place against friendly but fierce competition at the Brigantine Farmers Market. Cheryl Pope was the hometown favorite after her victory at the Collingswood Farmers Market. Judges Chef Mark Smith from The Tortilla Press, Michael DiBartolo, owner of DiBartolo’s Bakery, and John and Mary Ebert, from Springdale Farm crowned perfection among its peers.
And the Grand Prize winner was….Gretchen Guatier from Hammonton!
After the announcement, I enjoyed carne asada tacos served on fresh corn tortillas topped with onions, lime, and cilantro garnished with generous amounts of roasted tomato jalapeno salsa and tomatillo avocado salsa.
There could be no finer way to celebrate this season’s delicious and abundant harvest of peaches.
BlueJeanFood 