Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
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closeMany cooks hear words of praise after a good meal, but how many are handed a check for $10,000 for their efforts? That's what happened recently to two Washington state winners.
Morgan Hanrahan, a teenager from Olympia, and Elizabeth Bennett of Mill Creek were two of the 15 finalists in the 28th National Beef Cook-Off in September in Sonoma, Calif.
Each returned home with a check for $10,000.
The cook-off was divided into three categories, and Hanrahan and Bennett entered different ones. Hanrahan, 14, in "Teens Cooking with Beef" and Bennett, 39, in the "Lean Beef in Nutrient Rich One-Dish Meals."
Both won their category but not the $25,000 top prize. That went to Mary Hawkes of Prescott, Ariz., for her Sonoma Steaks with Vegetables Bocconcini.
You can find all the recipes at www.BeefCookOff.org.
Bennett, who's been entering cooking contests for three to four years, found inspiration for her winning recipe from her everyday cooking.
"My recipe has three components, the spinach hummus layer on the bottom, the meat and a modified Greek salad on top. All three are recipes I make separately and often," Bennett said.
After reading the rules for the Cook-Off, she thought the three combined would make a nice one-dish meal.
Bennett practiced her Sonoma Ranch Steak Salad recipe only twice before submitting it, so she was surprised to learn it made the final cut and she'd be competing in Sonoma.
It wasn't the first time one of Bennett's recipes made it to the finals. She competed in the 2008 Pillsbury Bake-Off, but didn't place, and before that won the "Alternative (non-beef)" category in a Sutter Build a Better Burger contest.
Despite those experiences, she was far from calm on the day of the cook-off.
"It didn't help that I was the last to cook. I had five hours, long hours, to wait," she said.
Because the steak in her salad is grilled, Bennett's work station was set up outside, where it was 95 degrees.
"I was having to read and reread my recipe word for word because I was afraid I'd forget things," she said.
Sure enough, Bennett forgot to put the bunch of fresh basil -- one of her key ingredients -- in the cooler provided. When she remembered it an hour later, it was wilted and limp. But tucked inside the bunch she found 11 nice leaves -- just enough to save her dish and win $10,000.
There were plenty of panic attacks among the finalists. Hanrahan said her hands were shaking as she fired up the gas grill to cook her steak.
"I'm not afraid to admit I was nervous, which kind of surprised me. I act all the time on stage and usually get over my nerves quickly," said the high school freshman.
But Hanrahan settled down and was fine until the end when, with shaking hands, she drizzled the finished salads with dressing.
"I wasn't that nervous the first time I competed in the National Beef Cook-Off," she said.
She and her father, John Hanrahan, were finalists in the 2007 cook-off in Chicago.
"We competed as a team and while we didn't win I'm glad we went that year because this time I knew the format and some of the contestants -- five or six had been at Chicago -- and some of the CattleWomen who help run the Cook-Off," Hanrahan said.
For her tasty entry Hanrahan chose "a lot of fresh things and fresh flavors" and gave them an Asian twist.
The hardest part, she said, was the marinade.
"It's an essential component because it's used to marinate the steak and goes on top as a dressing or sauce," she said.
But she nailed it and now her college fund is $10,000 richer.
*Loretto J. Hulse: 582-1513; lhulse@tricityherald.com
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