2014 County Fair Canning Competition Results

Here it is, everybody. The moment you’ve been waiting for. Well, I’m sure you weren’t sitting on pins and needles, gnawing your fingernails, waiting to hear the judges’ results of the canning competition. (That was actually me. 😉 ) However, I do know many of you have been wondering how I did in my county fair’s canning competition.

I entered five items in the canning competition. This is the second year I’ve submitted three of them – raspberry preserves, hot pepper relish, and hot pepper jam. I entered sliced kosher dill pickles and pickled garlic for the first time this year. Here are the judges’ results with pictures of my canned goods on display.

PICKLED GARLIC – I didn’t win anything for my pickled garlic. But that’s okay because everything else I entered shined.
UPDATE: When I went to the fairgrounds to pick up my canned goods and ribbons, one of the staff congratulated me on getting blue ribbons for everything I entered. I informed her that wasn’t true because my pickled garlic didn’t win; it wasn’t in the display cabinet. Well, she handed me my pickled garlic with a blue ribbon attached to it. It also had my recipe card still attached (which is how the canned goods are submitted), so I think someone forgot to place it in the award cabinet. What a great surprise – another first place ribbon.

Pickled garlic

SLICED KOSHER DILL PICKLES – I was unsure if I’d win anything for this, but I won a first place ribbon.

Sliced kosher dill pickles – First place

HOT PEPPER RELISH – Last year, I won first place for my relish. I won first place again. (This stuff is awesome! I put it on so many things.)

Hot pepper relish – First place

HOT PEPPER JAM – Last year, I won third place. Big improvement this year; I won first!

Hot pepper jam – First place

RASPBERRY PRESERVES – Last year, I won second place. They looked so pretty this year, I was confident I’d take first place, and I did.

Raspberry preserves – First place

Four blue ribbons for five submissions. Not too shabby! I was hoping for one of the “best of show” ribbons, but that was not to be this year. (I got a third place best of show for my first place fig preserves last year.) I noticed that many of the best of show winners submitted very unique preserves or jams. Guess who will be studying the Ball Canning Book over the winter to choose a few unique recipes to enter next year? (That will help me decide what to grow, too.) Think the competition bug has bitten me? 🙂

Oh, remember the key lime pie my beau (a.k.a. Garden Wilson) entered? He won his first county fair ribbon – first place. They took a picture of the pie before they cut it and displayed the picture with his ribbon.

Garden Wilson’s key lime pie – First place

We’re quite happy with ourselves and our culinary ability.

To see what the county fair judges thought of my entries in the Horticultural competition, click here.

Have you won any ribbons for your canned goods?