meet the 2014 ginger panel
One more sleep! Beginning tomorrow, you will see 37 ginger masterpieces on this here blog. That’s a record breaker! Given that there are only three prizes, it is pretty clear that our participants aren’t doing it for the winnings. This friendly competition has become a holiday tradition for a great number of people (participants and readers alike), and I’m delighted that so many people have donated their time and creativity into spreading some holiday cheer. We need more happy on the interwebs, don’t you think?
Voting for the People’s Choice Prize begins tomorrow and continues until early Sunday morning. The (one) ginger creation with the highest total number of votes will claim the prize. There are seven groupings of ginger creations, and you can cast a vote in each poll. I’ve extended polling to 48 hours for each grouping, as there are some tough decisions to be made.
Don’t forget to leave a shout out for your favourite entries in the comment section – I know it means a lot to our competitors. Let’s make everyone feel like a winner, okay? You can support your favourite entries by encouraging your friend to vote too. If you have more than one friend, good for you! Maybe ask that second friend to cast a vote as well?
I’d like to introduce you to the members of the 2014 Ginger Panel. These incredible women are tasked with selecting a 1st and 2nd place winner from a large field of ginger awesome. I do not envy them.
. . .
Bridget Oland
Bridget and Crosby’s Molasses have been supporting this competition since 2012. This support has allowed me to create the Sugarplum Bursary, which will assist dancers in financial need. Our combined efforts have, as of today, raised enough money to pay for a child’s second term tuition at MCPA in January 2015.
City/Town: Rothesay, New Brunswick
Occupation: Marketing Manager, Recipe Developer at Crosby Molasses, Mom of two feisty kids and wife to a husband who is a musician at heart. (Now I really want to hear Bridget’s husband play an instrument. ANY instrument.)
Website/Social Media: www.crosbys.com, www.bridgetsgreenkitchen.com
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: I’m all about gingerbread: cookies cakes, you name it. And I have a cookie cutter fetish.
Favourite Holiday Movie: I’m a sucker for the original Sound of Music movie with Julie Andrews. Not that it’s a Christmas movie, it’s just that it was always on TV in December and when I was growing up we’d watch it as a family.
Other Interests/Qualifications: I have a weakness for handmade mugs and bowls and very heavy pots. I have no fear of butter and am leery of artificial sweeteners.
Lady Tofu
Lady Tofu earned her spot on the the 2014 Ginger Panel when she won Pumpkin Carve-Off 2014!
City/Town: Way up north in the ice and snow.
Occupation: Medical Laboratory Scientist AND Super Amazing Therapeutic Massage Therapist (I’m quite sure both of these jobs are fake.)
Website/Social Media: Lady Tofu doesn’t even use facebook. When you read her lengthy description of dough (below) you’ll understand why this is for the best. I have, by the way, edited her dough soliloquy, removing HALF of it.
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: Cookie dough. I really love gingerbread dough. My whole family loves dough. Well not my Mom. I just remember her guarding it and waving a wooden spoon around. The worst was when it wouldn’t get covered back up properly. (Because that is also something my family is famous for – like for real – don’t pick stuff up out of our fridges by the top. Especially the salad dressing. You’ve been warned.) My mother continues to put up with us, although I am pretty sure she is secretly planning on moving to Hawaii and looking forward to never having to guard dough again.
Favourite Holiday Movie: Pride and Prejudice. God I really love that movie and I can sleep through bits and feel like I am not missing anything. (That’s the all-time best reason for liking a movie I’ve ever heard.)
Other Interests/Qualifications: Kind heartedness, mad attention to detail – except when re-covering dough and lid closing. Keen eye for color and balance.
Christine
City/Town: Christ Church, Barbados
Occupation: Quite occupied with my cat, who had an ingrown toe nail, went wild at the vet’s, and destroyed their tranquiliser poll. What have I done wrong as a parent???
Website/Social Media: Probably can be found on People Magazine’s top best people on the planet site, if still active.
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: Garlic Cheese Fingers with donair sauce; hummus but only from Lebanese restaurants; my Mum’s nut’s and bolts (just realized this has to relate to Christmas); anything with butter in it.
Favourite Holiday Movie: Self evident – It’s a Wonderful Life – there is NO other answer. Except maybe Charlie Brown’s Christmas.
Other Interests/Qualifications: Highly qualified to advise anyone on what they are doing wrong with their life/in that moment/in front of my eyes, etc. Also – know quite a bit about skin care regimes and their overall impact on one’s quality of life. (I’ve known Christine since the day she was born. She’s been my life-coach ever since.)
Liz Berg
City/Town: Indianapolis, Indiana
Occupation: Food Blogger Extraordinaire
Website/Social Media: thatskinnychickcanbake.com, google+, twitter, facebook, instagram, pinterest
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: English Toffee
Favourite Holiday Movie: Holiday Inn (This is one of the correct answers, Liz. Well done.)
Other Interests/Qualifications: I like anything with sugar and butter!
Jenni Field
Jenni didn’t submit her bio information (or maybe I forgot to ask for it). So I have created a bio for her, combining what I know to be true about her with the correct answers to the questions I asked. (Because other panel members failed to do so.)
City/Town: Garner, North Carolina
Occupation: former Pastry Chef, Food Blogger, Cat Rescuer
Website/Social Media: pastrychefonline.com, facebook, instagram
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: Ganong Chicken Bones, Marshmallow Santas (frozen prior to consumption)
Favourite Holiday Movie: National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Elf, Holiday Inn, White Christmas, Miracle on 42nd Street. In that order.
Other Interests/Qualifications: Jenni attended culinary school and worked as a pastry chef. She knows her butter and sugar. Also, Jenni fosters kittens. THERE ARE DOZENS OF ADORABLE KITTEN PHOTOS ON HER INSTAGRAM PROFILE. Nuff said.
Lynne Knowlton Extraodinaire
City/Town: Durham, Ontario. So small, if you blink, you miss it.
Occupation: Blogger, goofball, lightweight. After two drinks, I start licking faces. (This is, in my humble opinion, Lynne’s best quality.)
Website/Social Media: Design the Life You Want to Live, twitter, pinterest, instagram, facebook, G+
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: All of it.
Favourite Holiday Movie: Any movie that comes with hot buttered popcorn.
Other Interests/Qualifications: I am a professional treehouse napper. And blogger. We can’t forget that. I blog because I can’t rap, but I can nap. I’m a poet, and I didn’t know it.
Lan | MoreStomach
City/Town: Baltimore, Maryland, LIKE THE WIRE. (This will be most impressive to Rosie Beaucoup, who talks about McNulty and Omar like they are real people and also: her best friends.)
Occupation: Haiku Writer slash Corporate HeadHunter
Website/Social Media: morestomach.com, instagram, twitter
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: I don’t have one. What’s wrong with me? (The correct answer was: Ganong Chicken Bones.)
Favourite Holiday Movie: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and Hobbit movies. Aren’t holiday themed movies but they always came out around this time of year and damn if I don’t get hot & bothered by them woodland elves. (The correct answer was: Elf.)
Other Interests/Qualifications: I spend my days pouring over resumesand LinkedIn profiles. One would think I’m seeking out qualifications and grammatical errors (sometimes, punctuation & capitalization errors), but nay. I am judging LI pictures and where the person went to school, if they even went to school. Gingerbread Abodes: are they up to code? Thatched roof vs. whatever else kind of roofs are out there. BRING.IT.
Maureen Shaw
City/Town: Sunshine Coast, Australia
Occupation: I moan for a living, but only in the kitchen.
Website/Social Media: orgasmicchef.com
Favourite Holiday Snack/Food: Cherries (it IS summer).
Favourite Holiday Movie: Die Hard (This was one of the better answers I received.)
Other Interests/Qualifications: I love eating gingerbread men. Head first.
Now THAT is a judging panel! I hope their commentary will be part of the process because I love all of these chicks! MY EXCITEMENT FOR TOMORROW CAN BARELY (READ:NOT AT ALL) BE CONTAINED!
Mellissa, if I thought I could organize commentary from those eight panel members and thirty-seven competitors in less than 48 hours, I would. Instead, I will pray they leave comments and organize themselves. I, too, AM UNABLE TO CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT!!
Excuses, excuses…..ha ha! I can’t even imagine how you manage these competitions as it is – you’re clearly ONE MILLION TIMES more organized than I am! Pretty sure nothing productive will be getting done on my end for the next two days as I hang on every ginger-related word. This is better than a 48-hour Love Actually marathon! Almost…
Ack! I don’t think I knew I was supposed to Submit Biographical Information. You’re pretty much spot on, but allow me to elaborate just a bit:
My main qualification for being on the Ginger Panel, 2014 is that I am very judgmental. I’m probably judging you right now.
I’m so excited to judge-judge-judge legitimately! =)
That’s why I like you. Your judiness is your best quality.
What a fabulous panel of judges! Good thinking revealing them just before the competition goes live, which probably eliminates the possibility of bribery in the form of large, expensive gifts arriving in time to make a difference. Maybe.
Oh, it’s such an honor to be included with such an esteemed group of judges! Do I get brownie points for sucking up? Or at least brownies? Love these bloggers!
Oh, having been looking forward to this seen I read about it on Maureen Shaw’s blog – The Orgasmic Chef – I will be back tomorrow:)
What a fantastic panel of judges! So excited to see all the ginger entries in the next couple days. over 30 gingerbread houses in one place is just EPIC. These judges really have their work cut out for them. (Or should I say, cut out and then baked and then slapped together with icing for them.)
I’m gobsmacked to be included in that group! I was laughing when I said it was the opportunity of a lifetime. No more! 🙂
Not gunna lie Maureen, I wish I had a blog title with the word ORGASMIC in it. Jelly jealous right now. Jelly Jealous.
Lynne
Have you made the official announcement of the contest winners yet? This year’s contest had so many wonderful entries. I could see the judges having the most difficult decision of declaring winners, so I’m glad that I’m not in that position. I just like the creating end and have others wondering who won and I don’t know what to tell them, except just keep checking the website, like I do! :0)