Two weeks ago we had a wonderful time at the Chili Cook Off. We had over 124 judges come together to taste, contemplate (and compliment), compare and ultimately cast their votes to choose a winner from 16 different types of chili. We had everything from spicy, to sweet and mild, smoked chili flavour, dessert chili, pickle chili…the options were endless (well, they eventually were, but it didn’t taste like it day of!). Some chefs have decided to keep their recipes secret – perhaps to perfect for next year’s chili cook off – but others have decided to share their recipes. You can find them here.

Each judge was provided 25 kidney beans for voting. Beans were tossed, bribes were offered, and debates were held over which chilis were the most delicious. After everyone had a chance to sample and vote on the 18 chili entries, we weighed the bean votes. In a case where the weight of the beans was close, we counted the beans.

Out of our top 3 chilis, two of them were returned recipes, new and improved: 

3rd Place – Logan Martin with his Smoked Chili 

2nd Place – A Young Bausmer family member returned with her dessert chili. 

1st Place – Lucy and Bruce returned with their pickle chili, and it was a gigantic hit! Props for Lucy, for her crocheted pickle that was part of the presentation. 

Last Sunday, Bruce and Lucy were crowned in a private coronation, celebrating with the Jr. Highs. 

Many many thanks to Jennifer King who organized the chili cookoff, and daughter Julia, her trusty and friendly assistant. We all had such fun and some people are already starting to plan their chili recipes for next year’s event!