On Saturday, April 11, 2015, 17 teams came out to show off their skills in the Colusa Western Days, Dutch Oven Cook-Off, sponsored by the Colusa County Chamber of Commerce.
“There were lots of great food,” said Amy Gerrard as she made her way from team to team, sampling each dish, “some of the food was very good, and some had a unique twist.”
Participants from around the northern state came to duel out the best of the best of the annual event.
“It was a fantastic turnout this year, we are very appreciative of the support,” said event organizer Don Litchfield, “We would like to thank the community and everyone who came out to support the cooks and the event. Without community support, we couldn’t have community events.”
Dave Bishop was extremely excited and the fest as he commented, “all the food was amazingly good and very delicious.”
California Governor, Jerry Brown, Jr. attended the cook-off as a special guest judge.
Other local celebrity judges included Colusa County Supervisor John Loudon, Colusa County Sheriff Joe Garofalo, Colusa County Superintendent of Schools Mike West, and Colusa City Fire Chief Randy Dunn.
“I judged side dishes,” said West, “I had a lot of fun and the food was good.”
Supervisor Loudon commented that it was difficult selecting a winner because each of the 12 desserts were very good.
With the desserts, an apple and a peach cobbler were among the favorites of Sheriff Joe Garofalo.
“I judged the bread category, and it was all very good,” said Dunn, “It was very difficult selecting a winner. There were a lot of creative and very good Dutch Oven cooks this year.”
The 2015 Dutch Oven Cook Off Winners are:
Dessert Category
1st Place – Don & Mary Stark
2nd Place – Thomas Gomes
Bread Category
1st Place – Jeff Moresco
2nd Place – Team Gloppender
Side Dish Category
1st Place – Team Gloppender
2nd Place – Holman Sankey
Main Dish Category
1st Place – Team Gloppender
2nd Place Jackie Rohde & Robert Jenkins
Team Gloppender received the People’s Choice Vote, and Slap D’s BBQ won Grand Champion with the highest overall score.
The Colusa County Chamber of Commerce would like to recognize the following businesses for their support of the event. PG&E and the Colusa Casino donated a majority of the prize money for the event. Local Business donating to the raffle: Messick’s ACE Hardware, Granzella’s, Umpqua Bank, Market Street Grill, Superior Tires, Rocco’s Bar and Grill, Tri Counties Bank, and Gary Teragawa Consulting.
