I’ve never done baked goods for the Fair before, but let’s be honest - that cross stitch ain’t gonna be done in time. I’m definitely entering my World Famous Pumpkin Bread, but I was also thinking of putting in a carrot cake and I wondered if you guys had an opinion on the issue of “Best Basic Carrot Cake Around” or “Fancy Ginger-Orange Carrot Cake”.
On the one hand, you want to stand out. On the other hand, shouldn’t your piece compete with the others on pure merit? On the third hand, won’t everybody be doing “Kitchen Sink Carrot Cake”? I don’t usually do nuts and raisins in mine, but some people like them. Yea or nay? What would Granny do?
(I’d put in my amazing blueberry nectarine pie, but my crusts, while delicious, are ugly as homemade sin. So that’s out. I make a decent marzipan carrot, though.)
I think I’m going to need some samples sent to me before I can make a proper decision.
No? Okay, then. I’d probably go with the fancy ginger-orange carrot cake. That sounds awesome. As far as nuts and raisins, I don’t need then in carrot cake, but they are nice. The best carrot cake I’ve ever had had golden raisins and some other type of fruit (can’t remember) in it.
Of course, with a ginger orange cake you have to put something on top that says “Here be oranges!” My marzipan skills are not up to that. Strips of peel, perhaps.
Which one do you do the best? Is the ginger-orange carrot cake something you do often, or is it something you’re just going to work out for the fair? I’d say go for the best of the standard. Judges might be a bit wary of too fancy, or you just might get unlucky and hit something they don’t care for. It seems to me that it’s probably better to stay pretty much within the “guidelines”, so you don’t give them too many variables to deal with.
I’ve only done the ginger and orange one once, but it got rave reviews. I’m more known for the basic. However, there’s not “guidelines” for the competitions - it’s in the big category “Home and Craft”, the category “Refrigerated Cakes” and then the subcategory “Carrot”. Certainly it doesn’t demand, say, “Layered carrot cakes with cream cheese icing and little carrots on top of them”. Actually, some of the cakes (caramel, German chocolate) do specify layers, but the carrot doesn’t. I do layers anyway, because that way you get the maximum surface to cream cheese icing.
