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Cookie, Gingerbread House Winners Savor Sweet Victory
FRANKLIN, Ind. – A 10-year-old baker became a repeat cookie champion, and a 16-year-old sports fan constructed an edible tribute to a downtown Indianapolis landmark at Johnson County Public Library’s Holiday Cookie and Gingerbread House Contests on Saturday, December 5.
Eleven-year-old Alexandra Hayden of Bargersville won the Gingerbread House Contest in the 12 and under category with a cozy gingerbread chalet surrounded by licorice skiers and a sugar wafer Rudolph. Hayden’s mother, Melissa, was surprised to receive the library’s congratulatory phone call. The top entry, it turned out, was the first gingerbread house her daughter had ever built.
The Colts’ winning ways rubbed off on Johanna Richardson, a 16-year-old Franklin resident who constructed a detailed gingerbread replica of Lucas Oil Stadium. The retractable roof—suggested by graham crackers—was open to reveal sloped seating and a play field with a chocolate football ready for action on the 50 yard line. Richardson won the 13 and up category by a comfortable margin.
Kevin Stucker, a 10-year-old Franklin resident, repeated as champion of the Holiday Cookie Contest in the 12 and under category with a batch of lemon snowflake cookies. Karen Roush, also of Franklin, won the 13 and up category. Her turtle cookies prompted one of the judges to gush, “Nuts, chocolate, caramel? I’ve died and gone to heaven!”
Lemon Snowflake Cookie Recipe (MS Word)
Turtle Cookie Recipe (MS Word)
Each winner received $35 cash, courtesy of Mutual Savings Bank.
The Holiday Cookie Contest took place at Mutual Savings Bank’s Jefferson Street Branch and received a record number of entries—27, including 16 in the child category and 11 in the adult/teen category.
The judges who determined the winners were Mayor Fred Paris, Children’s Services Librarian Heather Grantham, White River Circulation Manager Tom Randall, and 7-year-old library patron Delaney Hemminger. Randall is an accomplished baker with extensive experience as a restaurateur. Hemminger won her spot on the panel, part of a baking-themed prize package, at this year’s Johnson County Fair.
The Gingerbread House Contest took place at JCPL’s Franklin Branch and received 19 entries, 16 in the child category and 3 in the adult/teen category. Library visitors cast a total of 190 ballots to determine the winners.
The Holiday Cookie and Gingerbread House Contests, sponsored by Friends of Johnson County Public Library and Mutual Savings Bank, were part of the Franklin Chamber’s Downtown Holiday Lighting.
For more information about the contests, please call Johnson County Public Library’s Community Relations Department at (317) 738-2957 or e-mail communityrelations@jcplin.org.
| Holiday Cookie (Child): Kevin Stucker | Gingerbread House (Child): Alexandra Hayden |
| Holiday Cookie (Adult/Teen): Karen Roush | Gingerbread House (Adult/Teen): Johanna Richardson |
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