Girl Scouts harness flour power in ‘Cupcake Warz’ contest and bake sale fundraiser
Members of La Cañada Girl Scout Troop 3731 put their best cakes forward Saturday in a “Cupcake Warz” contest and bake sale at La Cañada Congregational Church, raising $788 for the Hemophilia Foundation of Southern California.
The event pitted 11 teams against each other in categories that carefully weighed individual entries on texture, taste, appearance and best use of the contest theme, “It’s a Girl Scout’s World!”
Grand prizes for the best overall effort — with one prize for K-6 contestants and another for those in grades 7 through 10 — were $100 gift cards for La Cañada’s Jane’s Cakes and Chocolate Supply.
The theme inspired several competitors to seek interpretations from popular Girl Scout cookies, including Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Samoas and this year’s new release, S’mores.
“Girl Scouts’ main thing is cookies, so we decided to have that as a theme,” said 10-year-old Tanvi Chawla, who, with partner Leigh Epstein, 10, put forward S’mores and Samoa cupcakes.
Sisters Victoria and Alexandra Kelly also evoked S’mores, using graham cracker cups filled with chocolate batter and topped with a chocolate drizzled marshmallow frosting. Some of the pastries bore tiny pictures of famous Girl Scouts over the years — from Nancy Reagan and Michelle Obama to Carrie Fisher and Lynda Carter.
“They’re women, Girl Scouts, who have helped around the world,” 8-year-old Victoria explained.
Nearby, partners Olivia Park and Cami Sample perfected salted caramel-drizzled Samoa cupcakes and mostly dairy-free mint cupcakes called “The Minty Way.” A third entry of theirs, “All Around the World” vanilla cupcakes topped with colored fondant, resembled tiny globes with white airplanes flying overhead.
Kylie Sears, 13, and teammate Sophie Peineke, 14, submitted three types of cupcakes with flavor palates reminiscent of geographic cuisines. Chili chocolate icing paired cayenne pepper with cinnamon, while maple bacon and a vanilla green tea cupcakes wowed judges.
Ultimately, Kylie and Sophie took the top prize in the grade 7- through-10 category, while the Kelly sisters nabbed a first-place win for grades K through 6. Judge Amelie Besch, 12, acknowledged the panelists’ job was not an easy one.
“It was a very tough decision,” she said. “They were all so good!”
Twitter: @SaraCardine
