First Place

A Taste of Fairy Tales

by the Belchertown High School Cooking Club

The Belchertown High School Cooking Club was inspired by fables and fairy tales. The ingredients used include pasta, coconut, Twizzlers, ice cream cones, mints, pretzels, and Necco wafers.

Artist: Julianne Cozine.

Baking Team: Alexis Peterson, Gavin Messier, Zoe Bate, and Maddie LaFountain

Construction Team: Despina Kofides, Forrest Sherson, Hailey Smith, and Molly Bail

Decorating Team: Natalie Shaw, Sasha Kyle, Sarah Hiersche, Sultan Tatar, Anna Stamp, Allison Morrisette, Caroline Primavera, Ellie Gelinas, Zhyian Yang, Kathleen Day, Lauren Morris, and Paige Lacroix

Advisors: Christine Holesovsky and Annette Colon-Vega

Second Place

The Grasshopper and the Ants

by the Arvantely-Cedrone Family 

“This classic tale from Aesop’s Fables teaches us to make hay while the sun shines. The grasshopper played his music while the ants worked and harvested food for the winter. We’d like to reimagine a whole new perspective on the story: if the grasshopper hadn’t created such beautiful and inspirational music, the ants wouldn’t have worked so hard. When everyone contributes their gifts, the whole community is better off!”

The ants and other various insects are all made of gingerbread, while the bright green grasshopper is fondant and food coloring. The background scenes are all frosting. Various candies complete the decoration.

Third Place

The Three Little Pigs

by Charlotte Kocsmiersky

“My gingerbread scene is inspired by The Three Little Pigs. Filled with adventures, trickery, and silliness, this story embodies the fun of gingerbread but the classical fable theme. My mom, Nancy Kocsmiersky, helped with the idea development and the construction and details of the houses.”

Ingredients used: Shredded wheats, Cinnamon Toast Crunch roof, Gingerbread base, pretzels, and royal icing.

First Place

A Huff and Puff Christmas

by The Mackie Family 

“We were inspired by the fable The Three Little Pigs, but we also wanted to make a traditional winter scene, so we set our version of the story in a snowy wonderland decorated for the holidays. All four of our family members contributed to this design, Colby, Layla, Lisa, and Stew.

Our display is created with gingerbread, royal icing, fondant, shredded wheat, pretzel sticks, cinnamon gum, sour gummy tape, snow caps, ice cream cones, candy canes, isomalt, and sprinkles.”

Second Place

White Street Farm

by The Godin Family

“A traditional gingerbread holiday display of our family’s home on White Street, which we affectionately call White Street Farm (due to our animals and plants).”

Third Place

The Penguin with the Rainbow Hair

by Callie and Halen Rapa 

“Inspired by the children’s book “SPIKE, the Penguin with the Rainbow Hair” written by Sarah Cullen and Carmen Ellis, and illustrated by Zuzana Svobodova.

This is an inspiring story about how a young Penguin learns to love his unique and beautiful hair as well as himself!! Callie designed and created the gingerbread display with help from her 8 year old, penguin-loving, rainbow-obsessed daughter, Halen!”

First Place

The Grasshopper and the Owl

by Terry Sullivan

“The light gingerbread owl peers out of the giant gingerbread stump. The fondant and gingerbread grasshopper is invited inside because his singing is so sweet-NOT! “Flattery is not proof of admiration.”

The Fables theme inspired me. I like the challenge of figuring out how to make the animals out of gingerbread.

I use traditional gingerbread with a rich caramel color. I let some pieces burn on purpose to give a color variation I also use structural gingerbread which bakes very light. I then can paint with food coloring as i did on the grasshopper. I used candy gummy eyeballs for the owl eyes, the feathers are sunflower seeds.”

Second Place

Town Mouse & Country Mouse

by Colleen King Taylor

“I am a teacher and a baker, and I love many classic children’s books on fables, which lend themselves to the gingerbread and edible medium. This is inspired by the many storybook versions of the “town mouse & country mouse” fable. Inside the house, the cat is reading the very same story while the town mouse and country mouse feast… unaware of the present danger.”

Ingredients used: Gingerbread, fondant, royal icing, isomalt, graham cracker crumbs & edible “luster” dust.

Third Place

The Fisherman & the Little Fish

by The Salva Family

“We were inspired by the fables theme, as well as years spent at Ashmere Lake in Hinsdale, Massachusetts. This is a family tradition for us that is always so much fun. We love seeing everyone’s creations.

The boat, dock and sand are made of gingerbread. Lake and bucket water are isomalt. Much of the details are made of fondant. The fishing line is a rice noodle. Whole wheat spaghetti is used for the cat tails and inside the chocolate dipped fishing pole. The risers on the dock are covered large sweet tarts. The ropes are made of died licorice.”

First Place

Fee – Fi – Fo – Fum!

by Pastry Chef Eric Hirsh, Seneca’s Dream Gingerbread 

“Many years ago, a wise man named Aesop wrote many fables. “The Goose that lay the Golden Egg” was number 87. Short story: a poor farmer and wife have a goose that starts laying golden eggs, greed took over, and thinking the goose swallowed gold, the couple cut her open and found no gold. Not the best of story lines but in 1890 Joseph Jacobs wrote “Jack and the beanstalk”. This opened the door for many other story writers to follow, along with Hollywood.

Remember on Gilligan’s Island how Gilligan dreams about oranges and steals the goose, or Abbott and Costello are babysitters and the little boy reads the story? Mickey Mouse got into this story also, plus The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle show did Aesop’s Fables. Last comes Willie Wonka and his geese that lay golden chocolate eggs for Easter.

What always got me was a castle floating on a cloud with a magic beanstalk reaching the sky, so this year I bring to you the magic of fables and Hollywood.”

Second Place

Goldilocks & the Three Gingerbears

by Patricia Bessette & Kathryn Dubour

“Our family has enjoyed fables for many years. The naughty Goldilocks was too hard to resist. We chose this moment in the story before she is discovered. Use your imagination as to what happens next!

We used a construction grade gingerbread recipe, royal icing, food coloring, shredded wheat, fondant, pretzels, sugar cones, and graham crackers. The windows are made from isomalt. And, of course, candies.”

Third Place

Be Thankful for What You Have

by Chef Rory Haff

This gingerbread display is based on the fable of the Rooster and the Gem.

Ingredients used: gingerbread, royal icing, chocolate fondant, and isomalt sugar.