It was chef against chef, but the competition was lighthearted and delicious in the Fourth Annual Destin Desserts competition held this past week. Seven chefs from six area restaurants went head-to-head to see who could create the best original dessert using different Girl Scout cookies as an ingredient in their dish.
Why a Girl Scout cookie you ask? The fundraiser was created to benefit the Girl Scout Council of the Florida Panhandle, and this year the funds went towards the organization’s Camp Kolomoki near DeFuniak Springs which has fallen into disrepair.
“The spring rains washed out the roads in the major flood we had last April and 900 girls were turned away from the outdoor and leadership experience that they usually get there every year,” said Destin Desserts chair Gretchen Erickson. “The money raised from the event will go to help refurbish the camp which has been closed since April as nature is starting to take over so it is a very critical thing to get community support.”
Erickson told The Log that the dessert competition was an idea she dreamed up four years ago when she served as the Board Chair President of the Girl Scouts on the Panhandle.
“I realized that this area did not have any fundraisers for the Girl Scout council which goes all the way from the Alabama boarder to the Sewanee river covering 19 counties,” she said. “I love the Food Network and Top Chef so I married the two and Destin Desserts was born.”
This year local chefs from Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, Bijoux, Highlands House, Travinia Italian Kitchen, Dockside Café & Oyster Bar and The Palms competed for best dessert serving a crowd of more than 200 people.
“We had to keep it to about six chefs this year but I think we are getting bigger now because we had some chefs that we had to turn away and I don’t want to do that anymore,” Erickson said of the event’s popularity.
Word has gotten out about the competition as chefs from Pensacola to Defuniak have already called to add their names to next year’s list.
“They are like a fraternity, a family of chefs, and they all love the competition so much that all three of our past winners have come back as judges because they love to be a part of it,” said Erickson. “It is so good to see the local community give back, as these chefs are giving up their busy Friday night rush at their restaurants to support this event.”
This year’s coveted first place prize went to Chef Ernie Danjean, owner of Dockside Café & Oyster Bar in Niceville for his dessert, Savannah Smiles Gooey Squares.
“The Savannah Smiles is a lemon sugar-coated cookie,” said Danjean. “We created a play off of a very popular dessert known in Savannah, Georgia called the Ooey-Gooey cake. The crust had the Girl Scout cookie, plus we added pecans, then we did a really gooey center by using powdered sugar, cream cheese and egg. When you bake that on top of the crust it gets nice a gooey like a baked Alaska. Next, we made some fresh homemade butter-cream icing, piped it on there and then to kick it off we made an edible garnish out of real lemon wheels boiled in sugar water, baked, and then covered in granulated sugar so they come out like candy. Finally, to finish it all off we sprinkled the whole dessert with lemon zest. So if you like lemon, you were in the right place on Saturday night!”
This was Chef Danjean’s first time to enter the competition and his excitement for the win was evident.
“We were competing against some of the best restaurants on the coast, so for us it was a big homerun a really big homerun,” he said. “We are serving it here in the restaurant now as our feature dessert, we just had too.”
However both Danjean and Erickson agree that the real winners of the competition are the donors and local community members who gave to this good cause.
“It was so much fun to compete in the dessert contest, and really neat to get away from the seafood we make every day; but what made it really fun is that we raised some great money for the Girl Scouts,” said Danjean.
“The total still coming in, but we raised close to $20,000 just in the one night,” said Erickson. The road is already starting to be rebuilt from an earlier donation from St. Joe’s Properties Foundation but we have a long way to go in order to replace the wells, the pipes, canoes and kayaks, build a new dock, and make it pristine again. But we’ll figure it out, we’ll make it work, that’s what girl scouts do.”
To make a donation towards the rebuild of Camp Kolomoki CLICK HERE
Recipe for Chef Ernie’s Savannah Smiles Gooey Squares
Ingredients Crust:
One Box Savannah Smiles Cookies ground fine
One Box of Yellow Cake Mix
One Cup Minced Roasted Pecans
One Stick Melted Butter
Ingredients Middle:
One Bag Powdered Sugar
One Pack Cream Cheese Softened
One Fresh Whole Egg
1/3 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice
Garnish Topping:
Butter Cream Icing Swirl
Candy Lemon Wedge
Lemon Zest Sprinkle
Directions:
Mix all crust ingredients in mixing bowl. Spread crust mixture in a 12 inch greased pan. Mix middle ingredients till smooth. Spread middle ingredients in pan over crust. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes till golden brown. Remove and let cool then cut in squares. Add garnish and serve.