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Cooking Queens
Saavedra, Brito each win twice at annual
Grants Chile Fiesta
Chile cook-off contestant Clorinda Brito tends to her recipe of red chile
while a pot of green chile also cooks Saturday morning at the Chile Fiesta
in Grants. [Photo by Jeff Jones/Independent]
By Jim Maniaci
Cibola County Bureau
GRANTS — Lorraine Saavedra and Clorinda Brito each
won twice in Saturday's cook-offs at the annual Grants-Cibola County Chamber
of Commerce Chile Fiesta.
Saavedra, of San Rafael, won first place, worth $300, in the red chile
category and second place, worth $200, in the green chile class. Brito
of Grants captured the top $300 spot in the green chile group and third
place for $100 in the red chile division.
Different panels of judges chose Frances and Steve Gonzales of Grants
for third place and $100 in the green chile group and Bobby Rougemont
of Milan for the $200 second place prize in the red chiles. Luis Griego
of Grants won the $100 for the best salsa.
Sky City Casino provided the $1,300 in prize money.
The chamber added $40 from chile sample sales to Brito for the best-decorated
cooking stand under the big white tent, sunny skies and breezes in City
Hall Park. A poster of the cover of this season's Grants tourism magazine
for the second-best decorated cooking site went to Saavedra. The photo
on the cover and poster is done in a sepia color from a 1954 photo by
Lee Marmon of Jeff Sousea sunning himself at Laguna Pueblo.
Judging 41 entries
Judging the 16 green chile submissions were 7-year Chile Fiesta veteran
Gilbert Martinez, plus Grants City Councilor and upcoming Cibola County
Probate Judge Fred Rodarte, his son Brendan, New Mexico State University-Grants
Chief Executive Officer Felicia Casados, Chamber President Candy Rodgers,
Gilbert Sena and Millie Chavez, perennial Chile Fiesta champion turned
celebrity judge.
The panel for the 14 red recipes consisted of Martinez, both Rodartes,
Casados, Sena and Chavez. For the salsa's 11 submissions it was Martinez,
the Rodartes, Rodgers and Deputy District Attorney Randolph Collins.
To cleanse the taste of one recipe from their palates before sampling
the next fiery pepper preparation, the judges spooned sherbet and swallowed
water. The salsa judges used salty tortilla chips and water.
Chamber Special Events Chair Merla Olguin commented after the 5-hour program
most of the first two hours without the benefit of electricity due to
a power failure "It went very well, considering we went without electricity
all morning."
Martinez commented, "All of it was real delicious; some were real
good and some not so hot," admitting the hotter the chile, the better
he likes it.
More should enter
He concluded that although there seem to be more contestants that before,
"I think there should be more contestants (enter next year)."
After the green chile judging, done first, Casados quipped, "This
was an easy assignment!" All she and the other judges had to do was
determine which sample had the best aroma, color, consistency, after taste
and taste.
Chavez agreed with Martinez, "It all was good ... a very good taste."
The several hundred people also enjoyed the saxophone music of Leonard
Pea, a Milan native who came home for the weekend and plays under the
name "L.P. Saxx." Of course his mother, Mabel, said she was
proud of her only son; his father Eli also enjoyed his tunes while reclining
on the soft green grass in the park which features the Gunderson Memorial
Water Fountain.
Pea is a high school language specialist, moving among high schools in
the Albuquerque district.
"I began studying music in the 5th grade at Milan Elementary School
in 1967 under Wilbur Harris," he said. L.P. added he has taught for
22 years.
Fred Rodarte was master of ceremonies, along with chamber manager Star
Gonzales.
The day began with Rev. Reuben Thomas of the First United Methodist Church
on First Street giving the annual blessing of the animals, in honor of
St. Francis of Assisi. Although pet owners did not bring any cats, some
20 dogs were led by Grants City Police Department Sgt. John Castaneda
and "Gauge."
Pastor Thomas, who also directs the local food bank on Stephens Street,
began with a reading from Genesis 1:20-25, about God creating and proliferating
fish and sea creatures, birds, cattle, reptiles and other wildlife. He
then led a prayer which was printed on programs handed out to the audience
before giving the actual blessing and dismissal benediction.
About a half-dozen vendors served the crowd, in addition to the chamber
selling a matanza deep-pit barbecue pork plate with red chile prepared
by Chavez, plus a tortilla, all served by the Red Hatters society, for
$5. After the judging, sample cups of the entrants' efforts were sold
for $1 each, along with $8 per bottle of chile and $30 for extra packages
of the pork prepared by Ruben Gabaldon.
Vendors included cookies, turnover pies and frybread by Pueblo Sisters,
an Indian jewelry booth, stained glass emblems by TNT Productions, Candy
Kitchen Artisans beauty products, a trampoline-like jumping castle for
the children, drinks, candy and souvenirs at the Waterman booth and snack
foods by Monte Carlo Express.
To contact reporter Jim Maniaci in Grants, telephone 285-6184 or (505)
870-7775 (cellular).
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Monday
October 9, 2006
Selected Stories:
Group seeks wage hike
'Siblings' take on
Shirley; Phelps, 'big sister' Lovejoy address Chinle gathering
Cooking Queens; Saavedra,
Brito each win twice at annual Grants Chile Fiesta
Church honors public
servants
Deaths
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