CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — With the West Virginia Italian Heritage Festival’s 27th Annual Pasta Cook-Off less than three weeks away, organizers are still seeking contestants.
“Right now, we are looking to add some cooks to our lineup. There’s no cost for each cook to come in,” Jenna Haymond Robey, chair of the event’s committee said. “You have to buy 10 pounds of pasta and all of your ingredients. You come up to Jackson Square at 8:00 a.m. [on August 29] and you set up your tents and you can cook.”
The entrants do not have to be professional cooks and can consist of families, friends or coworkers. The contest is all in the name of food and fun.
“We usually have a very good turnout and lots of people come to enjoy the food,” Robey said on Monday’s edition of “The Mike Queen Show.” “We all enjoy being there with the cooks and learning about what they’re doing. We hope people have some secret family recipes they can bring and let us all taste.”
Potential contestants are asked to fill out an entry form by Friday, August 28, the day before the contest. They can be found online an mailed in or picked up at the festival’s headquarters located on West Main Street in Clarksburg.
For those that may more adept at eating pasta rather than making it, tasting is a big part of the event.
“You come at noon and you can purchase a sampling bag [for $5] and you get to choose your favorite,” Robey said. “That’s one of the categories, the ‘People’s Choice.'”
Judges will be on hand –those sequestered from the event– to determine the winners of the professional categories.
There will also be contests for canned peppers, homemade wines and pepper eating.
More information about the event can be found at wvihf.com.