Impressive confections take on 'Iconic New York' with gingerbread house competition
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- You can get into the holiday spirit and admire some impressive confections at the Museum of the City of New York's Gingerbread NYC: The Great Borough Bake-Off.
This is the second year the museum has offered the gingerbread house making competition and this year's theme is "Iconic New York."
The creations on display aren't mere houses -- they are architectural masterpieces like Yankee Stadium, the Brooklyn Bridge and the historic Apollo Theatre all made from gingerbread, icing and candy.
Amateur and professional bakers from all five boroughs are taking part in the competition.
The bakers' display is supposed to represent their respective neighborhood.
The only rules are that each creation has to be a maximum of 36 inches tall and made of 80% edible material -- but when it comes to the imagination, there are no limits.
Judges include:
- Bobbie Lloyd, CEO and Chief Baking Officer, Magnolia Bakery
- Jonah Nigh, Senior Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement, The New School; Semi-finalist, NBC/Peacock's Baking It (Season 1)
- Nadine Orenstein, Drue Heinz Curator in Charge, Department of Drawings and Prints, Metropolitan Museum of Art; Former Judge, National Gingerbread House Competition in Asheville, NC
- Amy Scherber, Owner and Founder, Amy's Bread; Member, Bread Bakers Guild of America
- Melba Wilson, Owner, Melba's Restaurant; Author, Melba's American Comfort: 100 Recipes from My Heart to Your Kitchen (2016)
Bakers can win in a variety of categories including "Best in Borough," "Grandest," and "Most Iconic." Visitors to the exhibition can also vote for their favorites.
"We are savoring MCNY's centennial year and celebrating the holidays with our second annual Gingerbread NYC installation," says Stephanie Wilchfort, Ronay Menschel Director and President of the Museum of the City of New York. "Last year's installation was a joy to behold (not to mention to smell). Now, we again have the sweet opportunity to highlight the special ingredient that makes New York, New York, creative people -- professionals and amateurs alike -- who hail from around the city."
Participants in Gingerbread NYC 2023 include:
BRONX
- Camaxtli Gallegos - Bronx Zoo
- Egidio Pastry Shop - Yankee Stadium
- Patty Pops - Hip-Hop
- Valerie Carrington - Yankee Stadium
BROOKLYN
- A Cake Baked In Brooklyn - Brooklyn Icons
- Kathryn Irizarry & Kayla Wong - Brooklyn Icons
- Ida Kreutzer - Water Street
- L'Appartment 4F - Brooklyn Bridge
- Holly Longworth - Circo's Pastry Shop
- Leonard Marino - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
- SottoVoce & Something Sugared - Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch (Grand Army Plaza)
- Debbie Wee - Brooklyn Museum
MANHATTAN
- César Aldrete - The Met Cloisters
- Cray Cray for Cakes LLC - Jefferson Market Library and Garden
- Lorenzo Delgado - Rockefeller Center
- Loretta Bricchi Lee - American Museum of Natural History
- Ma Smith's Dessert Café - The Apollo Theater
- Sonia Dbek - New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center
QUEENS
- Karen Chin - New York Hall of Science
- Filiz Cihan Cemberci - Engine 293 Firehouse
- Sherry Kozlowski - Louis Armstrong House Museum
- Nishat Shahabuddin - 74th Street, Jackson Heights
STATEN ISLAND
- Chua Cookie - Historic Richmond Town
The Gingerbread houses will be on display November 10, 2023-January 15, 2024 at the Museum of the City of New York.
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