Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia states  “the art of baking remains a fundamental skill and is important for nutrition, as baked goods, especially breads, are a common and important food, both from an economic and cultural point of view.”  On December 19th, 2017 Mason County 4-H and EFNEP programs held a one-day Healthy Cupcake Wars competition. Ten (10) youth competed in baking from scratch, “healthy” cupcakes to present to judges. Forty-four percent (44%) of the participants were male and 56% were female. The “healthy” cupcakes consisted of substituting ingredients, such as oil for apple sauce and zucchini/potatoes/fruit as other low-fat options. Before the competition, students were taught food safety, how to measure using the correct measuring tools, ingredient substitutions and knife safety.  

There were three rounds in which teams were scored on the following: presentation, taste, safety, and technique. No teams were eliminated; and the winner was determined by the team who had the highest total score from the combined second and third rounds. Round one was used as a practice round and no score was given. One hundred percent (100%) of the teams improved from round one to round two; and 100% of the students used the judge’s comments from round one to implement for round two.

 Final results included the following:  None of the students had ever made “healthy” cupcakes using healthier ingredient options, 100% showed verbal interest in competing again in the spring, and all ten (10) youth verbally agreed that they learned something new and plan on continuing to bake “healthy” cupcakes at home in preparation for next year’s competition.