“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Hannah managed to say, a scant second before the camera focused on them.
“Miss Hannah Swensen and her assistant, Miss Michelle Swensen. You’re up first, ladies. Please present your entry to the judges.”
Hannah walked forward. Thank goodness she didn’t have to pour the champagne! As nervous as she was right now, she’d probably spill it on one of the judges. She managed to keep the smile on her face, and her nervousness began to abate slightly as she pushed her serving cart toward the judging table. I did my best, I did my best, I did my best, she repeated her personal mantra for the night in her mind.
“What is this lovely creation?” Helene Stone asked when Hannah presented her with an antique crystal dessert dish containing Lisa’s mother’s favorite vanilla custard recipe. The dessert dish sat on a crystal plate and Butterscotch Sugar Cookies were arranged artfully around it.
“The dessert dish contains Emmy’s Vanilla Custard. The recipe came from my partner’s mother and it’s the best vanilla custard I’ve ever tasted.” Hannah turned to give Michelle a nod. They’d decided, on the drive to the competition, to take turns speaking.
“And the cookies are Butterscotch Sugar Cookies,” Michelle continued smoothly. “They’re Hannah’s own creation.”
“Champagne?” Jeremy Zales asked, accepting the flute Michelle had just poured for him.
“Yes,” Hannah answered. “There’s a half-ounce of DeKuy-per Buttershots in the bottom. That’s a butterscotch liqueur. The remainder of the flute is filled with domestic champagne. We used Korbel Brut tonight.”
“Are you trying to influence us with champagne?” LaVonna Brach asked.
Michelle laughed. “Would it work?” she asked, clearly teasing the whole judging panel.
“It might, but I see a couple of coffee carafes,” Christian Parker said. “Is that for us?”
“It is. We’ll serve from the first carafe and we’ll leave the second carafe with you so that you can have refills,” Hannah told him. “Since we’re in Minnesota and sweets are usually accompanied with a strong cup of coffee, we decided we’d better stand on Minnesota tradition and provide strong coffee for you.”
“And we’re glad you did,” Jeremy Zales said, accepting a cup of coffee from Hannah. “Now let’s see how well your cookies go with this vanilla custard.”
The next few moments were filled with no comments, none at all. Hannah was beginning to get worried when LaVonna Brach put down her spoon and asked a question.
“Is there any butterscotch flavor in this pudding?”
“No,” Hannah answered. “Michelle and I thought it would be too overwhelming and take away from the flavor of the cookies.”
“And you were right,” Christian Parker said.
“Agreed,” Jeremy Zales offered his opinion. “As far as I’m concerned, the cookies are a stand-alone, but the vanilla custard is a very good accompaniment.”
“Thank you, Miss Swensen and Miss Swensen,” Helene Stone said, smiling at them. “Just as a matter of curiosity, have you ever thought about using cardamom in this vanilla custard?”
“Yes,” Michelle answered. “We tried that, but both of us decided that the compelling flavor of the cardamom overshadowed the butterscotch in the cookies.”
“And you were right,” Christian Parker said again. “Cardamom is its own unique flavor.” He turned to Helene Stone. “Wouldn’t you agree, Helene?”
“I would,” Helene Stone said, giving him a smile. “I just wanted to know if they’d tried it. The mark of a good dessert chef is to try new flavors and judge whether or not they enhance the original creation.” She turned to face Hannah and Michelle. “Please leave your cookies. I’d like to have more later.”
“Well, it’s pretty clear that Helene Stone liked our cookies,” Michelle said, once they’d finished straightening their workstation and were on their way to the greenroom. “At least it seemed that way to me. What do you think?”
“I agree. Of course, both of us could be wrong about that.”
“I don’t think so.”
Hannah smiled at her youngest sister as she opened the door of the greenroom. It was deserted, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t feel like making polite conversation with anyone else right now. Being the first to present their entry was a big advantage as far as she was concerned. It gave them a little breathing space before the other contestants presented their entries, straightened their workstations, and came to the greenroom.
“Brooke’s up,” Michelle announced, watching the large monitor on the wall in front of them. “Her cookies are really pretty.”
“Good. I hope she does well,” Hannah said, and she meant it.