Duane Hicks
The Fort Frances Chamber of Commerce’s Great Canadian Chili Cook-off and Cake Roulette is all ready to go tomorrow at the local Legion, with a dozen teams lined up to compete for top honours.
The event will run from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and everyone is welcome, Chamber manager Anthony Mason said.
“Come out and support all of the teams that took the time to prepare all of this chili,” he remarked.
“Come out and have some great chili and interact with all of the other people who come out.”
This year’s teams include:
•B93—“FM Good Chili”;
•Causeway General Insurance—“Return of Tailgate Caution Chili”;
•Edward Jones—“Up Tik Chili”;
•Fort Frances High School—“Red Dragons”;
•Fort Frances High School—“Big Daddy’s Chili”;
•Fort Frances High School—“Tyson’s Chili”;
•Gillons’ Insurance Brokers—“The Red Hot Gillons’ Peppers”;
•Holmlund Financial—“Holmlund’s Hot and Wild Chili”;
•Northland Distributing—“Ice Box Chili”;
•Rainycrest—“Fountain of Youth Chili”;
•Seven Generations—“Stewed Ent Chili”; and
•TD Canada Trust—“TD Trust Chili You Can Trust.”
Returning chili champs, Causeway General Insurance, said they’re honing their winning recipe—and that competitors should look out.
“We’re trying to duplicate or better the recipe from last year,” said Holly Penney of Causeway, adding the appeal of their chili last year was the emphasis on flavour over being extra spicy.
She noted most teams seem to “be shooting for the flames.”
Causeway, which competed in the cook-off for their first time last year, also issued a challenged to TD Trust, which has never been in it before.
“We had kind of talked about it [entering a team] and when Causeway issued a challenge—well, TD doesn’t back down from a challenge,” said Gina Sigurdson.
“So we’re excited,” she added. “Sarah [DeGagné] has come up with a recipe and we’re excited to do it.
“I believe our recipe is going to be awesome,” Sigurdson enthused. “We’re going in it to win the trophy.”
Meanwhile, Holmlund Financial, which has been in the chili cook-off nearly every year, will be stepping up their game this year.
“It is going to be hot. We usually do something ‘medium,’ but we thought this year we were going to go for something hot,” vowed Susan Bodnarchuk, adding she’s gotten help from her husband, Don, and Bruce Holmlund, who once again has come out of retirement to lend his chili-making skills to the cook-off entry.
Despite the fact Holmlund’s has been in the cook-off many times, they’ve never won any awards—but maybe this year will be different.
“You never know. We keep changing it up, thinking we’re going to get the best chili yet, and eventually we hope it will pay off,” Bodnarchuk remarked.
Tyler Cousineau of Gillons’ Insurance Brokers said he competed in the cook-off last year with Cousineau Brokers Inc. But Cousineau since merged with Gillons’, resulting in a union of culinary prowess the likes of which the Great Canadian Chili Cook-off has never seen.
“We have a killer chili recipe,” Cousineau boasted.
“It’s like Brett Favre coming over to the Vikings, and I am Brett Favre,” he joked.
Chili costs $5 a bowl or $7 for a sampler. Those who try the latter then can vote for their favourite concoction.
Awards will be given for best chili and People’s Choice.
Those who attend also are encouraged to bring along a non-perishable food item for the local food banks.
Another popular aspect of the annual event is the cake roulette, where people put down their money to bet on cakes and other goodies.
Mason said anyone who wants to donate baked goods for the roulette can drop them off at the Legion tomorrow prior to the event.
