Bake-Off Award Winners Through the Years Quiz

In 1949, Theodora Smafield of Detroit, Michigan, won the very first Bake-Off at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. Her technique was very interesting in that she wrapped her yeast dough in a tea towel and literally submerged it in a bowl of warm water to rise. Because she included the proof of purchase seal from her flour bag, her grand prize money instantly doubled from $25,000 to $50,000. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was at the awards banquet and famously wrote in her newspaper column, "It certainly is delicious".

Smafield used her historic winnings ($50K was a large amount of money for the time) to build a brand new, modern kitchen and fund college educations for her children.

The 1954 competition was won by Dorothy Koteen of Washington, DC. Her pie relied heavily on a surprise ingredient: toasted sesame seeds were not just in the filling but also in the crust. Her win also triggered an unprecedented phenomenon. The recipe was so wildly popular that it caused a nationwide shortage of sesame seeds. Grocery stores across America completely ran out of the ingredient for weeks as millions of home bakers tried to recreate the pie.

Koteen's plans with the winning money was to buy a house that had a yard for her son.

Leona Schnuelle of Crab Orchard, Nebraska, won the 1960 competition. She was a farm wife who created a savory, herby yeast bread baked inside a standard casserole dish. After hours of sampling, the judges of this contest thought dilly bread would be "an ideal bread to serve at barbecues and luncheons," and liked that it required no kneading and was baked in a casserole dish (since casseroles were all the rage in 1960). She was presented her winning check for $25,000 by the then Treasurer of the United States, Ivy Baker Priest. Since this contest was held in Washington, D.C., it made sense to have the official signer of the nation's currency hand over the check.

Leona noted she was much more popular at the square dances after bringing home the prize.

In 1964, Janis Risley of Melbourne, Florida, became the youngest winner of the contest at that point. Only 17 years old, Janis was encouraged by her Home Economics teacher, Mrs. Newman, to enter the Bake-Off contest after she turned the pie in as a homework assignment. Mrs. Newman and Janis's five brothers loved her creation. The pie contains a peach-cream cheese filling enhanced with pumpkin pie spice. Extra pie crust is shaped into rounds and placed on top of the pie filling before baking.

She received a standing ovation from the room of older, seasoned homemakers, and used her prize money to attend college and pursue a career in education.

Edna M. Walker of Hopkins, Minnesota, won the 1969 competition with Magic Marshmallow Crescent Puffs (my brother and I grew up on this recipe). Walker's recipe was a massive milestone for the company. It was the first time a grand prize winner used a refrigerated, pre-made dough product (Pillsbury Crescent Rolls) rather than scratch flour. Bakers wrapped the dough around a marshmallow, which melted during baking to leave a sweet, hollow center. This win caused a massive nationwide run on refrigerated crescent rolls. Walker's success permanently shifted the entire trajectory of the Bake-Off, steering the competition toward convenience products and changing the way busy working parents approached baking.

With her prize money, Edna bought some new furniture and invested the rest. The earnings from the contest later allowed Edna to take a cruise and a trip to Israel.

The 1980 winner of the contest was Millicent Nathan of Boca Raton, Florida. Millicent won during the peak of the TV broadcast era, where game show legend Bob Barker hosted the television special. Her savory pie was a hearty and savory mix of fresh zucchini, chopped onions, eggs, and cheese on a crust of canned refrigerated crescent rolls. This marked a cultural shift in the competition away from heavy, sugary desserts toward lighter, convenient weeknight family dinners.

When Barker called her name, Millicent was so utterly shocked that she nearly fainted on live television before being guided to the stage to accept her crown. She used her winnings toward a new kitchen with new appliances.

For nearly 50 years, the Bake-Off grand prize had been won exclusively by women. In 1996, Kurt Wait of Redwood City, California, broke the mold. A single father, Kurt spent months fine tuning the decadent chocolate torte with the help of his young son, who served as his primary taste-tester. Kurt had been baking for years when he decided on entering the contest with his rich dessert and picked chocolate for its popularity and macadamia nuts for their beauty. On top of winning, Kurt was the first winner to receive an incredible $1 million prize.

Kurt was issued the money in increments over the years and said he used the funds to provide financial stability for himself and his son, Cy, while continuing his work as a business analyst.

In 2008, Carolyn Gurtz of Gaithersburg, Maryland, won with her cookies. The treats use refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough shaped around a ball of what is essentially peanut butter candy made with a rich peanut butter and cream cheese filling. Not only did Carolyn win the million dollar prize and a complete set of GE Profile kitchen appliances valued at $10,000, she also won the "Jif Peanut Butter Award", which recognized the best recipe using at least 1/4 cup of Jif peanut butter. The prize was an additional $5,000.

Carolyn used the winnings to pay off her mortgage, fund her children's college education, and set up a retirement fund. She also donated a portion of the money to her church and enjoyed taking a family vacation. We can assume she also made some treats for her dog since he was a chief taster for her and loved these cookies.

In 2010 Sue Compton of Delanco, New Jersey, won with her sweet treats of Pillsbury refrigerated sugar cookies filled with vanilla ice cream, raspberry jam, nuts, and chocolate. That year, Pillsbury partnered with "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to announce the grand prize winner live on television. Compton, a home baker, was brought onto the stage thinking she was just a normal finalist, only to have Oprah personally yell her name and hand her a giant $1 million check. The sheer shock of the televised moment made Compton an overnight celebrity, and she spent the next several months doing national media tours showing families how to make her bite-sized treats.

Even though Compton joked on the show she would "buy new bath towels" with her winnings, she actually planned to use the $1 million prize to pay off her mortgage, secure her retirement, and help her son finish medical school.

Beth Royals of Richmond, Virginia, was the 2014 winner. Her creation was incredibly simple: it utilized unbaked Pillsbury pie crust, chopped up, baked into crispy chips, and tossed with melted peanut butter chips, chocolate, and peanuts. It perfectly summarized the modern evolution of the Bake-Off by taking a standard baking staple and completely re-imagining it into an easy but highly creative snack mix.The announcement was made on live TV, during an episode of ABC's "The Chew". It was also the first time the public was allowed to vote, so for three weeks, Royals and the other finalists used social media to get as many votes as possible.

Beth planned to use her $1 million grand prize to pay for her children's college educations and to make home improvements.