Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Cindy Spence

 

Ask Greg Gude a question about kumquats, and you get a question in return: “How much time do you have?”

 

Gude could talk all day about kumquats, but this time of year he’s a bit pressed for time. Most of the kumquats that star in Dade City’s annual Kumquat Festival this Saturday are being supplied by Kumquat Growers Inc. And why not? It’s Florida’s capital of kumquats.

 

The kumquat used to have an image problem, Gude said, because people were not familiar with the oddly named fruit. The Kumquat Festival, however, has converted thousands of confused citrus consumers into big kumquat fans over the past 14 years. Still, Gude said, his company’s web site gets hundreds of thousands of clicks a year on the button “What is a kumquat?” What it is, kumquat fans say, is a taste sensation, with a sweet, edible peel and tart flesh.

 

“The last thing you taste is the oil. It finishes sweet,” Gude said, as if he is talking about a fine wine.

 

Chefs use the tiny, tangy fruit for an assortment of dishes from marmalades, vinaigrettes, barbecue sauces, marinades and the ever-popular kumquat pie.

 

One of the more requested recipes through the years is a 2003 best-of-show winner Janet Collura cooked up. Collura married into a citrus-growing family and uses a lot of citrus both in her home cooking and her catering business. She remembers eating wild kumquats growing along fence lines in the West Tampa of her childhood, and decided to try kumquats in a traditional Spanish dish.

 

Its rightful name is F.J.’s Favorite Kumquat Flan, and Collura likes to be sure people call it that because husband, F.J., played such a big role in the recipe’s development.

 

“He ate kumquat flan for four months,” Collura said.

 

The recipe has appeared in three or four cookbooks, but Collura has moved on to her next kumquat challenge.

 

“For a while now, I’ve been trying to figure out a way to do a version of Boston Cream Pie with kumquats,” Collura laughed.

 

Collura won’t be dishing up kumquat treats this year, but the festival promises plenty of kumquat delicacies and other activities.

 

The weekend begins early with open houses Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Kumquat Growers Inc., 31647 Gude Road. The festival runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and includes vendors, arts and crafts, a farmer’s market, a kids’ area, a fun walk and races, and plenty of kumquats. For more information, call the Dade City Chamber of Commerce at (352) 567-3769.

 

/this is the glance box—as needed

What is a kumquat?

Kumquats have been called the little gold gems of the citrus family. They are believed to be native to China and have a very distinctive taste. Kumquats are the only citrus fruit that can be eaten whole. The peel is the sweetest part and can be eaten separately. The pulp contains seeds and juice, which is sour. Together, the taste is sweet and sour. The seeds contain pectin, which can be removed by boiling for use in jams and jellies.

— Kumquat Growers Inc.

Sam Johnson is among top 10 poets nationwide

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Unlike many writers, Sam Johnson doesn’t wax poetic about his sources of inspiration.

Neither does he go on and on, about why he chose one particular word over another or about the decisions he made in arranging the beginning, middle and ending of his piece.

After all, he’s just 7 years old.

He didn’t even begin writing poetry until last year, in Diane Billman’s kindergarten classroom at McKitrick Elementary in Lutz.

Now, he holds the title of being among the top 10 poets in kindergarten through third-grade in the United States and Canada, according to results in a contest sponsored by Creative Communication, in Smithfield, Utah.

The young boy’s teacher is thrilled.

When she saw what he was writing, she said, “my eyes about popped out.”

“I thought, ‘My gosh. That is so advanced.’ I had goose bumps,” Billman said.

Adrienne Johnson was delighted by her son’s way with words.

“I was very surprised and very pleased. I’m very proud of him,” she said. She added that she feels very blessed that all three of her children, Mack, Amanda and Sam were able to begin their school years in Billman’s classroom.

Billman began teaching poetry to her kindergarteners two years ago.

The first crop of pupils produced such good poetry that Billman went looking online for a contest. She wound up entering the works of six of her students at poeticpower.com, sponsored by Creative Communication. All six students were published.

After teaching poetry to her class last year, Billman submitted a poem from each of her 18 students to the poetry competition. All of them were accepted for publication.

Not many teachers do as well as Billman did.

“One percent of the schools end up having all of their entries accepted,” said Tom Worthen, the editor at Creative Communication. Typically, about half of the submissions are rejected during preliminary judging.

Sam’s entry was rated among the top 10 out of roughly 2,000 entries in the kindergarten through third-grade division, said Worthen, a teacher at Utah State University.

In Sam’s case, Worthen said, “he creates some nice imagery. The rhythm is good.”

Creative Communication has been working with teachers and students for more than 18 years, striving to encourage good writing, Worthen said. “We deal with children’s hopes and dreams.”

The goal of Creative Communication’s contests are “to be selective enough that it’s an honor, but not so selective that it’s discouraging,” the editor said.

Billman believes encouragement will help a writer, at any level, to improve.

She did some research before beginning to teach poetry and followed the advice of an expert to start by using real objects to help stimulate creative thought.

“We started looking at things like rocks and leaves and feathers and seashells,” Billman said. “We felt them and we described them to get their juices going.

“I gave them little pieces of paper and I told them that was their poem notebook, and that if they had an idea to jot it down. So, we worked from that.”

The poetry lessons were somewhat laborious, Billman said.

“Every day, they would try to work on an idea. We spent at least a month on it. We worked on it daily, for 30 minutes,” she said.

She would begin with a group lesson and then the students would write, independently. She made her way about the room, conferring with individual students. At the end of each lesson, they’d share.

Billman said she’d remind students that the path to good writing is practice.

“It doesn’t matter where you are. Wherever you are, you’re going to get better,” the teacher said.

Besides earning recognition and publication, Sam received a free book and $25 to purchase a $50 U.S. Savings Bond.

Sam will be 17 when that bond matures and he already has plans for the money, his mom said.

“He’s such a giving little boy, he says to me: ‘I’m going to be rich when I’m 17. I’m going to be able to help you pay the taxes,’ ” Adrienne Johnson said.

Culinary students vie for a trip to the ball

 

By B.C. Manion

 

The culinary artists were aflutter in the kitchen, putting on the last-minute flourishes on creative confections they hoped would woo judges’ votes.

Twelve teams were vying for the top three honors in the second annual Cinderella’s Favorite Dessert competition, held Thursday night at the Academy of Culinary Arts at Land O’ Lakes High.

“As you can see back there, this is like opening night for a play,’’ said Pasco County School Board Chairwoman Joanne Hurley, nodding toward the kitchen as the teams plated their desserts.

“Everything is going on and they’re all doing their last-minute preparations. Excitement is in the air,” Hurley said.

Teams from Marchman Technical Education Center and Land O’ Lakes, Fivay, Hudson, Wiregrass Ranch and Anclote high schools put their culinary skills to the test in a quest to have their dessert chosen to be served at the upcoming Cinderella Ball.

That black-tie gala is an evening of elegance put on by the Pasco Education Foundation to raise money for scholarships, classroom grants and recognition programs. This year, the ball will be held on March 3 at Heritage Springs Country Club.

Beyond creating a tasty dessert, each team obviously put thought into how their creation would fit nicely into the theme of Cinderella’s ball.

While washing dishes at a stainless steel sink before making her case to the judges, Land O’ Lakes High senior Gordon ran through the lines she would speak.

Whenever she stumbled, she started again. She was determined to get it right.

She was confident that she and her partner, Lindsey Monson, had dreamed up a delectable dessert for the contest.

The pair named their entry “Cinderella’s Spectacular Sampler.”

And, it did look delicious.

The sampler included a pumpkin cheesecake, to represent the carriage; a Black Forest cake pop to represent Germany, home of the castle Walt Disney used as a model for Cinderella’s castle; and dressed up a strawberry in a tuxedo, to represent the prince.

While others rushed about, Wiregrass Ranch High student Kaileigh Skinner seemed to have everything under control.

While others were rushing to finish, she had completed plating her petit fours, which she called “Sweet Surprises.”

Each plate had four petit fours made of cake and fillings, covered with chocolate. She used raspberry, mango and kiwi lime fruit fillings and one filling made of caramel.

Skinner did not seem to be sweating it, even though her partner, Sylvia Pardo, could not attend the event.

“I’m actually the only one ready now,” Skinner said. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”

As teams presented their entries, the energy and thought they’d put into their work was obvious.

First place went to Brooke Dobbyn and Burgandy Mills, a team from Anclote High, for a dessert they called Prince’s Golden Mocha Layer Cake.

The Land O’ Lakes High team of Ashlee Hubert and Ariana Powell-Lindo took second place, while third place went to Danielle Sneve, Cody Hindman and Sara Schiff, with an alternate, Bailey Bryant.

The second-place dessert from Land O’ Lakes High is called “Lady Tremaine’s German chocolate cake.” It consists of German chocolate cake, a coconut pecan filling and a border made of ladyfingers.

Hubert, a junior, presented the dessert to the judges. Her teammate, Ariana Powell-Lindo, was unable to attend the event.

“What was your idea of having the ladyfinger border?” judge Aaron R. Fodiman asked.

Hubert: “We decided that would give it an elegant look,” Hubert said.

“And that it does,” Fodiman said.

Hubert was delighted by her team’s success.

“I’m very surprised,” she said. “I’m happy. I’m just like a bundle of joy.”

She wasn’t the only one who was feeling good at Thursday’s event.

The man who oversees the school district’s culinary arts programs had a broad smile on his face, when the students finished their pitches.

“I’m standing back here as proud as I can be,” said Rob Aguis, the director of community, career and technical education for Pasco County Schools. “They all did a wonderful job.”

 

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

He didn’t grow it himself, but Ken Copeland is pretty darn proud of the 5 1/2-pound broccoli he recently plucked from a vegetable harvester at a farmer’s market at 30^th Street and Hillsborough Avenue in Tampa.

Copeland was so smitten by the unusually large vegetable that he shelled out a few bucks to buy himself some bragging rights.

Copeland has the super-big broccoli at Land O’ Lakes Farmers Market, which he operates at 21329 Carson Drive in Land O’ Lakes. When it’s not on display, it’s in a cooler to prolong its longevity.

He has no plans to sell it but he does intend to eat it. He says that’s one of the advantages of running a fruit and vegetable stand – he has plenty of good food for meals.

Copeland’s broccoli is nearly triple the size of an average broccoli, according to Danielle D. Treadwell, associate professor and extension specialist in organic and sustainable vegetable production at the University of Florida.

An average broccoli weighs less than 2 pounds, according to Treadwell, who works in the department of horticultural sciences.

No doubt Copeland’s broccoli is large, but it is nowhere near the size of the largest broccoli on record grown in 1993 by John and Mary Evans of Palmer, Alaska. That broccoli weighed 35 pounds, according to Guinness World Records.

 

Wiregrass Ranch High’s event honors family’s memory

By Kyle LoJacono

Scores of people packed the stands at Wiregrass Ranch High on Saturday, Jan. 21.

They came to see some of the top boys basketball teams in the area battle on the court, but they also were there to remember the Ulrich family.

Jeff and Ronni Ulrich, along with their children Carlie and Lexi, died in the summer of 2010 when the Wesley Chapel family’s single-engine airplane crashed in Arizona while they were going to see the Grand Canyon on vacation.

Carlie had just finished kindergarten at Seven Oaks Elementary, while Lexi would have been a senior at Wiregrass Ranch this school year.

Lexi was a constant at the Bulls basketball games while on the cheerleading team.

“She used to come to all the games, and she was a huge supporter of ours,” said Wiregrass Ranch boys basketball coach Jeremy Calzone. “She would always get the cheering section started. Once I heard she died I went to the family and said, ‘can we do something.’ ”

Calzone worked with Mikki and Stan Glantz, Lexi’s grandparents, to create the Ulrich Family Classic last year to keep the family’s memory alive.

“I can’t believe it,” Mikki said. “They have gone far beyond anything we’ve ever expected. The whole school has. So much support they’ve given. To see her classmates and the whole community means so much.”

The Glantzes attended the event the last two years and were overjoyed with the outpouring of affection toward Lexi and the entire Ulrich family. Calzone presented the Glantzes with a shirt and ball with signatures and messages from the Wiregrass Ranch basketball players.

“It’s just mind boggling to see this,” Stan said. “Generally when something happens people feel sorry for you for a few days and then go on with their lives. For the school, the teachers and the faculty to create this ongoing thing is just amazing in today’s world.”

Calzone said he wants to keep the classic going every year.

“I want this to be the biggest event in Pasco County,” Calzone said. “We’ve tried to get teams from Pinellas and Hillsborough counties too so it can generate more money for the scholarship fund. We have some really good teams playing in it this year, but I want to see it have a lot more good so it has a lot of excitement.”

Money raised from ticket and concession sales went to the Ulrich Family Scholarship fund.

“I can’t believe the support that the school has given my family,” Stan said. “Putting on this event and raising money for a scholarship that’s given every year is just unbelievable. It’s been really hard for us, and of course we remember them every day, but to see all these people remembering them like this is really special.”

Calzone said he didn’t know Lexi very well, which makes his efforts to put the classic together even more amazing to her grandparents

“It’s so amazing to us that Mr. Calzone wants to keep this going,” Mikki said. “He’s a gem. He has been working with us to get pictures in the program. I don’t know how closely connected with him Lexi was because she was into so many different things, but what Mr. Calzone has done is amazing.”

As for the games that included area squads, Land O’ Lakes (12-6) defeated Freedom (5-7) 58-54 in the third contest while Wharton (18-3) beat Wiregrass Ranch (11-6) 86-72 in the final matchup of the day.

Senior guard Ernest McClendon led the way for the Gators with 18 points, while senior forwards Jackson Cannon and Mike Morrow each kicked in 13. Patriots junior point guard Antwan Bradley put up 16 points, and junior center Brandon Patchan added 12.

The Wildcats had four players in double-digit points, led by junior guard Jaken Grier’s 21 and sophomore forward Chase Litton’s 18. Junior guards Troy Holston and Sir Patrick Reynolds had 14 and 10, respectively.

The Bulls were led by a pair of 25-point efforts by junior forward Rico Kerney and junior point guard Chris Parra. Junior guard Dimarco Burgess posted 10.