King Arthur Flour and Kansas Wheat Announce First-Ever National Festival of Breads™

June 19, 2009 - Wichita, Kan. - Dianna Wara of Washington, Ill., has been awarded the grand prize in the first-ever National Festival of Breads bread-baking competition, organized by King Arthur Flour and Kansas Wheat. Wara’s Tomato, Basil, Garlic Filled Pane Bianco was selected from among eight finalist recipes bake-tested at the public competition on Wednesday, June 17, in Wichita.

"There are eight great breads up there and to be the one winner, I can’t believe it," Wara said at the awards banquet. "I have 51 of the most amazing taste-testers at the school I work at, and they are the ones who fine-tuned this recipe for me. I’m so excited about going to Vermont!"

Wara’s recipe was selected by a panel of three judges, including Diana McMillen, Senior Food Editor for Midwestern Living; Kansas State University Professor Dr. Mary Molt, RD; and Dr. Kirk O’Donnell, Vice President of Education at AIB International. Judging was based on taste, originality, ease of preparation, healthfulness, and appearance.

Wara will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to a baking class of her choice at the King Arthur Flour Baking Education Center in Norwich, Vt., plus $2,000 cash. Each finalist also received a $500 cash award, as well as a Wheat Harvest Tour in Kansas including a visit to a working wheat farm, grain elevator, and flour mill.

More than 500 home bakers from around the country entered the National Festival of Breads, which sought the best original bread recipes from home bakers throughout the United States.

Finalists, their categories, and their recipe names are listed below. All finalist recipes are available at kingarthurflour.com and kansaswheat.org.

Whole Grain Breads

Marjorie Johnson, Robbinsdale, Minnesota – ABC Wheat Bread

Jan Galloway, Columbia, Missouri – Mom’s Best Hearty Wheat Bread

Time-Saving & Easy Breads

Jessie Grearson, Falmouth, Maine – Sweet Life Sweet Potato Focaccia

Tanna Richard, Cedar Rapids, Iowa – Healthy Homemade Bread

Ethnic Breads

Dianna Wara, Washington, Illinois – Tomato, Basil, Garlic Filled Pane Bianco

Nikki Norman, Milton, Tennessee – Spiced Cranberry Lemon Danish

Rolls

Judy Reynolds, Bloomington, Indiana – Cranberry & Lemonade Cream Rolls

Gloria Piantek, West Lafayette, Indiana – Bacon Onion Baby Brioche

King Arthur Flour is not only the nation's oldest flour company, it is the single largest educator of home bakers in the world. Founded in 1790 and employee-owned since 1996, the company conducts free baking classes nationwide for both adults and middle-school students, and offers a wide variety of baking classes at its Baking Education Center in Vermont. King Arthur Flour's fundamental mission is to be an education and product resource for, and inspiration to, bakers worldwide. More information is available at kingarthurflour.com.

Kansas Wheat, based in Manhattan, Kan., is the cooperative agreement between the Kansas Wheat Commission and the Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, with a common vision of "leaders in the adoption of profitable innovations for wheat." Visit kansaswheat.org for more information.