CCA Convention Cook-Off

The Inaugural CCA State Convention kicked off with a team cook-off on Friday night at the Shriner's facility in Mount Pleasant. A cold night greeted the cooking teams, with overnight temperatures forecast in the upper 20's. A great crowd showed up to sample the culinary offerings, but it was a little below the 200 or so folks that were expected. Each cooking team showed some real spirit, and there is no reason why this annual cook-off won't be an excellent draw for years to come. The pictures tell the story but first lets revisit what the chapters were cooking. The Lexington chapter, with chairman Todd Stamps, were cooking Boston Butts and serving it with Asian cole slaw. The Sea Island Chapter served beef short ribs and collard greens. The Columbia chapter's cooking team is known as "the cartel," with chairman Tombo Milliken, and they served Pork Ribs, Cue Stew, Grits with corn kernels and bacon-wrapped doves. The East Cooper chapter, and chairman Pete Loy, served shrimp kabobs Shuford, Bernie's beef brisket, sweet & sour grouper and oysters obama. The Lowcountry chapter and the ACE Basin chapter teamed up to serve Frogmore Stew and brownies. The Waccamaw chapter, with chairman Chris Hawley, served Barbeque and jalepeno venison sausage. The Aiken chapter served Pork Ribs, Crab and shrimp pot stickers and prosciutto-wrapped shrimp. The Pee Dee chapter served blackened sirloin tips and venison eggrolls. Winners in the taste contest were to be announced at the state convention banquet on Saturday. The photos show Waccamaw team George Gore and Chris Hawley, The Lexington team and their butt-grabber spirit, East Cooper's Oysters Obama, The Charleston Angler Grill Team, plus Ashley and a friend trying to survive the cold!