Public invited to Bethany’s annual soup, chili cookoff
By:
Staff report
Garretson firefighters had three chili entries in the 2018 cookoff. Their “hotter-than-hot” entry won the fireman’s competition. Jill Meier/File photo
Warning: The Garretson Volunteer Fire Fighter’s entry at Saturday’s soup and chili cookoff may be hazardous to your health.
At last year’s Bethany Meadows’-hosted event, one taste-tester announced that it cleared out his sinuses.
The comment made the first-place prize-worthy chili chefs Tad Heitkamp, Todd Fink, Dan Wagner, Jason Wagner and Levi Schmid simply smile.
Soup and chili lovers can taste-test the entries from 12 noon to 2 p.m. Saturday. In keeping with tradition, proceeds from the suggested $5 per person entry, will be shared among the four area volunteer fire departments: Brandon, Valley Springs, Split Rock and Garretson.
Along with the Garretson fire fighters’ hotter-than-hot chili, Brandon firefighters – represented by Michael Martin and Dusty Wagner – claimed second with their beer cheese soup, one of five entries they concocted last year. And Julie Schoellerman’s version of “Crack Chicken Noodle” won the People’s Choice award in 2018, and Tom Osberg’s shrimp bisque was the runner-up.
The annual soup and chili cookoff have become a Hoffman family tradition. The family keeps track of the number of cups of soup they put a spoon into. Last year’s 40-some cups total well-surpassed the previous years’ 38.
“It’s just a fun tradition we do with my dad,” she said, adding that her dad “even got a speeding ticket coming here one year.”
There’s no cost to enter a soup or chili in Saturday’s event, but participants are asked to email Tyler Sullivan, Bethany facility director, at TSullivan@bethanylutheranhome.com.
