Students looking to satisfy their sweet tooth gathered for a dessert-baking competition in Huntsman Hall Sunday.
Penn Gastronomy Club and the Sugar Philly food truck sponsored a Dessert Showdown in celebration of Sugar Philly’s one-year anniversary. Fifteen students entered their desserts into the competition.
Representatives from 34th Street, Under the Button, Penn Appetit and Sugar Philly judged the competition and chose Engineering freshmen Allison Pearce and Keelen Collins’ Golden Pineapple Custard as the winner of the grand prize. The custard will be featured on the Sugar Philly menu and its cooks will enjoy a free dessert outing and free cooking lessons from Sugar Philly’s Chef Tang.
Students voted the Petite Pineapple Glace with Coconut Almond Cake and Chai Citrus Glaze, prepared by College freshmen Dominique Clarke and Chris Chan and Engineering freshman Brian Collopy, as the crowd favorite.
Other contest entries included a chocolate and peanut butter parfait, basil-infused lemon bars with a cream cheese drizzle, Oreo truffles and coconut mochi cake.
Several students took a new approach to traditional dessert recipes. “I thought I’d give it an American twist,” College junior Tim Lew said about his peanut butter and jelly mochi. Wharton seniors Catherine Gao and Maria Davydenko baked a variation on the Hello Dolly bar, adding peppermint and nuts to their version.
The roughly fifty students who voted walked away an exclusive coupon to Sugar Philly.
“We decided to integrate coupons and a contest to get the word out [about Sugar Philly],” Engineering freshman and PGC head of marketing Alina Esquenazi said. Esquenazi added that her group’s members are frequent customers of the dessert food truck, which is located on 38th Street between Walnut and Sansom streets.
PGC, founded last semester, is a group of “foodies” — self-proclaimed food enthusiasts — dedicated to expanding their culinary horizons. They sponsor events such discounted dinners at Philadelphia restaurants and cooking classes. PGC also has a food blog open to Penn students and members of the community. “We are trying to build a relationship with foodies in the Philadelphia area,” College sophomore and PGC vice president Shreyans Goenka said.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.