The 2026 Apple Recipe Contest officially kicked off the North Carolina Apple Festival weekend on Friday, September 4th. Our judges spent the morning deliberating over 34 creative and delicious submissions before selecting this year's top dishes.
Thank you to everyone who participated and shared their talents with us.
Congratulations to our 2026 Winners!
Explore the winning recipes below:
Grand Champion:
Keira Donaldson - Apple Masquerade
Desserts
1st Place:
| Keira Donaldson |
2nd Place:
| Lindsay Swope | Apple Spice Pastry Torte |
3rd Place:
| Karl Wolfe | Apple Cranberry Crisp Bars |
Breads
1st Place:
| Marlene Merrell | Apple Zucchini Muffins with a Crumble Ready to Rumble |
2nd Place:
| Kathy Y Ham | Tropical Apple Bread with Orange Glaze |
3rd Place:
| Shelby Scattergood |
Apple Fritter Focaccia |
Pie/Pastries
1st Place:
| Shelby Scattergood | Portugese Egg Tart Apple Pie “Pastéis de Nata” |
2nd Place:
| Marlene Merrell | Smoky Mountains Apple Bear Claws |
3rd Place:
| Tracey Trapp | Apple Pie Crumb Buns |
Kids
1st Place:
| Zella McCall | Apple Strudel Cheesecake |
2nd Place:
| Paisley-Anne Gordon | Apple Dapple Cake |
3rd Place:
| Jameson Linkous | Mom's Special Apple Cake |
A big thank you to our judges!
And a big thank you to our prize sponsors!
This contest was sponsored by:
Bold Rock Hard Cider
The Hendersonville Honeycrisps
North Carolina Department of Ag
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