Rowlett boy wins national mango cooking contest

by PegNews wire

ROWLETT — Dean Sturt, of Rowlett, is the winner in the first Rising Mango Star video contest, hosted by The National Mango Board. Dean stood out amongst other aspiring chefs with his unique video and stellar dish, Mangolicious Flip Flop Cake. Dean had to battle it out against two other young finalists in a final judging cook-off at The Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. The trio also had a judging panel of reputable food experts to wow, including Simply Delicioso star Ingrid Hoffmann, Chef Allen Susser, and Regina Ragone, food director of Family Circle magazine. After much tasting, questioning and deliberation, the judging panel chose Dean for his creativity, presentation, and exquisite use of mango.

The grand prize for Dean was an opportunity to appear with Ingrid Hoffmann in the September issue of television’s video magazine Health & Home Report, so that's exciting.

Dean has been cooking since he was three years old. His mom used to hear him scooting the kitchen chair up to the counter to make "soup," a pan filled with water and spices. Since then, Dean has been cooking non-stop and wants to someday make it his career.

His recipe was inspired by his mom and his favorite part of any meal — dessert! Dean wanted to create a recipe to appeal to those with the same love for sweets. Dean’s Mangolicious Flip Flop Cake recipe is a moist cake made with fresh pureed mangos. The cake resembles a traditional upside down cake, but instead has a beautiful design of scrumptious mangos on the plate. Visit the Web site to view Dean’s winning recipe and video.

Source: The National Mango Board