Cook of the Week Challenge: Cheese queen, baking winner join judging panel
Brian Emmett
Emmett has been baking, cooking, serving and designing the unique experiences for family and friends for two decades. His obsession with food, baking in particular, rose to a head in 2013 when he entered CBS's "The American Baking Competition." He won the elmination-style competition and was named America's top amateur baker. The prize package included a book deal and "Bake Off," in which he shares more than 75-plus recipes, is due out in the spring.
John J. Engel
Engle, president and CEO of King Oscar, Inc., has been in the food industry for nearly three decades and built a solid reputation with his impassioned approach to product innovation and for his unwavering commitment to the development and execution of strategic business practices with an eye on long-term profitable sales growth. "Providing the consumer with premium-quality seafood is at the core of our success", Engle states. He lives in San Diego, Calif. with his wife, Janet, and their two children.
Michael Pennisi
Pennisi, a Schaumburg High School physics teacher, stepped out of the lab long enough to win the 2012 Cook of the Week Challenge. His way with wheat berries got him into the finals and his sauteed salmon and brussels sprouts slaw took him to the winners circle. He's married, lives in Carpentersville and spent his summer mastering his pizza-craft including learning how to make mozzarella cheese from scratch.
Sarah Sacker
Sacker is one of the 2014 Green County Cheese Days Ambassadors. She grew up on a dairy farm near Monroe, Wisconsin, and has a degree in Dairy Science and Life Sciences Communication. Following an internship with Sassy Cow Creamery, she now works in marketing at Kuhn North America in Brodhead, Wisconsin. She enjoys promoting Wisconsin's dairy industry along with the beauty of Green County.
Chef Suzy Singh
Chef Singh, a Top 4 finalist in FOX's "MasterChef" Season 2 (2011-2012), joined Bloomingdale-based NOW Foods as research and development corporate chef in 2013 to drive NOW Real Food new product development and create healthy solutions for existing products. She's currently formulating and developing recipes around the Living Now line of allergy-friendly and gluten-free grains, flours and baking products, as well as Ellyndale Foods, which includes natural and organic specialty oils and innovative gourmet products.