KY HERITAGE COUNCIL

News release

Danville has a local competitor to root for in the upcoming Kentucky Main Street Best Baker competition, which is part of the Kentucky Main Street 40th Anniversary Conference being held next week in Covington.

Shana Followell, owner of Bluegrass Buttercream in Danville is a finalist for the Crossroads region of the Kentucky Main Street program which consists of Perryville, Danville, Bardstown, Campbellsville, and Springfield.

A program of the Kentucky Heritage Council/State Historic Preservation Office, Kentucky Main Street has seven regions, each with a thriving baking scene. The competition will pit finalists from each of these regions against one another in throw-down of bacon, butter and bourbon, where each recipe must feature two of the three ingredients.

Followell was the winner of this region’s competition which was held on March 9.

The final bakeoff will take place at 4 p.m. Wednesday at Baker Hunt Art & Cultural Center, 620 Greenup St., Covington, and the public is invited. Admission of $10 will cover samples and the opportunity to vote for the Peoples’ Choice award.

All regional winners received an embroidered apron. On Wednesday, the grand-prize winner will receive $200, a hand-crafted cake plate by Danville artisan Paul Muth, a special engraved bottle of Woodford Reserve, and a guest appearance on Lexington WTVQ-TV’s “Mid-Day Kentucky” to promote their business, in a segment hosted by Jason Smith. The People’s Choice award winner will receive a pottery mixing bowl also handcrafted by Muth.

Smith is a native of Grayson and appears on the Food Network. He will bring his culinary skills and colorful personality as he judges the final competition.

Smith is a self-taught cook and baker, who says he learned “at my grandmother’s knee” and later developed some of her traditional recipes with his own unique twist, a style he calls “Country Bling” cuisine. He gained a cult following as winner of the 13th season of “Food Network Star.” In addition, he was winner of Food Network’s “Holiday Baking Championship,” Season 3 and “Holiday Baking Championship, Kids vs. Adults” in 2016. He is now a host of the network’s “Best Baker in America” show and has appeared on the Rachael Ray Show on FOX and Pickler & Ben on the CW Network.

The Main Street conference will feature multiple tracks and concurrent sessions on diverse topics related to community revitalization and public engagement. It is open to the public and presented by Renaissance Covington in partnership with the KYMS, Friends of Kentucky Main Street, the City of Covington, BLDG Refuge, Hub+Weber Architects PLC, Pikeville Main Street Inc., Cincinnati Bell, and Kentucky Proud.

Information is available at rcov.org/kymainst40. The Kentucky Main Street Program was created in 1979 to reverse economic decline in central business districts through historic preservation and redevelopment of commercial buildings. For more, contact Administrator Kitty Dougoud, (502) 892-3605, or visit heritage.ky.gov.