Pecans due Friday for area show

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Taylor County will be hosting the 2018 Abilene Area Pecan Show on Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 3-4, with the entries on public display from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 4, and an Awards Program starting at 6:00 p.m. that same evening. 

The show will include a Pecan Nut Division, as well as a Pecan Bake Show Division. Residents of Callahan, Fisher, Jones, Nolan, Shackelford and Taylor Counties are invited to submit their pecans and baked goods for competition and judging.

To enter the Pecan Nut Division, growers can submit 42 nuts of each pecan variety in a re-sealable, plastic bag to the Shackelford County Extension Office in the courthouse. Entries will be accepted from now through Friday, Nov. 30, at 12:00 noon.

Local extension agent Michaela Bradford will take the entries to the Taylor County Extension Office on Friday, Nov. 30. 

Producers may also take their entries directly to the Taylor County Extension Office at 1982 Lytle Way in Abilene during regular business hours with all entries due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 30. 

Growers who may be unsure of the pecan varieties need not worry; all entries will be classified before being judged. 

Pecans will be cracked and shelled on Monday, Dec. 3 and judged on Tuesday, Dec. 4. 

Judging this year’s show will be Larry Jim Womack of DeLeon. Womack, a 1958 graduate of Texas A&M University, was the second generation to operate Womack Nursery, and still assists his son in producing quality fruit and pecan trees for the family business.  

Pecan Bake Show

A bake show will be held in conjunction with the pecan nut show. Adults (18 years and over) and youth (younger than 18) are invited to participate by entering home-baked goods. Entries must contain pecans as an ingredient, not just as a decoration. 

Each contestant may submit only one entry per class, but may enter each of the 11 classes. The classes are: Class 1 – Pie; Class 2 – Cake made from scratch; Class 3 – Cake made with a mix as a base but has other ingredients; Class 4 – Cookies and Brownies; Class 5 – Brittle Candy; Class 6 – Praline Candy; Class 7 – Fudge and Other Chocolate Candy; Class 8 – Other Candy and Confections (divinity, toffee, dipped, flavored pecans, etc.); Class 9 – Roasted/Toasted Pecans; Class 10 – Quick Loaf Bread or Muffins; and Class 11 – Yeast Bread (sweet dough or regular). 

Entries for classes four to eight should submit six pieces for judging, entries in class nine are to submit 12 pieces, and entries in classes 10 and 11 must submit six muffins or one loaf.

Pecan Bake Show entries must be delivered to the Taylor County Extension Office between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 3. Each entry must be accompanied by the recipe with the exhibitor’s name and class number on the back of the recipe. 

Pecan show nut and baked entries will be on display at the Extension office on Tuesday, Dec. 4 from 3:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. 

Ribbons will be awarded to the first six places in each class, with sweepstakes winners in both the youth and adult divisions.

All entries must be picked up from the Taylor County Extension Office following the awards. Entries not picked up become the property of the Taylor County Extension Service.

For more information contact the Taylor County Extension Office, 325-672-6048 or by e-mail taylor-tx@tamu.edu.