KNOXVILLE -- The second annual Cupcakes in the Park will be held in Krutch Park on September 28 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Presented by Scripps Networks Interactive, all proceeds will support mental health, addiction and social services provided in the Knoxville community by the Helen Ross McNabb Center.
East Tennessee's favorite bakeries are competing in the professional bakery competition for the People’s Choice and Judges’ Choice Awards. Participating bakeries include Against the Grain, Art of Cakes, Cake Girlz, the Cup, The Fresh Market, Gigi’s Cupcakes, Ingles, It’s All So Yummy Cafe, KupKatie’s Kupcakes, Magpies Cakes, Mer Mer’s Bakery, NattyEm’s Cupcakes, Pellissippi Culinary School, Publix Super Market at Northshore Town Center, Scrumps Cupcakes, Sugar N’ Things, and Sweetfully Yours.
Novice adult and child bakers are invited to show off their baking skills by competing in age specific competitions. To enter adults must pay the $25 entry fee and bake six regular-sized cupcakes to bring with them to the event; children, ages 18 and younger, must pay $15 and bake six regular-sized cupcakes to bring with them. To sign up or for more information, visit www.cupcakesinthepark.com or contact Katie Teesdale at 865-329-9030, katharine.teesdale@mcnabbcenter.org.
The Judge’s Choice winner will be chosen by the following celebrity judges: Erin Donovan, Visit Knoxville; Garrett Scanlan, owner of Garrett’s Downtown Deli and star of the PBS show “A Fork in the Road;” Heather Grubb, formerly of TLC's “Next Great Baker;” Kim Hansard, Star 102.1; Mike Craigen, Ice Bears Coach; and Chef Walter Lambert, WVLT Channel 8. Frank Murphy from 93.1 WNOX Classic Hits will kick off the event, and Whitney Kent, from WVLT Channel 8, will serve as the event emcee.
“I had such a fun time last year with all my fellow judges and really enjoyed interacting with all the bakers and folks who came out to the festival,” said returning cupcake judge and Ice Bears Coach Mike Craigen. “It was just an overall lighthearted and fun day. The endless cupcakes certainly don’t hurt the cause either.”
The event is free to the public. To taste the participating bakeries’ cupcakes, attendees can purchase a $5 ticket which includes five mini-cupcakes and one vote in the People's Choice contest. In addition to tasting cupcakes, families can enjoy activities like face painting, a bounce house, and a carousel ride. To top it all off, there will be a milk dunking booth with surprise celebrities just waiting to be dunked. Donations will be accepted for these additional activities.
Event sponsors include Scripps Networks Interactive, Morris Creative Group, Pilot Flying J, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Clayton Bank, TIS, PrintEdge, Metro Pulse, Bandit Lites, Sound Ventures, Event Rentals by Rothchild’s, Star 102.1, UT Culinary Institute, UT Medical Center, Shults Pediatrics, Bruce and Poli Gress, UT College of Social Work and Earthfare. Prize donors include The Knoxville Zoo, Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt (Turkey Creek location), Scripps Networks Interactive, Sugarbakers Cake, Candy and Wedding Supplies and Wilderness in the Smokies waterpark.
Child & Family Tennessee organized the first Cupcakes in the Park event in 2012. The organization merged with the Helen Ross McNabb Center on August 1, 2013. The Helen Ross McNabb Center is a premier not-for-profit provider of behavioral health services in East Tennessee. Since 1948, the Center has provided quality and compassionate care to children, adults and families facing mental illness, addiction and social challenges. As the Center begins its 65th year of providing services to communities in East Tennessee, its mission remains clear and simple; “Improving the lives of the people we serve.” For more information, visit www.mcnabbcenter.org or call 865-637-9711.
