DALLAS — There’s a history of baking in Allen Gage’s family. His mother, Rosie Parsons, grew up doing several extracurricular activities, including competitive baking. So when Gage was asked if he wanted to try it, he immediately chose to bake a pie.
“We were nervous about it. Excited but nervous because it was something new,” Parsons said.
Gage has helped bake cakes, cupcakes and cookies, but never tried making a pie. Little did his family know what was to come.
“He ended up getting first place,” Parsons said. “Not only first place, but best of category and overall grand champion.”
Gage won with a blueberry pie in a competition at the Kaufman County Fair earlier this year. His mother says Tolosa Feed Store bought the pie at auction for $725.
“We were just shocked,” Parsons said.
Gage’s family offered to enter more competitions, and he was delighted. In April, Gage entered his blueberry pie into the Battle of the Blue Ribbons, a State Fair cooking competition that started in 2023.
Gage competed against his age group in the Kaufman County Fair. He and his family didn’t realize he was competing against adults at Fair Park.
“At first we couldn’t tell if he got first or third because we couldn’t tell what order they were announcing it,” Parsons said. “When it was a blue, we were really shocked.”
A blue ribbon at the Battle of the Blue Ribbons meant Gage was now the first kid to win a first-place award in any category.
“I think people thought it was me at first who entered,” Parsons said. “Once they realized it was the little 7-year-old, they started cheering even louder.”
While Parsons plays down her own baking success in the past, it could explain Gage’s knack for baking. Parsons has also won the best of show, grand champion and auctioned off a cake, though she and her mother remember how much money she won differently.
As for Gage, he’s qualified for the Best of Show-Down Competition set for Oct. 6.
He said he wanted to bake a blueberry pie because he loves the fruit. Gage tells his mother his pie is special because he paints the pie referring to the egg wash used to coat the top of the pie. He also attributes sugar crystals and his grandmother’s farm fresh eggs for creating an award-winning recipe. Gage will be 8 years old by the time he takes part in the Best of Show-Down Competition. If he wins there, his recipe will forever live in the State Fair of Texas cookbook.