And the winner is …

Finalists in Diamond Bakery’s “Make and Bake” contest showed up on Saturday morning at Ala Moana Center Stage for the final judging of their original recipe (featuring Diamond Bakery products) and “cracker sculpture”.  The sculptures were very creative … and I can only guess that the recipes were great since judges were the only ones tasting them.

After sampling all of the entries and reviewing all of the sculptures, the  winner was ‘Noah’s Ark – made primarily of graham and animal crackers:

1st Place Winner

The Yoshida’s … first place winners with (l-f) Devon Nekoba – emcee and judges Lynn Cook, Melissa Chang, Ron Villoria, Brent Kunimoto (President of Diamond Bakery) and Susan Au Doyle (Exec. Director of Aloha United Way).  The prize was a very generous $1,500 cash plus one year supply of Diamond Bakery products valued at $500.

The event was open to the public.

Profits from 3-month’s of Diamond Bakery cracker sales were presented to Aloha United Way.

Diamond Bakery’s mission is sharing heart-warming Aloha and their “Make and Bake” campaign was just one of the many community fundraising programs they have throughout the year.

Made fresh in Hawaii – DIAMOND BAKERY

Took a quick tour a couple of weeks ago of the Diamond Bakery factory. Not sure if you know but it’s a local bakery specializing in crackers and cookies that got its start in 1921 by three friends. There is a great story here and you can read about it at www.diamondbakery.com.

The factory is pretty compact – all in one warehouse. Diamond Bakery uses continues feed, direct fired ovens for their popular crackers and cookies but workers hand-select, weigh and pack each box to ensure quality and unbroken product.

Diamond Bakery makes Graham, Salty, Saloon Pilot, Royal Creem (my personal favorite) and Soda Crackers. They also make cookies including animal crackers (below).

They have been working with the Waikiki Aquarium on a few educational projects (makes sense since some of the crackers are shaped like fish).

Here’s the Royal Creems assembly line – up close

Another view …

Ever wonder why you’ll never find cracked cackers in the pack … here’s why … workers check for cracked Creems …

Exterior of the bakery – tucked away in the Kalihi area.