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Rosie Clark Wins Leicestershire Cook Off

After months of searching, the hunt for the county’s signature dish is now complete. Rosie Clark, 48, from Clarendon Park has won the county-wide competition with her Leicestershire Loaves.

Celebrity chef, and head judge James Tanner revealed Rosie as the winner after she battled it out against three other finalists at a live cook off in the heart of Leicester city centre. As well as receiving a prize package worth over £1,000, Rosie’s winning dish will be available for the public to taste at the John Lewis restaurant for a week from Monday 10 October.

Rosie beat off tough competition from dozens of entries to make it to the final stage. The judging panel chose her recipe as they were particularly impressed by the way she had combined local ingredients and flavours in her Leicestershire Loaves to represent the county’s burgeoning foodie credentials.

James Tanner comments: “I was really pleased to be asked to be lead judge for the Leicestershire Cook off as I thought it was a great opportunity to showcase the region’s fantastic food offering, which I’ve often enjoyed sampling myself.  We had some really creative entries; judging the final four was tough, but we came to a decision and felt that Rosie’s recipe truly deserved the title.”

Sarah Harrison, city centre director and Leicestershire Cook Off judge, comments: “Lots of counties have a signature dish. Birmingham has its balti and Lancashire has its hot pot, and now this county has its Leicestershire Loaves! Congratulations to Rosie, her recipe will go down in history as the county’s signature dish. Judging was difficult as we had so many great entries, but well done to everyone who took the time to send in their recipes and made this search one of a kind.”

Rosie said: “I am delighted that my recipe is Leicestershire’s Signature Dish. It’s an absolute honour and I am so proud to have represented the county in this way. Leicestershire has so much to offer when it comes to food, and I really wanted to get this across in my recipe.”

In addition to winning the title of Leicestershire Signature Dish, Rosie also received £1,000 worth of cooking equipment including a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer courtesy of John Lewis, Raymond Blanc Anolon Stainless Steel Cookware Set courtesy of Fenwick and vouchers for Highcross Shopping Centre in Leicester.