About Me

2004 Pillsbury Bake-Off Awards Ceremony - I'm on the right.
The million dollar winner is on the left.

I'm Tracy Schuhmacher. I am the food and drink reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, New York.

Before that, I was a free-lance food writer.

And before that, I was an avid cooking contester. This blog was borne in my contester days.

What is a contester?

Many years ago, I took a breather from my career to be an at-home mom. I was at play group with my sons, and one of the moms happened to tell me about her experiences in cooking contests -- she had been to two Pillsbury Bake-off contests and had won cash, appliances and more.

With that, I decided to throw my hat in the ring, entering six recipes in the 2004 Pillsbury Bake-off contest. I was stunned to get the call that I was one of 100 finalists in the contest. My husband and I had a fun trip to the contest in Hollywood, and I won my category in the Bake-off contest. My prize: $10,000. (Sounds great, until you realize that the woman in the picture to the left of me won a million dollars. But I'm not complaining.)

With Tyler Florence at the 2006 Southern Living Cookoff.

With that, I was hooked on cooking contests, and entered lots of them. This made me a "contester," a term for people who share the same passion. As I developed entries for cooking contests, the day-to-day task of cooking for my family became a creative challenge. Dinnertime was fun because we all discussed what we thought of my creations.

As a finalist in national contests, I too my husband and each of my sons on fun, special trips. At some, I won cash and/or prizes (none bigger than the first Pillsbury win), but the best part was making friends with interesting and creative people from around the country.

With my son at the AirBake Cookie Contest in NYC.

As I became busier with cooking contests, my cousin, Michele, suggested that I start a food blog. This sounded like a great idea because friends and family wanted to know the results of contests very soon after I competed. A blog was a great way to share the information quickly. Before long, the blog also became my personal recipe box and lots more. The name is a spoof on Rachacha, the nickname of my adopted hometown of Rochester, NY.

While this blog is pretty much nascent these days and it looks a bit dated. it holds a special place in my heart. It helped lead me to my current dream job and brings back fond memories of my contesting years..

Finally, it serves as my online recipe box that I can share with friends. I hope you enjoy them.

I do not accept advertising for Rah Cha Chow and never have.