My Turn: Girl Scouts’ cake competition launches a new avocation

It’s Girl Scout Cookie time! From now through March, the girls (including my niece) will be selling their tasty treats to raise money for the organization. For me, it always brings back memories of the day when one of my students approached my desk, somewhat sheepishly, with this request: “Mr. Schachter, could you judge the Girl Scouts’ baking competition this Friday after school?”

I looked down at that hopeful face and said, “Sure I will, Jennifer.”

She beamed.

And, in the days leading up to the Big Event, I was beaming, too. Being required to eat cake was a task I could handle!

That Friday afternoon, I strolled over to the home economics room. The Girl Scout leader made an effusive welcoming speech and I was given a score sheet, pencil, knife and a fork.

I smiled at the girls around me and, without much ado, I dug into the first cake: chocolate chip. Mmm . . . delicious. Rich and creamy. Next, I plunged into the coconut. Another winner. The applesauce cake was waiting patiently on deck. I cut off a piece. Very tasty. I gave a hearty thumbs-up gesture as the girls looked on proudly.

“It’s hard to decide,” I said, “but I’ll try to make a decision.”

“Wait,” implored the Girl Scout leader. “It’s not over yet. You still have 11 more cakes to taste.”

“Huh?”

Sure enough, she was right. There were 11 more.

I carved a piece from No. 4, a lemon-something or other. It was OK, but I soon found that I wasn’t feeling just right. No 5 impressed me less. No. 6 was even less appealing. I had trouble swallowing No. 7.

At first, I couldn’t figure it out, but then it hit me — I was growing sick of all this cake. But, as I looked from side to side at the eager faces in their matching green uniforms, I could see there was no way out. I smiled back weakly and plowed on. I don’t remember what Nos. 8 and 9 tasted like, and by the time I got to Nos. 10 and 11, I couldn’t remember what any of them tasted like.

I started cutting smaller and smaller pieces until it seemed I was sampling only crumbs. By the 13th cake, I was gritting my teeth . . . . Finally, I tasted, chewed, and swallowed a piece of cake No. 14. I had climbed Mount Everest!

I had no idea which cake was best. After No. 6, they had all begun to taste the same.

Of course, I couldn’t let on. I waddled over to the girls and congratulated them on a wonderful effort. I wiped from my lips the crumbs from the chocolate, coconut, applesauce, lemon, and butterscotch cakes and considered a winner by gazing over the kinds of cake and saying softly to myself, “Eenie, meenie, miney, mo . . .”

Finally, I checked off No. 3 (applesauce cake) and the winner was announced.

That day marked the beginning of my illustrious pedagogical/judicial career.

After judging the cake competition, I avoided the sweets and moved on to Foods from Other Lands. I began to cross over into other disciplines, officiating at spelling bees, talent shows, sports field days, political debates and history programs.

In looking back, however, I have to say that I’ll always have a soft spot for that Girl Scout baking competition — but not necessarily in my stomach!

Saul Schachter,

Sea Cliff