By Chef Christina Martin
It’s not your traditional gingerbread house contest with gumdrops and icing; it’s a showcase of artistry.
I visited the Noyes Holiday Market and Gingerbread Village competition held at the Noyes Arts Garage of Stockton University in Atlantic City this past weekend, Dec. 14-15.
It was the second year of the contest. Winners were determined based on votes from those visiting the weekend event with 494 people voting for first-, second- and third place.
The theme was fictional houses and entries had to be edible and nonperishable. The event brought out imagination in the contestants and the people who put it together.
“I love organizing the gingerbread contest and seeing all of the creativity on display from the community and Stockton students,” said Sarah Lacy, liaison for event planning and promotion at Stockton.
Last year’s theme was Atlantic City buildings or monuments past or present. Lacy said they have not selected a theme for the 2025 contest yet, but she is expecting to announce a theme early in the new year.
There were 10 fictional house entries, including one from a bakery, one from a cottage baker, entries from Stockton students and those in the community.
When I visited on Sunday people were admiring the hard work put into the gingerbread houses and were excited to select their favorites. It was fun to see the sweet creations as I had just done a gingerbread workshop with my high school culinary students.
My favorite was the Snoopy house (third place winner). It was neatly constructed, and included grass around the dog house. Lights on the house were a perfect holiday touch. I have a soft spot for dogs, another reason I was drawn to it.
The winners were announced Sunday afternoon. First place was the Weasley’s ‘Burrow’ house from ‘Harry Potter’ by Lisa Edson. It was a standout when you entered the gingerbread room and it was obvious that a lot of time went into the construction of this house. By the wows you could tell it was a fan favorite. There was such attention to detail from the cobblestone walkway leading to the front door, to the pretzel shutters with wreaths.
Second place went to Elsa’s Castle from ‘Frozen’ by Samatha Monday. If you are a Disney fan this one checked all the boxes. What caught my eye was the ice-cream cones used for the top of the towers.
Third place went to a Stockton student who created Snoopy’s dog house. It depicted Snoopy enjoying the snow on top of his house all decorated for Christmas including a wreath and lights. The “snow” frosting on the base was well done just like the icicles hanging from his house.
First-place prize was $350, second place $250 and third received $150. Other noteworthy houses included Princess Peach’s Castle with its vanilla wafer roof by Annalise Natale; SpongeBob Squarepants, a pineapple under the sea house by Kathleen Holmes; Barbie Disco Duck Hunt by Ducktown CDC was decorated with yellow ducks and pink icing; and Uncle Tom’s Cabin with a shredded wheat roof and pretzel fence by Traci Scott.
There was also ‘The Flintstone Movie’ by Rubina Carroll, Blue’s Clues House by Stacy Wu and another SpongeBob house by Vincent D’Allesandro.
Put the Noyes Holiday Market and Gingerbread Contest on your list next holiday season for a fun weekend event. It’s a great way to support and shop from local artists. There were many local artists selling their homemade products from soaps to pottery. Keep an eye out for next year’s gingerbread house theme.
The Noyes Arts Garage of Stockton University is located at 2200 Fairmount Ave., Atlantic City, and is open Wednesday to Sunday 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. It is the cornerstone of the Arts District in Atlantic City and has a mission to promote education and local artists.
Chef Christina Martin is a dedicated chef educator, passionate advocate for healthy eating, and mother. Christina’s expertise has been spotlighted in Independent Restaurateur Magazine and she has been awarded 2024 Chef Educator of the Year from the Professional Chef Association of South Jersey.
