The smell of fresh pies, cakes, breads and cookies approach the judges as they enter the room. They begin tasting all the baked goods. They come across the chess pie category, and find Cyndy Grove’s homemade Lemon Chess Pie is a taste worth remembering, a first place taste.

Counseling secretary, Grove, started cooking with her grandmother when she was three years old.

“My grandmother was my inspiration because she cooked a lot,” Grove said. “I remember she would be in the kitchen and would give me some of the pie crust to roll out and play with.”

Starting at a young age, cooking became a hobby for Grove. In 1988, she decided to start baking for the State Fair of Texas, which happens every year from Sept. 28 through Oct. 21.

“Each year, I try to enter four or five competitions, then you can enter five things per competition,” Grove said.

In the past 24 years Grove has won more than 400 awards. To her it’s not about the ribbons, it’s much more.

“I like seeing me friends I compete with every year,” she said. “I don’t go planning to win; if I do I’m excited.”

Every year Grove starts planning in August what she will cook for the state fair.

“I prepare and come up with recipes that I will be taking with me,” Grove said. “I don’t always practice what I cook, so when I win, it’s just pure luck.”

In 2007, Grove was competing in a cake competition and she took five cakes and earned four first places. Grove didn’t practice these cakes before hand, so she was surprised with the results.

“Last year I entered a pie in my mother’s name,” Grove said. “It was called ‘Vylene’s lemon chess pie’ and I earned first place out of 25 other contestants.”

Each year she also spends $300 on ingredients for all her baked goods, and $1 per item entered in each contest category.

“It’s not about the money,” Grove said. “It’s worth spending.”

Not worried about the money or the awards, Grove just cooks as a hobby and teaches other people.

“I’ve gotten other people involved in competing and right now I am teaching my seven and nine year old granddaughters,” she said.

Competing for another year, her goal is to pass the joy of cooking from generation to generation.

“I know my family will always remember me by my cooking,” Grove said. “I just love it.”