Desserts of Devotion

Desserts of Devotion - not to confuse with Deserts of Devotion (although this might be an interesting topic as well) - is the topic for the challenge I'd like to celebrate with all of you. Or as many of you as would like to. But why, oh why Desserts of Devotion? Let me elaborate on this.

I wanted to do a challenge this year. My first challenge, to be precise. I was looking for a good time to do so and ended up with March. I was thinking about a good topic for the challenge. Something, I have experience with and therefore would not have to many difficulties in judging. And during World Ember a lot of people liked my article for the Neujahrssuppe. The fact that Lent, which is being observed in some parts of the world, falls between March 5th and April 19th came in handy here. You might know, that this is a time during which some people forsake certain things, like meat or alcohol. Or sweets! This idea is completely absurd to me. And therefore, I decided to turn the tables. Instead of forgo sweets, I want to put a focus on them. And to keep in mind that lent is actually a religious matter, I decided to combine desserts with something divine. And thus, Desserts of Devotion was born!

The Challenge

Imagine a dessert born from the culture, traditions, and resources of your world. Whether it’s a shimmering celestial tart baked by the priests of the goddess of hope, a dense, spiced pudding from the underground city of a dwarven clan, or a delicate floral confection crafted by the winged artisans of an enchanted forest, your task is to create a recipe that tells a story.

But wait- this isn’t just about listing ingredients. We’re asking you to dive deep into the lore behind your dessert. Why is this dish significant to your fictional culture? Is it served at festivals, used in rituals, or a symbol of love and unity? What challenges do characters face in sourcing its rare, magical ingredients? Bring us into the heart of your world with every delicious detail.

Guidelines

Name Your Dessert: Give your creation a name that evokes the spirit of the world it comes from.

Describe the Recipe: Include the ingredients (feel free to invent fantastical ones) and step-by-step preparation instructions. This part is really important to me!

Tell the Story: Share the cultural, historical, or magical significance of the dessert.

Be Creative: There are no wrong answers here. Combine culinary realism with your wildest dreams. Think outside the (cake) box. There are no template limitations.

Example Entry

This is a very short version, that should only give an idea. But I also include what I did with the Neujahrssuppe.

Name: Neujahrssuppe

Recipe: A hearty stew, mostly made with meat and lots of vegetables. Primarily eaten during the cold seasons, this dish warms you from inside out.

Story: The Neujahrssuppe is traditionally being eaten throughout the Willenberg Republic on the day of the Cahaya Celebrations. Like the goddess is comforting the souls of her believers, so is the stew comforting the bodies of them.

Why Join?

Expand Your Skills: Practice blending culinary creativity with storytelling finesse.

Engage With our Community: Share your creation with fellow worldbuilders and gain inspiration from their imaginative dishes.

Win Bragging Rights and Badges: There are badges up for grabs! Thank you to BlueFairy for styling the background of them for me.

How to Participate:

Submit your entry by April 19th, 12pm GMT in the comments. Every entry will have the right to claim the normal challenge badge. Wordcount should be between 300 and 1500 words to be considered for the top three. If you just want the participation badge feel free to go beyond that. Amongst all entries, I will pick a bronze, silver and gold winner and explain exactly, why I choose those articles. Those will get their own special badge.

Judging Period:

Every entry that has been written between March 5th and April 19th is going to be read and judged by me as soon as possible. I will try to do this as soon as possible. Badges will be delivered by myself to you, hopefully until the end of the month.

The results are in!

Last Saturday the Desserts of Devotion challenge came to an end. There are now 15 entries in total, a third of them from within the German Discord Community. I have read all articles and gave points in three categories. The first was how well the recipe was written, including the list of ingredients and instructions on how to make the dessert. The second category was the devotion theme and how well I personally got the impression that the topic was included into the article. Lastly, I also took a look on the presentation, although this was rated with a lower weighting. And today I finally have time to write done the results for all of you. So, without further ado, let's get to it:

Third place

The third place is a shared one. One badge goes to the Scale Cake by CrazyEddie. The cake itself just looks humongously delicious. A rich chocolate sponge cake layered with a vibrant orange cream ... yummy. I loved the fact, that this cake was traditionally served as part of the worship of the dragons.

The second third place goes to the Tender Tarts by Shaaman. The whole presentation is just lovely, well structured and beautifully done. As this sweet treat was originally part of the sermon of one of this worlds religions, the topic was included really good.

Second place

Second place goes to a German article. I really recommend to put the whole thing into deepl and translate, in case you don't speak German yourself, because Nightone's Lyr'thena-Âlley is a fantastic read. The description of the preparation is just spot on and also the way the dessert was used in worhsip of the moon gods is nicely described.

First place

Again, this place is a shared one. Winning dessert number one is the Glùcaella - Crocus Doughnut by BlueFairy. The presentation is top of its class. Beautiful pictures, lovely insights, well structured content. A feast for the eyes in more than one way. I'd give a lot to get my hands on one of those.

The second dessert on first place is the Starberry Enchantment by StillnessandSilence. This one just hit all my spots. Star-/Strawberries, Crème Pâtissière, pastry ... although the presentation itself might not be that special, the author went above and beyond and made this delicious, complex cake in real life, adding picture of each step to the description.

Conclusion

I was really happy to see as much entries for my first challenge as I was expecting. I knew, that the prompt was rather specific and also quite a lot of other challenges were taking place. So therefore I think 15 entries are a solid result.

Over the next days I will distribute the badges to every participant. Those how'd like a little bit more feedback on their articles can let me know and I will try to let them know what I liked about their entry and what I might have missed.

Thank you again to everyone who participated and I'm sure there will be more challenges, judged or unjudged, from me.