The extensive detail in Steve Konopelski’s haunted lighthouse earned him top placing in the recent Haunted Gingerbread Showdown on The Food Network. Photo courtesy Donna Benner)
As a former performer on the Broadway stage, it’s not that far-fetched for local chef Steve Konopelski to take a dramatic approach to his baking projects.
Whether it’s in front of the camera for a Food Network special or in his Denton bed and breakfast, Turnbridge Point, his confectionary creations continually keep people on the edge of their seats.
Konopelski opened Turnbridge Point with husband Ron Griffith in 2015, after renovating one of Denton’s majestic Victorian-era homes built in 1868 on the Choptank River. Its five guest rooms are named after former owners of the house and its expanded commercial kitchen houses Konopelski’s baking business and periodical cooking classes he offers.
When he’s not entertaining guests there, he’s doing it on television, starring in two recent baking competitions on The Food Network.
In 2015 he was a finalist on The Holiday Baking Championship.
For the the final challenge, he made his traditional vanilla cake with the theme carol singing, featuring fresh fruit, fondant and lyrics along the side, making some of the lyrics bigger than the others.
“I love carol singing and I know when you go, there is always someone singing the loudest and others singing quieter,” he told The Star Democrat in 2015. “I think it represents someone unique.”
This year, he was back on screen for the Haunted Gingerbread Showdown — and this time he won it all.
He crafted a Maine-inspired lighthouse with bones as its rock base and an ominous gingerbread boat floating in the water.
Taking first in the competition, Konopelski received $25,000 and a feature in Food Network Magazine.
