Shine OnMichelle Obama wins Family Circle’s First Lady cookie contest
Since 1992, Family Circle magazine has been hosting a cookie contest between the two potential first ladies in advance of every presidential election.
"Our bake-off has been a bellwether in four out of five elections, with the winner becoming First Lady," the magazine's blog boasts.
If this remains the case, this year's "best cookie" win by current First Lady Michelle Obama — beating first lady hopeful Ann Romney's cookies by a small margin — will mean a second term for the Democrats.
"We should probably go through with the election for the sake of formality, but this thing is essentially over," Daily Intel's Margaret Hartmann says of Obama's sweet victory.
Also see: Turkey-cooking mistakes to avoid
Obama submitted the recipe for her daughters' godmother's white and dark chocolate chip cookies to the magazine, describing them as a "perfect special treat". Over 9,000 readers voted, and gave her 51.5 per cent of the vote, narrowly winning over Romney's M&M cookies.
Both women's cookies will be available for sampling in Washington, D.C. on election day.
"Through Election Day, every diner at the Occidental Grill & Seafood, next to the historic Willard Intercontinental Hotel, will receive a complimentary set of cookies baked according to both recipes," USA Today reports.
Obama's cookie recipe, from Eleanor 'Mama Kaye' Wilson, is loaded with white chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips and mint chocolate chips. Get the recipe here.
Romney's recipe is for an oatmeal cookie made with peanut butter, chocolate chips and M&Ms. Get the recipe here.
Also see: Fabio's Philadelphia cheesesteak
The only election since 1992 that wasn't predicted by Family Circle's Presidential Cookie Bake-Off was Obama's last election. In 2008, Cindy McCain's oatmeal-butterscotch cookies triumphed over Obama's lemon, orange, and Amaretto shortbread cookies.
McCain's win, however, was a bittersweet one, as rumours of cookie cheating marred her victory.
"McCain's recipe for oatmeal-butterscotch cookies, published on the Family Circle website earlier in the month, appears to be an almost exact replica of a Hershey's recipe," NY Daily News writer Amanda L. Pentler wrote last year.
Following these accusations, the recipe was quickly removed from McCain's website.
Some critics aren't impressed with the bake-off in general.
"Can this country please nominate a woman for president soon, so we can be rid of the First Lady bake-off forever?" asks Eric Kleefeld of Talking Points Memo.
