Lana Dyck of Vernon with one of her most popular baked creations, Oreo Truffles. Dyck is in the running to be named Greatest Baker 2023 in an online competition. (Pete McIntyre/Vernon Matters photo)

By Pete McIntyre

She loves baking

Vernon woman looking to cook-up Greatest Baker title

Dec 4, 2023 | 12:00 PM

A Vernon woman is hoping she has the ingredients to be named the Greatest Baker for 2023.

Lana Dyck said she saw an ad on Facebook to meet Buddy Valastro, the pastry chef known as the Cake Boss, which got her interested in the online competition.

“I’m a baker, so I threw myself in, and then they got a hold of me two weeks later and said ‘you’re in,'” Dyck told Vernon Matters.

The event involves bakers from across Canada and the U.S. seeking online support, and at last update, Dyck was fourth out of the 50 contestants in her group.

Dyck, who is a former health care worker, has a profile page on the site that shows photos of the the items she has baked.

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“I’ve never gone to a class. It’s all just home baking, and I’m self taught. It’s amazing what you can do with flour and sugar. I was kind of a single mom and couldn’t afford the Tim Hortons and stuff so I would just bake it for me and my kids.”

Lana Dyck of Vernon (submitted photo/Greatest Baker)

Dyck, who has baking for 40 years, said she recently did a couple of work camp jobs, which “reignited her passion for baking.”

“I was in in Houston [B.C.] for 21 days, and the guys would come in. One guy said he would slap his mother for my apple crisps, so I took that as a compliment.”

Dyck loves to bake for others, adding with a laugh, her husband was 180 pounds when she met him, and is now 230.

“I get the most compliments from my Oreo truffles,” she said.

Click on this link to support Lana in the competition.

“It’s a free vote every day, and you can also share. If I can just get it up a little bit in the next three days, you would be supporting a Vernon resident.”

The winner get $10,000 and will be featured in Bake From Scratch magazine. The next cut of entrants is on Thursday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m.

Dyck said if she won, she would use the prize to pay off the bills accumulated from loss of income and employment from a recent work injury.

“I would use the rest to fund a small business to help in the dream to be financially successful. Happiness, kindness, and compassion will be a company requirement.”

Proceeds from the Greatest Baker event support families dealing with pediatric cancer.