Know where there weren’t any voting irregularities this year? Judging The Dallas Morning News Holiday Cookie contest. Picking the winners was tough

I was certain that all my years of judging pies, brownies, cakes, candies and chocolate deserts at The State Fair of Texas’ blue ribbon competitions would have adequately prepared (and iron clad) my stomach for judging this year’s The Dallas Morning News Holiday Cookie Contest.

I was wrong.

The supply chain may be broken for everything else in this country, but the container ships filled with powdered sugar, butter, flour, raspberry jam and chocolate seem to have made it through the ports without delay.

A small group of judges snacked our way through nearly a hundred entries to choose winners in each of five categories (Boozy, Kids’ Choice, Cookie Man, Bar, Sandwich Cookies and Pastry).

Some were great. Many more were really good. The rest? Well, at least the entry fees go to a worthy charity.

That’s right. All the entry fees for The Dallas Morning News Holiday Cookie Contest are donated to The Dallas Morning News Charities, which helps the hungry and homeless during the holidays. In the last two decades, the contest has raised more than $25,000.

The contest winners will be announced via DMN live stream on Dec. 7.