Spamero uno, King of the canned meat heap — call the honor what you want, Jason Munson still can’t believe it.

After all, it’s not every day a guy takes first-place honors in the national Great American SPAM® Championship.

The Auburn man’s blue ribbon recipe at the Puyallup Fair catapulted the recipe to the national contest, and then he received word that his “Mini Maple SPAM Doughnuts” recipe beat out 800 other entries for top honors.

Munson, a 41-year-old home cook and aircraft mechanic for Alaska Airlines, won an all-expense-paid trip for two to Hawaii. He plans to go in April, just in time for the annual SPAM JAM Waikiki food festival.

Munson had entered the SPAM contest for seven years before taking first place. The inspiration for his mini doughnuts was a bacon-flavored pastry he ate in Oregon.

The winning bite-sized treats are baked with a buttermilk batter, paired with a fried SPAM® ring then finished with maple icing and a sprinkling of diced SPAM Classic. They won for their taste, creativity and presentation.

“These scrumptious, bite-sized doughnuts wowed the entire judging panel with their delicious flavor,” said SPAM brand manager Nicole Behne. “They especially stood out for their creativity and how easy they are to make.”

Munson calls cooking his “main hobby.” His son, Jordan, and wife, Lynn, are his top taste-testers. Once his recipes pass their “inspection,” he moves on to friends and coworkers.

Munson has competed in home arts contests at the fair for years, and all but one year in the SPAM category. He was pleased to be awarded the blue ribbon last September, and astounded to find out his recipe beat all others in the nation in the annual Hormel Foods-sponsored the contest featuring SPAM.

SPAM Bread Pudding, SPAM Rangoons, SPAM Chilaquiles, SPAM Greek Frittata, Sunrise SPAMABELLA Quiche, and Kiss My Grits & SPAM Classic were just a few of the other finalist recipes. The contest called for breakfast or brunch type entries. Nearly 800 people competed in the Hormel Foods-sponsored contest, which is hosted at fairs throughout the U.S.

Additional information is available upon request. For more recipes visit www.spam.com.

Munson may consider entering another cooking/baking contest at the Sept. 7-23 Puyallup Fair. Recipe entry information will be available in early May at www.thefair.com, under exhibit entries.

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MUNSON’S MINI MAPLE SPAM DOUGHNUTS

1 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons packed brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup buttermilk + 1 tablespoon buttermilk

1 egg

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1 (12-ounce) can SPAM® Hickory Smoked, SPAM® With Bacon or SPAM® Classic

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon maple flavor

For Dough: In large mixing bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Stir in 1/3 cup buttermilk, egg and melted butter. Beat together until well blended. Spoon batter into a pastry bag fitted with a round tip or a resealable plastic bag. Chill mixture for 1 hour. Meanwhile, prepare SPAM Rings and glaze.

For SPAM Rings: Remove the SPAM from the can and slice from the lid side to the bottom into 12 slices (each slice about 1/4-inch thick). Using a 1-1/2-inch round biscuit cutter, cut each slice of SPAM into two rounds (you should have a total of 24 rounds from the can of SPAM). Using a straw, knife or small pastry tip, cut a small circle out of the center of each piece of SPAM to make a ring. Place rings into a large skillet and fry until golden brown on both sides (repeat as necessary with SPAM rings); set aside. Take the remaining scrape pieces of SPAM and finely dice. Place the diced SPAM into the same skillet and fry until golden brown; set aside.

For Glaze: In small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, maple flavor and remaining 1 tablespoon of buttermilk until well combined; set aside.

For Doughnuts: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator. Spray a mini doughnut pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pipe batter into the mini doughnut tin; filling 2/3 of the way full (if using a resealable plastic bag snip the corner of the bag and pipe batter into the mini doughnut pan). Place the SPAM® Rings on top of the dough. Bake for 10 minutes or until the doughnuts spring back when touched. Allow the doughnuts to cool slightly and then carefully remove from the pan. Spread the prepared maple glaze over the doughnuts and top with the diced SPAM® for sprinkles. Repeat as necessary with the remaining dough and SPAM® rings. Serve doughnuts slightly warm. Makes 24 doughnuts.