It took creativity and a flair with flavor to curry points with the judges of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Apple Recipe Contest. In fact, for three of the five winners, curry power was a magic touch. The grand prize has been awarded to Mary Bullen of Hampton, who submitted Pork Tenderloin Over Curried Apples and Butternut Squash. This is the first time Bullen has entered a recipe contest, she says. "I came up with the idea myself. I love curry -- it has a good flavor." A native of New Zealand, Bullen says the recipe reflects her British background and her interest in East-West fusion and Pacific Rim cooking, popular in her home country and in Australia. It's a mixture of influences from Asian, Southeast Asian, British, Indian and Polynesian cuisines. Butternut squash and apples are a favorite meal combination for Bullen and her family. Her husband, Graham, also from New Zealand, is retired; they have two daughters, Johanna Penney of Cranberry and Fiona Clayton of Chicago. Their only son, Andrew, died a year ago. The Bullens -- who love to cook together -- visited New Zealand in March and are looking forward to hosting their daughters and sons-in-law for Thanksgiving. There are two runners-up: Susan Scheib Przybylek of Sarver for Apple Lasagna, and Annette Smouse of Monroeville for Apple Fiesta Salad. Przybylek came up with her unusual sweet twist on Italian lasagna after making several batches of the savory dish to take to homebound women. "(Lasagna) is easy to prepare, easy to carry out on a visit, easy to cut into squares ... and easy to store." She used puff pastry for the "pasta" and mascarpone cheese instead of the traditional ricotta. "My husband and I live on a 10-acre farm with about 50 apple trees," Przybylek says. "We have a mix of apples -- Rome, Golden and Red Delicious, to name a few. We make cider from our apples, also." Smouse turned in a salad recipe featuring a mix of romaine lettuce, shredded Swiss cheese, cashew halves and dried cranberries topped simply with slices of Granny Smith apple and accompanied by a sweet/tart dressing that includes applesauce. "I can't take much credit for the recipe," says Smouse, a piano teacher and married mother of a son and daughter. "My sister-in-law made it for my family while she was visiting us one year from Wisconsin. She said she got it from her sister, who got it from someone at work." Smouse says she enjoys making healthful recipes and baking and cooking for her family. "Something I do with a lot of baked goods I make is to replace one-fourth to one-half of the oil or shortening called for in a recipe with applesauce. The prepackaged applesauce for school lunches is great for this, as they are one-half cup each." Earning honorable mentions are Barbara Risner of South Fayette and -- a familiar name in competition cooking -- Patricia A. Harmon of Economy. Risner -- who says she never has entered a cooking contest before -- is married and has two teenage daughters. Her younger daughter, Emily, 14, encouraged her to enter her recipe, Curry Apple & Chicken Salad. Risner, a teacher, moved to Pittsburgh from Kansas 18 years ago. "I began collecting recipes after graduating from college," she says. "Growing up in Kansas, I came from a meat-and-potatoes kind of family. I was determined to broaden my culinary horizons when I was on my own. "I like to cook a variety of wholesome, nutritious food for my family and try to use as many fresh vegetables and fruits as I can." Harmon, a retired office clerk and avid recipe "contester," offered Fragrant Painted Baked Salmon with Sauteed Apple Curry. She has participated in many cookoffs and recipe contests over the past 10 years, including going three times to the Pillsbury Bake-Off, twice to the National Beef Cookoff and twice representing Pennsylvania in the National Chicken Cooking Contest. Between her and her husband, Paul, of 30 years, they have three children and five grandchildren. "I developed this recipe several years ago to enter into an Angostura bitters contest," she says. "Unfortunately, it did not win there, but I kept it in my files, and since I liked the combination of the apples with the salmon, I entered it in the Trib's apple contest, as it is a bit unusual." Harmon -- who recently won $300 in a Nebraska pasta contest for a recipe called Neapolitan Meatballs Carbonara and Farfalle Bake -- is a finalist in the Ile de France Cheese Contest for her French Countryside Picnic Burger with Brie and Fire-Roasted Colorful Tomato and Leek Confit. The top seeds Grand prize: Pork Tenderloin Over Curried Apples & Butternut Squash, Mary Bullen, Hampton $100 gift certificate for dinner at Le Pommier ("The Apple Tree") Professional apple peeler-corer DVD of "Pocketful of Miracles," starring Bette Davis as Apple Annie Subscription to Bon Appetit magazine "Apple Cookbook" by Olwen Woodier Apple potpourri Two runners-up: Apple Lasagna, Susan Scheib Przubylek of Sarver; Apple Fiesta Salad, Annette Smouse of Monroeville Each wins: Professional apple corer-peeler $20 Applebee's gift certificate "Apple Cookbook" Apple potpourri Two honorable mentions: Curry Apple & Chicken Salad, Barbara Risner of South Fayette; Fragrant Painted Baked Salmon with Sauteed Apple Curry, Patricia A. Harmon, Economy Each wins: Apple corer-slicer Apple kitchen timer "Apple Cookbook" Apple potpourri

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