Every year Eddie's Aunt Ida enters one of her unusual culinary creations in East Harlem Community Center's annual dessert derby, and every year she wins...nothing. Apparently the judge, acclaimed and feared food critic Bones McDuff just doesn't share her tastes. This year looks like her toughest contest ever, as she goes up against Aunt Rosa's Melon Mountain Muffins and Vincent's Strawberry Skyscraper Souffle. Still, she is determined to win. For one thing, she knows that a good cook doesn't leave anything to chance, and as she follows the advice of food professionals by using charts and graphs to carefully prepare her recipe. Eddie knows that even Miss Toliver would be impressed by this mathematical approach. Maybe this year, Eddie thinks, Aunt Ida could have a chance...that is, that's what he thinks until he discovers that Aunt Ida's latest special ingredient is lima beans. Now it looks like nothing but a miracle could rescue her. But who would have guessed that she has a secret ally---Hector, the dog, the dessert taster used by one of New York's most successful chefs?!
—Carl Smith, FASE Productions