INA, Ill. (Dec. 4, 2013) - It’s your turn to make a special holiday dinner for your friends and family. The kitchen is full-stocked and you want to make something to impress your guests. What favorite recipe do you reach for?
High school students across Southern Illinois are invited to reach for their favorite savory or pastry recipes, and submit them to the Rend Lake College Culinary Arts program this spring for a chance to win several prizes and develop their culinary skills.
The “Celebration of Southern Illinois Cuisine Recipe Competition†is open to all high school students, not just those in cooking classes. Students may submit recipes starting January 1. Submissions should include the recipe, photos of the finished dish and an explanation as to why the student selected the cuisine.
Chef Robert Wilson, RLC’s Lead Culinary Arts Instructor, said the deadline for submissions is March 1, with the competition date to be at the beginning of April. More details regarding the competition date will be released as they become available.
“The focus of the recipes is to promote Southern Illinois Cuisine. Think of what your favorite foods are; the ones that you look forward to when your family gets together at special gatherings and holidays,†said Wilson.
Three entrants within each of the two categories - savory and pastry - will be chosen to participate in the April culinary challenge by preparing their recipes at RLC. The winner of the savory category will receive a professional knife kit and the winner of the baking category will receive a professional baking kit, both from Mercer Knifes, event sponsor. All contestants will receive an embroidered Professional Chefs Jacket.
Entrants should email submissions to Wilson at wilsonr@rlc.edu. All submissions will be posted on the program’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/rlculinary. Local chefs will judge the submissions and the top contestants at the challenge.
For more information, contact Robert Wilson at 618-437-5321, Ext. 1332.