Have an original recipe that can be made in 30 minutes? The Partnership for Food Safety Education is challenging youth between 5 and 17 years old to submit a 30-minute original recipe using the safe recipe style guide found at saferecipeguide.org. The Safe Recipe Style Guide was released in 2019 by the Partnership for Food Safety Education and provides specific food safety instructions for recipes focused around handwashing, temperature, cross-contamination, and washing produce. Recent research published in the Journal of Food Protection found when food safety instructions were written out, people were more likely to follow them.

Enter nationally by submitting a thirty-minute main dish recipe and a photo at fightbac.org by August 17, 2020. Winners will receive a cash prize, the recipe will be in a cookbook, and the grand prize winner will have a professional recipe video made in English and Spanish. The recipe will be judged based on creativity, taste, visual appeal, and crowd appeal or how easy it is to prepare in 30 minutes.

Food safety is often ignored at home, and foodborne illness can be mistaken for the flu. Washing hands, washing fruits and vegetables, preventing cross-contamination, and using a food thermometer are all simple steps to prevent food-related illnesses. “There’s hope that including washing hands, washing produce, checking temperatures with a food thermometer and cleaning in recipe instructions, encourage more people to practice safe food handling,” Lisa Peterson University of Illinois Nutrition and Wellness Extension Educator explains. After submitting the recipe and photo nationally, enter to win prizes locally with University of Illinois Extension in Christian, Jersey, Macoupin, and Montgomery Counties. Local winners will also win prizes, and their recipes will be featured locally on Christian, Jersey, Macoupin, and Montgomery County social media pages. Register to win locally at go.illinois.edu/4Htopchefchallenge.

Submit the recipe and photo by August 17, 2020. Local winners will be announced on September 1, 2020.  Feel free to contact Christian, Jersey, Macoupin, and Montgomery County Extension Offices with any questions or visit fightbac.org.

University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this program, please contact our office