Cheese is a star player when it comes to the foodservice arena, and one dish constantly capturing the attention of consumers is the beloved mac and cheese. The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) recently hosted its inaugural virtual foodservice contest, the “Real California Cheese & Mac Challenge,” to inspire professional chefs and culinary students to develop creative Cheese & Mac dishes using Real California dairy products. And now, the winners have been announced!
“All of the chefs demonstrated great innovation with their approach to each recipe. We were pleased with the contest response, which is part of our continued partnership with chefs and next generation culinary professionals to highlight their talents and the versatility and performance of California dairy products as key foodservice ingredients,” said Mike Gallagher, Business and Market Development Consultant. “Chef Moss’ entry is the perfect example of how the classic combination of cheese and mac can be elevated with trending flavors and California cheeses and dairy made with sustainably sourced milk from family farms.”
Mary Grace Moss, from Island View Casino in Oxford, Mississippi, took home the Grand Prize for her Elote Corn-a-Roni recipe, which includes fire-roasted Mexican street corn, crispy bacon, and Real California Queso Fresco and Cotija cheeses and Crema Mexicana. The creative dish is garnished with crushed corn chips, freshly chopped cilantro, sliced green onions, and a hint of fresh lime, yielding a complete fiesta of flavors. In addition to the Cheese & Mac Challenge Champion title, Moss will receive $5,000—which includes $2,000 for being named a finalist and $3,000 for the grand prize—a press release explained.
Other finalists for the event include:
Finalists each received $2,000 for their entries in the competition. For more details on these finalists, click here.
A digital recipe book with detailed recipes of the six dishes is available at the Cheese & Mac Recipe Challenge site.
Cheers to these foodservice aces for their ability to showcase the versatility of cheese!
