WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. -- Quick Chek, the family-operated chain of more than 100 convenience food store locations in New Jersey and southern New York, has announced Monica Garcia of Rahway, N.J., has been declared the company's first-ever Quick Chek Souper Chef Contest Champion.
Following a month-long submission process calling for original recipes incorporating one of Quick Chek's 14 Fall Menu Soups as a main ingredient, Garcia, along with four other finalists, was chosen to compete in Quick Chek's Souper Chef Contest Cook-off last Saturday at its [image-nocss] South Plainfield, N.J., location. Each contestant prepared and presented her dishes to a team of four culinary experts from the Center for Food Development & Manufacturing Technology at the School for Environmental & Biological Science of Rutgers University and the H. J. Heinz Co.
The results of Quick Chek's Souper Chef Contest included:
First Place: Monica Garcia, Rahway, N.J. The grand prize winner of a set of Gourmet All-Clad Cookware valued at $750 created Pancetta Tomato and Garlic using Quick Chek's Roasted Tomato and Garlic soup. Second Place: Stacey Palermo, Middlesex, N.J. Palermo won a $500 gift card to Bed Bath and Beyond presenting her Scrambled Breakfast Wrap using Quick Chek's Creamy Cheddar Broccoli soup. Third Place: Ellen Sweeney, Hillsborough, N.J. Sweeney created Carrot Nut Muffins using Quick Chek's Roasted Tomato and Garlic soup and won Quick Chek's Soup for a Year prize package valued at $250. Runners-Up: Alison Bond, North Bergen, N.J. Bond created Roasted Tomato and Spinach Risotto incorporating Quick Chek's Roasted Tomato and Garlic soup. She was presented with a $50 Quick Chek gift card. Devon Delaney, Princeton, N.J. Delaney's Warm Brie and Mushroom Steak Sandwiches incorporated Quick Chek's Mushroom with Brie Bisque soup. She also was presented with a $50 Quick Chek gift card.In addition to the prizes each contestant won during the competition, all finalists' original recipes will be published in a Quick Chek brochure to be available at each of the Whitehouse Station, N.J.-based company's retail locations.
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